A hero of the pandemic


"I come from a conservative background, where women played a subservient role. There is a saying that women of Mollabari cannot do anything on their own. However, this changed when I came into contact with some people who were working for community development. They inspired me to work for numerous voiceless women, and over the course of time, I have united 1,05,000 families through 425 Community Development Committees (CDCs)," says Kohinoor.
Kohinoor Akter, now 42 years of age, was initially unable to continue her education after SSC. Despite the many barriers that stood in her way, she took inspiration from the people she met through the CDC and continued to work for her community.
Now, Kohinoor, a mother of two, is an inspiration for thousands of women in Chattogram.
During the pandemic, she worked extensively in her area by taking initiatives to curb the spread of Covid-19, establishing 374 hand-washing stations and distributing over 66,000 bars of soap to the local people.
Moreover, she has put relentless efforts to prevent child marriages and domestic violence.
"Whenever we are informed about a child marriage being arranged, we immediately go there and try our best to convince the girl's parents about the problems and challenges of child marriage. Our main goal is to ensure that the young girls can continue their education and become self-reliant. However, this does not always work, in which case we inform the local commissioner to take legal measures to stop it," shares Kohinoor.
Due to her hard work and perseverance, Kohinoor was elected as the president of the town federation. She works with the CDC and helps them in their planning activities. Kohinoor also created a Facebook group and website to provide information and services to members of the town federation.
As a representative of women in leadership, she participated in an international seminar on housing initiatives in Dubai. Under her leadership, the town federation secured four contracts estimated to be worth around 1.25 crore taka.
"I am honoured to have the appreciation of my community," says Kohinoor, "In the future, I hope more women like me come forward to combat poverty, illiteracy and the patriarchy, so that we can make the lives of women in the country better."