The workshops on Prioritizing Citizen Issues and Stakeholder Mapping were held on Sunday 18 September 2023 and Monday, 19 September 2023 at Grand Mahal Restaurant in Dhaka. The workshops were participated by stakeholders from surrounding communities of 3 selected rivers of Dhaka. The first workshop held on 18 Sept was participated by stakeholders from the surrounding communities of the river Balu. The second workshop was participated by stakeholders from the sounding communities of the rivers Turag and Buriganga.

There were 88 participants in total in the 2 workshops. The numbers of participants in the first and second workshops were 34 (including 3 experts) and 54 (including 4 experts) respectively. Female participants in the workshops were 7 and 27 respectively.

The workshops had two main objectives. Firstly, to mobilize citizens, CSOs, coalitions, etc, towards persuading political parties/leaders to incorporate the demands and expectations of citizens regarding environment conservation into party manifestos and candidates' commitments. Secondly, the workshops aimed to enhance collaboration between workshop participants, elected officials, and various government and non-government entities. The focus was on promoting effective implementation of environmental protection measures outlined in party manifestos, particularly addressing concerns related to air, noise, and river pollution. The participants got an opportunity to discuss their environmental problems and to prioritize actions that may be taken to solve their problems. They were able to review the election manifestoes of different political parties and select issues to place before the political parties to include in their manifestoes for the next parliamentary election. Also, the people from the different sectors, including representatives from local communities, coalitions, journalists, and CSOs were able to interact with each other in participatory ways and share their views and opinions.

The Project Coordinator of Waterkeepers Bangladesh, Syed Taposh moderated the workshops. Each of the workshops were divided into 3 sessions i.e., opening session, working session, and closing session. The opening sessions were attended by guests and experts. In the opening session, the moderator briefed participants about the project and the workshop objectives, the guests delivered their speeches and inaugurated the program. In the working session, the participants worked in groups and presented their group work findings.

The first workshop held on 18 September 2023 was inaugurated by Mr. Mohammad Ajaj, Chairman of the River and Delta Research Center. The opening session of this workshop was spoken by Mr. Ibnul Said Rana, Chairman of Nirapod Development Foundation, and Mr. Iqbal Faruk, Manager-Research and Implementation of Blue Planet Initiative. The second workshop held on 19 September 2023 was inaugurated by Mr. Ibnul Syed Rana, Chairman of Nirapod Development Foundation. Mr. Mohammad Ajaj, Chairman of River and Delta Research Center, and Mr. Monir Hossain, Chairman of River Foundation spoke in the opening session. Mr. Sultan S Chand, Head of the Program, and Ms. Iffat Ara Falguni, Communications Specialist of Counterpart International attended the opening session of this workshop. Mr. Sultan S Chand spoke in the opening session.

There were two parts of group work sessions – the first part was for prioritizing citizen issues, while the second was for identification of stakeholders and mapping.  Each of the group work was followed by presentations on the findings of group work. As part of the project development of a paper on the analysis of election manifestoes of political parties in Bangladesh is underway. Mr. Foysal Ahmed, an expert on environmental issues briefed participants on the primary findings of his paper on the analysis of election manifestoes of political parties of Bangladesh and the importance of identification of issues for advocacy initiatives.

The group work sessions on identification of citizen issues and stakeholder mapping were facilitated by Syed Taposh. For group work on stakeholder identification and mapping, a matrix on power and relationship was used. To make the presentations colorful and well visualized, poster papers of different colors and markers (permanent & whiteboard) were used. Participants were divided into 3 groups, each group selected 3 persons for moderation, documentation, and presentation. At the end of group work, there were open discussions. The participants in groups identified issues for advocacy for inclusion in the election manifestoes of political parties. They identified stakeholders to work for the protection of the environment.

Photographs