They called for bringing about a structural change in the society and for taking initiatives for formulating policies and strengthening different public institutions to eliminate poverty and achieve higher economic growth.

They were speaking at the eighth expert group consultation meeting on 'Vision 2021 for Bangladesh: Goal 8: To be a more inclusive and equitable society' organised by Nagorik Committee 2006 in Cirdap auditorium in Dhaka. Sultana Kamal, executive director of Ain O Salish Kendro chaired the meeting.

Professor Rehman Sobhan, convener of Nagorik Committee 2006, underscored the need for taking initiatives to bring about a structural change in the society.

"We are far from an equitable society. We have deviated and are exactly moving far away from an equitable society. There are structural problems, which are creating inequalities in the society," he observed.

In terms of policies, laws and institutions, concrete interventions are needed to bring about a change in the present situation, he said.

Pointing to the growing inequality and referring to a possible situation in 2021 he asked, "If a section of the people in the society live with enormous security leaving the rest of the population marginalised, will it be possible to sustain a peaceful and democratic society?"

Sultana Kamal said the people of the country failed to set a compliance level for accountability of political leaders.

Emphasising on social justice, she noted, "There may be large stocks of food in the government godowns but if the poor people die from starvation, how it would be evaluated? So, we have to think about a better distribution system."

Making a presentation on 'Vision 2021 for Bangladesh: Goal 8: To be a more inclusive and equitable society,' Debapriya Bhattacharya, executive director of CPD said, "We must aspire to build a more inclusive and equitable society by 2021 and failure to do so could not only constrict our growth potential but threaten the sustainability of our democracy."

Some of the aspects of vision 2021 had already been there in the election manifestos of the political parties and if the political parties had implemented these after going to power, the initiative taken by the civil society members would not be needed, he said.

People are aware of the commitments made by the political parties but a monitoring system is needed, Debapriya mentioned. "We would hope that they would include these issues in their next election manifestos and implement them."

Atiur Rahman, an economist, observed that rethinking is needed about the present safety net programmes for the vulnerable section of the people.

There is no 'graduation' in peoples' lives after running a safety net programme for six years, he said recommending an independent survey to assess and to find out in which direction the programmes are going on.

"Violence and instability in the society have increased because we have veered away from the spirit of 1971," he observed.

Atiur said the government can take special measures to eliminate inequalities among the people and the regions of the country by following the constitution.

Dr Manzur Ahmad of Brac University said education has emerged as a key that is creating divisions in the society. "Which type of education a person will receive depends on what is the financial ability of that particular individual."

Dr Mahmudur Rahman of Initiative for People's Development said divisions are created among the people in the name of politics.

Without naming the state minister for home affairs, and Jatiya Party chief HM Ershad, he questioned, "How a person in charge of the home ministry can have a discussion with someone who is dishonest and has been convicted?"

Dr Rushidan Islam Rahman of Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) said regional development strategies should be formulated instead of having all the focus on Dhaka to eliminate inequity in the society.

"We have to have a strategy now in place so that we don't need to see child labour and famine-like situation in some particular districts after 10 years," she suggested.

A development strategy for comparatively less advanced regions like Khulna and Rajshahi should be taken, she noted.

Shaheen Anam, executive director of Manusher Jonno Foundation, said people in some particular areas in the country become poor due to land erosion by the rivers and it is a very different type of situation for the human beings. "We need to have a plan now to see that there will be no monga (famine-like situation) after 10 years," she added.

Salma Ali of Bangladesh National Women Lawyers' Association said pressure should be put on political parties so that more female candidates can get nominations in the next general election.

Sanjeeb Drong, general secretary of Bangladesh Indigenous Peoples Forum, said people in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) are still ruled by the military while there is no military rule anywhere else in Bangladesh, which should not be. He said special measures should be taken to address the problems of the indigenous people.

Barrister Tanya Amir, citing the examples of introduction of CNG-driven auto-rickshaws in Dhaka and some newly launched satellite channels, said with a particular political party in power, a section of its leaders grabbed all these big deals. "Can anything be done that will disqualify and stop these people from having unfair access to big deals like these?" she asked.

Nagorik Committee 2006 was formally initiated early this year in Dhaka at a national dialogue titled, 'civil society initiative for accountable development'.

The committee, which identified eight goals for Vision 2021 for Bangladesh, organised separate expert group consultation sessions for each goal throughout August.