They don't have enough balance in their bank. Even they don't have any safe infrastructure for the bank and have no employee as well. But the bank named 'Community Food Bank' saves the distressed people of Char Gobindha areas in Saghata upazila of Gaibandha district during any calamity. The bank has already achieved the trust of the people in the locality.
The 'Community Food Bank' provides people with rice during any natural disaster like flood and drought in Char Gobindha areas. But, this bank was not established in a day. There was a history in setting up this food bank.
Sources said some women of Char Gobindha village took part in a programme of SKS Foundation, an NGO, at Katlamari in Fhulchari upazila of Gaibandha district in 2017. They were informed that the women of this area became self-reliant through a food bank.
Then, after returning from the programme, those women from the Char Gobindha discussed the issue with other women of their village. Their male friends and guardians also joined the discussion and they had decided to form the 'Community Food Bank'. SKS Foundation is providing all out assistance to them.
The entrepreneurs of the food bank said that members save some rice separately during cooking every day. At the end of the month, they bring their rice and deposit it in the food bank. When they run out of food during calamities such as floods and droughts, they borrow rice from the food bank free of cost. When the scarcity is gone, they return the borrowed rice again.
Hamida Begum is a member of the food bank. She said, "Every day we keep a handful of rice aside while cooking. At the end of the month, we deposit the rice in the food bank. One of our members files these deposits in the ledger. In this way, we have been running the bank for the past five years with the combined efforts of all".
Another member of the bank Samina Begum said there was a lack of food during floods and droughts before the food bank started. "At that time, I used to buy food with taking high interest loans from the money lenders. Since the food bank started, I can borrow my own rice from the bank without any interest. We become self-sufficient in this way."
Shaheen Mia of the village is serving as the treasurer of the food bank. He said, "Seeing the success of the food bank, not only the people of this village, but the people of the surrounding villages have become interested in becoming member of this bank." Popi Begum, secretary of the bank's management committee, said when there is shortage of rice due to flood or drought, almost everyone in the village suffers together. But since the creation of the food bank, we no longer worry about the lack of food, she added.
President of the bank's management committee Shefali Begum said, "There is no officer or employee to run the bank. The work of the bank is carried out in the house of one of our members. So there is no additional cost to run the bank". Local development workers also said that the concept of the food bank set an example of collective efforts of the village people to deal with natural disasters due to climate change.
Saghata Union Parishad Chairman Mosharaf Hossain said, "I know about their initiative. Such initiatives are needed in every area especially in those regions which are innocent victims of climate changes."