Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication organized a day-long Deep Dive on Digital Development for Digital Democracy in Khulna on December 23, 2024, with the participation of the Executive Director and senior officials of civil society organizations and NGOs.

The Deep Dive was held to enable civil society organizations/NGOs to formulate action strategies to integrate digital development issues with their ongoing activities by addressing the existing challenges in the digital development process. Coast Foundation is supporting in organizing the Deep Dive. One of the NGOs, Rupantar, provided overall support as a supporting organization in organizing the Deep Dive in Khulna.

The Deep Dive included four sessions. Four panel discussants participated in each session, and 30 participants expressed their opinions on the relevant issues.

 At the beginning of the deep dive, Swapan Kumar Guha, Executive Director of Rupantar, delivered the welcome speech and moderated the whole session.

After the introduction phase, AHM Bazlur Rahman, CEO of BNNRC, Conducted the first session. In this session, he discussed the workshop's objective, including the context of Digital Development, the four pillars or objectives of digital development (Digital Transformation, Digital Inclusion, Digital Responsibility, and Digital Sustainability), and Governance, Good Governance, and Digital Good Governance.

Four discussants participated in the session. The panelists were Mr. Anowarul Kadir, Executive Director, Sundarban Academy; Mr. Madhab Chandra Dutta, Executive Director, Swadesh, Mr. Kazi Hafizur Rahman, Executive Director, Swabalambi, and Ms. Shamima Sultana Shilu, Chief Executive of Manab Seba O Samajik Unnayan Sangstha,

Regarding the current situation of digital inclusion and digital responsibility in the locality, Mr. Anowarul Kadir, Executive Director of Sundarban Academy, said it should differentiate the responsibility of governance and policymakers due to the proper execution of digital development.

What is the current situation of the local-level stakeholders regarding digital inclusion? To answer this question, Mr. Madhab Chandra Dutta, Executive Director, Swadesh, said digital inclusion is yet equal for the Over Backward Cast (OBC) or left-behind minority, especially for the Persons with Disability (PWD). Yet digital development is limited to getting mobile phones and Facebook in our locality. So, our rural people remain backward regarding digital development and democracy.

Expressing experience on Technology Facilitated Gender-based Violence (TFGBV) through social media among her working partners and stakeholders or beneficiaries, Ms. Shamima Sultana Shilu, Chief Executive of Manab Seba O Samajik Unnayan Sangstha, said recently, I received some cases on TFGBV that occurred through Facebook pages and reported to the law enforcement agency. Even her FB ID was hacked. So, she urges that the role of the law enforcement agency should be strengthened in such cases.

Briefing the situation of digital inclusion in Narial, Mr. Kazi Hafizur Rahman, Executive Director of Shabolombi, said that rural people are absent in digital inclusion due to their limited excess of digital devices and digital literacy. We always blamed our government for that, but we are not trying to build ourselves as digitally literate. Most people treat Facebook as social media only, which is not correct. We should learn about other social media platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, etc., and their proper, positive, and creative uses.

In the 2^nd session, Mr. Bazlur Rahman discussed the digital ecosystem -Digital Society, Rights and Governance, Digital Economy, Digital Infrastructure, and Adoption and its elements in detail. He also focused on the role of the CSOs in coping with the digital ecosystem.

Four discussants participated in the session. The panelists were Mr. Uttam Kumar Das, Dhruba, Mr. Masum Billah, Executive Director, SIAM; Ms. Ajanta Das, General Secretary, Bangladesh Mohila Parishad, Khulna, Mr. Kuntal Boron Mondal, Country Director, Amarok Society.    

Concerning the current situation of the digital ecosystem in the locality, Ms. Ajanta Das said that if we want to address us as change-makers, we should be digitally skilled. The youth generation is now faster and more competent in using social media than senior citizens. Though we are adapting somewhat due to professional work, for example, we had to take classes online, we haven’t been able to reach the required level and have limitations in the implementation stage. As a result, we are absent in some policymaking.

What are you thinking or realizing regarding your role as a CSO in digital financing services like Agent Bank, ROCKET, and bKash? To answer this question, Mr. Masum Billah, Executive Director of SIAM, said I hadn’t considered the digital ecosystem, especially its opportunities and gaps, before today's program.  We all are using e-payment personally and professionally. The e-payment expenses/fees of digital financing services, such as ROCKET, bKash, or other services, are higher than the regular bank sector. We are not considering this, even online theft and safety and security. Now, it is time to raise and act on this issue together.  

How are underserved communities depreciated, considering digital divides, digital literacy, affordability, and connectivity? Answering the question related to his beneficiary, Mr. Uttam Kumar Das said many students were left out of online education during the coronavirus pandemic due to the unaffordability of a smartphone or Internet connectivity. Even a number of widows and seniors couldn’t receive their government allowance because they couldn't afford a mobile set.

In this issue, Mr. Kuntal Boron Mondal said his organization distributed 200 smartphones and 200 Tabs among its beneficiaries during the coronavirus pandemic to continue online education. The program did not achieve markable success due to the beneficiaries' lack of digital literacy and misuse of the devices. The beneficiaries used the MB to oversee the social media platforms instead of online classes. He said that we are responsible ‍for this. Because all our initiatives are project-based and time-bound, we can't support our beneficiaries in the long term. So, it is necessary to be aware of both the supply and demand sides and implement an integrated initiative.

In the third session, Mr. Hiren Pandit discussed the definitions, contents, and harmful impact of Misinformation, Disinformation, and Hate Speech, using examples from daily life. He also discussed the information disorder.

The panelists in the session were Mr. Mostafijur Rahman, Executive Director, UNNAYAN, Mr. S.M Iqbal Hassan Tuhin, Member Secretary, Nagorik Forum, Ms. Sharifa Khatun, Director, Welfare Efforts, and Ms. Meghna Emdad, Executive Director, Pen Foundation  

What do you think, and what would you do to reduce TFGBV? Mr. Mostafijur Rahman said, according to my profession and social activities, TFGBV has become awful today. A group of young people can’t pass a single day without an internet connection and use its negative sides instead of positive, like- e-learning and e-book downloads etc. Another harmful side of social media is anonymous friends. Sometimes, people face blackmail from these anonymous friends. So, I am always aware of the issues for my students and beneficiaries.   

Ms. Meghna Emdad said that her initiative to reduce TFGBV creates awareness among the members of the adolescent club and women entrepreneurs. Sometimes, her organization submits a report to the authorities to block the perpetrator's Facebook ID or other social media platforms.  

How did you inform or train the organizational staff and beneficiaries to combat TFGBV? Mr. S.M. Iqbal Hassan Tuhin said that when they train service providers at every level of the city corporation, they discuss the process and guidelines for blocking the perpetrator's Facebook ID or other social media platforms.

In this issue, Ms. Sharifa Khatun briefed that as social media usage has spread rapidly, preventing its negative aspects has not become easier. She said we discussed cybercrime, cybersecurity, and using smartphones and social media platforms properly and safely in every meeting. Women, from teenagers to older women, also participate in these meetings. We also invite some survivors to share their suffering and experiences with the participants.

At the close of the session, Mr. AHM Bazlur Rahman discussed the Social Obligation Fund (SOF). He said The Social Obligation Fund (SOF) is a funding system in Bangladesh's telecommunications sector used for telecommunications-related projects: Developing the telecommunications sector, Connecting remote areas of Bangladesh, and Addressing the digital divide. The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) manages the fund and requires licensees to contribute 1% of their annual audited total revenue. The fund's size is currently Tk 18 billion. The funds were deposited in Sonali, Agrani, and Janata Bank in various FDR and savings accounts.  He requests the participant's CSOs to raise their voices and advocate to ensure the funds for the actual deprived group. Here, the Right to Information Act would be a helpful tool.  Mr. Bazlur Rahman also discussed on the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and Digital Public Goods (DPGs).

After the lunch break, Mr. Bazlur Rahman conducted the 4^th session on The Principles of Digital Development. The principles of Understand the Existing Ecosystem, Share, reuse, and improve, Design with people, Design for inclusion, Build for sustainability, Establish people-first data practices, Create open and transparent practices, Anticipate and mitigate harms and Use evidence to improve outcomes.

The Principles for Digital Development serve as a compass for those working to promote sustainable and inclusive development in today’s complex digital landscape. Using these Principles as a starting point, policymakers, practitioners, and technologists will be better equipped to ensure that all people can benefit from digital initiatives and the broader digital society. He also discussed the public Hearing System and its process in digital development issues.

In this closing session, the participants recommended/ identified the role of CSOs in ensuring digital development in Khulna. Some of the roles that came from their group discussions are-

·         Through regular activities, create awareness among organizational staff and beneficiaries, including underserved communities, of digital development's positive and negative sides.

·         Raise awareness within the mass community on digital rights and the safe use of digital devices and encourage them to follow the user guidance of digital devices properly.

·         Include digital development as a cross-cutting theme in every project.

·         Actively advocate with the administration, law enforcement agencies, tech solution companies, digital financial service providers, and the media to ensure digital development and combat TFGVB.

·         Take the initiative to organize capacity-building training on digital literacy and digital safety and security for staff and beneficiaries to combat TFGVB.

·         Advocate to reduce the use of unregistered SIM cards.

·         Develop a module/handbook on digital development, related laws, and digital solutions.

·         Encourage and support survivors to use the hotline number and report the cases to law enforcement agencies.

·         Build a community data bank on digital development and TFGBV and create awareness among the youth generation to update new data and use the data bank.

·         Connect the youth generation with creative activities and alternative entertainment instead of online addictions and encourage them to practice their own culture.