Rootless kids set up bank
Unloading goods from his head, Adu, a porter boy working in downtown Dhaka, asked the owner of a shop to pay the money quickly, saying he had to go to his bank. Getting a 10 taka note (one US dollar equals around 70 taka), Adu started running towards his 'bank' near his working place.
The shop owner followed him out of his curiosity. On reaching the fourth floor of a building, he saw several boys and girls like Adu lined up with a small book in hand.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. A girl, Sumi, was taking the money at a counter. She worked as a manager. In a neighbouring room, some young boys and girls were holding a meeting. They were, in reality, accepting deposits and distributing money.
These so-called 'rootless' children are, in reality, running a saving project called the Children Development Bank.
A few boys and girls aged 15-17 first dreamt of the saving project. Almost all of them lost their parents early and they came to the capital in search of some means of survival.
These children, who work as porters in different vegetable markets, sleep in railway stations, bus stops and ferry terminals after toiling the whole day. And most of them manage to save a portion of their small earnings every day.
A country that pioneered the idea of micro-credit, an idea being imported by many other countries of the world, Bangladesh has not developed any banking system for the likes of these poor children. They have no access to the existing banking system of the country either.
The kids had to keep their savings with them and as they slept in the open, thieves, drug addicts and even policemen used to forcibly take away their money. This prompted them to find alternatives.
The fund, however, has no banking character. This bank only keeps the children's money and returns it whenever needed.
Sumi and Akhter now act as top officials of the bank. Every six months, the management changes through a democratic process.
This fund has 11 branches now. Of them, 10 are in Dhaka and one is in Chittagong. The number of depositors is around 1,400. Their total savings stand at about one million taka.