Assessing Rural Women’s Satisfaction with Public Services in Bangladesh: Case Study of Provision of Public Services by Civil Society Organization

Subject Areas : Rural Women Studies

Mohammed Nasir Uddin ¹ , Sanjida Akter ² , Iffat Ara Mahzabin ³ , Julius Githinji Muchemi ⁴ , Mst Sharmin Akter ⁵ , Saifur Rahman ⁶ , Zujaja Wahaj ⁷ , Samiha Khan ⁸

1 - Department of Agricultural Extension Education, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Bangladesh
2 - Department of Agricultural Extension Education, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Bangladesh
3 - Department of Agricultural Extension Education, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Bangladesh
4 - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
5 - Department of Agricultural Extension Education, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Bangladesh
6 - Department of Agricultural Extension Education, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Bangladesh
7 - National University of Science and Technology, Pakistan
8 - Department of Development Studies, Daffodil International University

Received: 2023-10-29 Accepted : 2023-12-21 Published : 2024-02-06

Keywords: Assessing Rural Women’s Satisfaction with Public Services in Bangladesh,

Abstract :

Poverty continues to ravage about 10 percent of the world population. Efforts to eradicate poverty in all its forms remain elusive. The historical decline in global poverty rate experienced from 10.1% in 2015 to 8.6% in 2018 and even further down to 8.3% in 2019 reverses to 9.2% in 2019 due to COVID-19 pandemic. Although the poverty rate is projected to decrease to 8.6% in 2022, efforts to lower it further are confounded by the emerging global uncertainties including the Ukraine-Russia war, the global economic crisis, and catastrophes of earthquakes, and adverse effects of climate change. Tackling poverty in a country requires establishing national definitions, setting targets, and undertaking assessments on how the poor access and are satisfied by public services by government and other development actors including civil societies. This requires understanding the socio-economic circumstances of the poor and the factors that influence the ability of service providers to meet the expectations for the poor. This case study examines how rural women are satisfied with the public services provided through civil society programmes within four villages in the northern parts of Bangladesh. It concludes that preconditional public awareness, education, and training coupled with access to financial services can enhance rural women's access to health services. In addition, age, family size, annual income, and farm size are important socio-economic considerations for informing civil society on how to design health services for rural women. Further, civil society needs to improve overall capacity including adequacy of personnel to effectively deliver public services.

References:

1. Ahmed, F. (2017). Farmers' Satisfaction on Agricultural Development in Selected Areas of Bangladesh. [Master’s thesis, Department of Agricultural Extension and Information System, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University] Dhaka. http://www.saulibrary.edu.bd/daatj/public/uploads/00272.pdf.
2. Ahmed, S., & Maitra, P. (2010). Gender wage discrimination in rural and urban labour markets of Bangladesh. Oxford Development Studies, 38, 83-112.
3. Ahmed, M. K., Halim, S., & Sultana, S. (2012). Participation of women in aquaculture in three coastal districts of Bangladesh: Approaches toward sustainable livelihood. World Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 8(3), 253-268.
4. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. (2018). Statistical Yearbook of Bangladesh. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh.
5. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. (2016). Labor Force Survey 2015–2016; Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh.
6. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. (2021). Preliminary Report on Time Use Survey (TUS) 2021. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) and UN Women Bangladesh June 2022. Dhaka: Statistics and Informatics Division (SID), Ministry of Planning, Government of the People‘s Republic of Bangladesh.
7. BFI Unit (2015). NGO/NPO Sector Assessment of Bangladesh. Dhaka: Bangladesh Financial Intelligent Unit.
8. Byron, R. K., & Mahmud, J. (2022). Women do unpaid domestic work 8 times more than men: BBS. The Daily Star. https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/news/women-do-unpaid-domestic-work-8-times-more-men-bbs-3046801.
9. Caffaro, F., Cremasco, M. M., Roccato, M., & Cavallo, E. (2020). Drivers of farmers’ intention to adopt technological innovations in Italy: The role of information sources, perceived usefulness, and perceived ease of use. Journal of Rural Studies, 76, 264-271.
10. Datta, S. K. (2015). Rural poverty and female job participation: A case study of two districts in West Bengal. The Bangladesh Development Studies, 38(1), 55-76.
11. Elias, A., Nohmi, M., and Yasunobu, K. (2016). Farmers' satisfaction with agricultural extension service and its influencing factors: a case study in Northwest Ethiopia. J. Agric. Sci. Tech. 18(1), 39-53.
12. Ensor, T., Chhun, C., Kimsun, T., McPake, B and Edoka, I. (2017). Impact of Health Financing Policies in Cambodia: A 20 Year Experience, Social Science & Medicine, Vol. 177, Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp. 118-126.
13. Faraizi, A., Rahman, T., & McAllister, J. (2014). Microcredit and women's empowerment: A case study of Bangladesh. Routledge.
14. Ferdous, J., & Mallick, D. (2019). Norms, practices, and gendered vulnerabilities in the lower Teesta basin, Bangladesh. Environmental Development, 31, 88–96. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envdev.2018.10.003.
15. Ferdous, Z., Datta, A., Anal, A. K., Anwar, M., & Khan, A. S. M. M. R. (2016). Development of home garden model for year-round production and consumption for improving resource-poor household food security in Bangladesh. NJAS - Wageningen Journal of Life Sciences, 78, 103–110. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.njas.2016.05.006.
16. Fraenkel, J. R., Wallen, N. E., Hyun, H. H. (2012). How to design and evaluate research in education. 8th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.
17. Ganpat, W. G., Webster, N., and Narine, L. K. (2014). Farmers' satisfaction with extension services in the organization of Eastern Caribbean states. J. Int. Agric. Ext. Edu. 21(3), 49-62. https://doi.org/10.5191/jiaee.2014.21304.
18. Hamid, M. I., Datta, S. & Islam M.M. (2020). Problems faced by the sub-assistant agriculture officers (SAAOs) working in the department of agricultural extension. Res. Agric. Livest. Fish. 7(1), 61-73. https://doi.org/10.3329/ralf.v7i1.46832.
19. HIES (2016). Household Income and Expenditure Survey. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistic. Ministry of Planning, Government of People's Republic of Bangladesh. Dhaka.
20. Hossain, Md. A. (2012). Influence of Social Norms and Values of Rural Bangladesh on Women’s Participation in the Union Parishad. Indian Journal of Gender Studies, 19(3), 393–412. https://doi.org/10.1177/097152151201900303
21. ILO. (2013). Guide to the Millennium Development Goals Employment Indicators: Including the Full Decent Work Indicator Set. Geneva: International Labour Office. Available at: URL:https://www.ilo.org/employment/Whatwedo/Publications/WCMS_110511/lang–en/index.htm (accessed February 2023).
22. ILO. (1995). Employment and Poverty in Bangladesh. Rural and Urban Informal Sector, Geneva.
23. International Labour Office (2022). World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends 2022. Geneva. Accessed https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---dgreports/---dcomm/---publ/documents/publication/wcms_834081.pdf
24. Islam, T.M.T., Newhouse, D., Yanez-Pagans, M. (2021). International comparisons of poverty in South Asia. Asian Development Review. 38, 142–175.
25. Jha, A. (2016). 16. United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
26. Kabeer, N. (2001). Paid work women's empowerment and gender justice: Critical pathways of social change. Pathways Working Paper 3. Brighton, UK: Pathways of Women's Empowerment Research Programme Consortium.
27. Kabir, M., Radovic Markovic, M., & Radulović. (2019). The Determinants of Income of Rural Women in Bangladesh. Sustainability, 11, 5842. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11205842
28. Kabeer, N., & Mahmud, S. (2004). Globalization, gender and pov- erty: Bangladeshi women workers in export and local markets. Journal of International Development, 16, 93-109.
29. Lobley, M., Saratsi, E., Winter, M. & Bullock J. (2013). Training farmers in agri-environmental management: the case of Environmental Stewardship in lowland England. International Journal of Agricultural Management. 3. 12-20.
30. Maheen, H., Hoban, E., & Bennett, C. (2021). Factors affecting rural women's utilisation of continuum of care services in remote or isolated villages or Pakistan–A mixed-methods study. Women and Birth, 34(3), 257-265.
31. MDG (2013). Achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all including women and young people, END POVERTY: Millennium Development Goals and Beyond 2015.
32. Mehmood, A., & Abedin, M. Y. Z. U. (2017). Does Knowledge Management Influence the Customer’s Satisfaction and Intention to Quit? Mediating Role of Customer Relationship Management. International Journal of Engineering and Information Systems (IJEAIS), 2017, 1, pp.88 - 94. ffhal-01599100.
33. Mitul, S. S., Huda, F. A., & Asaduzzaman, M. (2023). Understanding livelihood status of fishing communities to the impact of climate change in the coastal areas of Bangladesh. International Journal of Agricultural Science, Research and Technology in Extension and Education Systems (IJASRT in EESs), 13(1), 1-9.
34. OECD (2013), “Citizen satisfaction with public services”, in Government at a Glance 2013, OECD Publishing, Paris.
35. OECD and Asian Development Bank (2019). Government at a Glance Southeast Asia 2019. Accessed from https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/governance/government-at-a-glance-southeast-asia-2018_9789264305915-en.
36. Pandit, J. C. and Basak, N. C. (2013). Constraints faced by the farmers in commercial cultivation of vegetables. J. Bangladesh Agric. Uni. 11(2), 193–198.
37. Patton M. Q. (1990). Qualitative evaluation and research methods (2nd ed.) Sage.
38. Paek, S.C., N. Meemon and T.T.H. Wan (2016), “Thailand’s universal coverage scheme and its impact on health-seeking behaviour,” Springer Plus, Vol. 5/1, Springer, New York.
39. Rashid S.M.M. & Islam M.R. (2016). Problems faced by farmers in application of e-agriculture in Bangladesh. J. Agric. Eco. Rur. Dev. 3(1), 079-084.
40. Rahman, S. (2019). Farmers' Satisfaction with Agricultural Extension Services Provided by the Upazila Agriculture Office. [Master’s thesis, Department of Agricultural Extension Education, Bangladesh Agricultural University], Mymensingh.
41. Rasul, G., & Thapa, G. B. (2004). Sustainability of ecological and conventional agricultural systems in Bangladesh: an assessment based on environmental, economic and social perspectives. Agricultural Systems, 79(3), 327–351. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/S0308-521X(03)00090-8
42. Sattaka, P., Pattaratuma, S. & Attawipakpaisan, G. (2017). Agricultural extension services to foster production sustainability for food and cultural security of glutinous rice farmers in Vietnam. Kasetsart Journal of Social Sciences, 38: 74-80.
43. Silva, D. K., & Jayathilaka, R. (2014). Gender in the context of disaster risk reduction; a case study of a flood risk reduction project in the Gampaha District in Sri Lanka. Procedia Economics and Finance, 18, 873-881.
44. Singh, G., & Poutiainen, T. (2022). Devaluing women's unpaid care work is costing us all. The Daily Star. https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/views/news/devaluing-womens-unpaid-care-work-costing-us-all-3205266.
45. Tanwir, M., & Safdar, T. (2013). The rural woman's constraints to participation in rural organizations. Journal of International Women's Studies, 14(3), 210-229.
46. TMSS. (2006). TMSS's Annual Report, Thengamara Mohila Sabuj Sangha, Bogra, Bangladesh.
47. TMSS. (2020). TMSS's Annual Report, Thengamara Mohila Sabuj Sangha, Bogra, Bangladesh. https://tmss-bd.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Annual-Report-2020.pdf.
48. Uddin, M. N., Liza, N. Z., Sarker, M. A., Mukta, M., & Rana, M. M. (2021). Women’s Access to Nutritional Programmes in Rural Bangladesh: A Comparative Study between World Vision Beneficiaries and Non-Beneficiaries. International Journal of Agricultural Science, Research and Technology in Extension and Education Systems (IJASRT in EESs), 11(3), 151-162.
49. United Nations. (2022). The Sustainable Development Goals Report. https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2022/The-Sustainable-Development-Goals-Report-2022.pdf
50. World Bank (2014). World Bank Annual Report, Washington DC.
51.
52. World Economic Forum. (2016). Global Gender Gap Index Bangladesh. http://reports.weforum.org/ global-gender-gap-report-2016/economies/#economy=BGD.
53. World Bank (2022). Retrieved from: https://tradingeconomics.com/bangladesh/population-female-percent-of-total-wb-data.html#:~:text=Population%2C%20female%20(%25%20of%20total%20population)%20in%20Bangladesh%20was%20reported,compiled%20from%20officially%20recognized%20sources.
54. World Bank. (2022). Income and Economic Growth: World Bank Global Economic Outlook. Accessed fromhttps://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/099446111082226091/pdf/IDU0a4caf8f4049ec0470509a0a063af14e1f9c1.pdf
55. World Data Atlas. (2018). Retrieved from https://knoema.com/atlas/Bangladesh/topics/Poverty/Income-Inequality/GINI-index.
56. Zhou, X., Chen, S., Chen, L., & Li, L. (2021). Social class identity, public service satisfaction, and happiness of residents: the mediating role of social trust. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 659657.