LGRD Minister Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan said it is not possible to establish an effective and strong democratic system in the country without decentralising power and authority at the grassroots level.

He made the remarks as the chief guest at a workshop held at the Grand Ballroom of Hotel Le Méridien in the capital on Thursday.

The minister said local government institutions must be given the opportunity to operate effectively and independently.

He said the fundamental purpose of the local government system is undermined if people have to travel to the capital to obtain minor services or complete necessary tasks. Arrangements must be ensured so that people can receive the services they need from their own localities.

He said implementation was the most difficult stage of any initiative in Bangladesh. He thanked the local government representatives involved, along with the World Bank and other development partners, for their work in successfully implementing the LCRRP project. He said the success of the project would pave the way for more effective new projects with the World Bank in the future.

Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan said simply taking up and completing a project was not enough; lessons must be learned from its implementation and applied to future initiatives.

He said it was also important to create a sense of ownership of the project among the people for whom it had been undertaken.

Highlighting the limitations of the local government system, the minister said local government institutions in different parts of the country needed to be given greater authority to reduce the pressure of people moving towards Dhaka.

The underlying reasons why people come to the capital need to be examined and addressed, he said. If people from remote areas have to travel to a ministry even to obtain basic services such as birth registration, it reflects structural problems in the country’s governance system.

He said if local government institutions were not given the necessary powers and authority, people would have to turn to the central government for everything. Genuine decentralisation would ensure that people would not have to come to Dhaka to get essential tasks done.

People in every part of the country must be given the opportunity to live in a clean and pleasant environment, with necessary services ensured at the local level, he said. The minister also stressed the need to strengthen local capacity in all areas, from healthcare to civic services.

Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan said local government was the fundamental foundation of democracy. Establishing democracy only at the central level was not enough; its foundation must be built from the grassroots.

He said strengthening local government would further consolidate the foundations of a truly democratic state.

Emphasising women’s political empowerment, he said women needed to be given greater opportunities at the local level. Alongside reserved seats, opportunities should be created in the future for women to contest general seats alongside men and emerge as elected representatives, which would strengthen local government, the democratic system and women’s empowerment simultaneously, he said.

He added that work to strengthen local government had been underway for a long time, which would gain further momentum in the future, and efforts to strengthen the foundations of democracy from the grassroots would continue.