Interim government Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Saturday laid emphasis on utilising local knowledge and expertise of NGOs in dealing with the flood situation and post-flood activities efficiently, UNB reports.

"NGOs are a power of Bangladesh. We need to materialize the dream of the youth. We can do that. We need to tackle the flood together in a coordinated way," Chief Adviser's Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam quoted Prof Yunus as saying.

The Chief Adviser had a meeting with the representatives of NGOs at the state guesthouse Jamuna that lasted for around two hours.

NGOs that are working together with the government in dealing with the current flood situation attended the meeting. Around 44 NGOs, including small and community level organizations were invited at the meeting. 

The press secretary said the meeting laid emphasis on coordination among all partners and discussed ways to carry out rehabilitation and relief distribution activities in a coordinated way.

“We are impressed to see how people got engaged with the same spirit that was seen during the student movement,” Alam quoted Prof Yunus as saying. 

He also mentioned the remarkable scene at TSC, Dhaka in terms of relief distribution among the affected people.

Alam said issues related post-flood challenges, telecom connectivity and restoration of electricity supply were also discussed.

He said NGOs always play a vital role and they have had a huge role since 1971 in reconstructing Bangladesh.

Adviser Ali Imam Majumder, SDG Coordinator Lamiya Morshed, prominent economist Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya, Rasheda K Chowdhury, ActionAid Bangladesh chief Farah Kabir and Brac Executive Director Asif Saleh, among others, were present.

bd-pratidin/GR