Making a difference

Source: Van Teutem S and Hasell J (2025) - “Global inequality is huge — but so is the opportunity for people in high-income countries to support poor people” Published online at OurWorldinData.org.

This was a surprising read from Our World in Data, one of our favourite development organizations. The message was simple and familiar: Globally, there is vast inequality. This also means that we who live in rich countries — even with an average income — have an extraordinary position to do good.

Students at Bluebell Primary School #2

For me, the surprise in this well-researched article was to discover myself in the richest 10%. As the authors write, “When we think of global inequality, it's easy to picture “the rich” as someone else — those with garages full of sports cars or taking private trips to space. …For a one-person household, an annual post-tax income of $20,000 puts you in this category.” So, the richest tenth of the world includes more than half of the population in rich countries, like the Netherlands, the US, or Canada.

The article posed the question, “How much would it take from the richest 10% of people in the world to match that of the poorest 10%?” The answer was less than 2 cents out of every dollar, less than one-fiftieth of annual income, or one week of income in a year. “Realizing this is both sobering and empowering. It means we're not just observers of global inequality — we're participants with big levers to act on it. We can reduce it.” 

There are many excellent NGOs in Canada and elsewhere doing just that. Supporters of OfP have demonstrated the amazing power of their contributions to change lives. As OfP Founder Rabiul Islam has said, “Together, we are not simply providing education and healthcare. We are building hope, strengthening communities and standing beside people in their times of need.” We thank all our donors and supporters for making this journey possible. We hope you feel pride and fulfillment in reading about the impact we create together through OfP. If you would like to make a donation please contact us at BangladeshHealthProject@proton.me

New website for OfP

Screenshot of OIST from Google Street View

OfP Founder Rabiul Islam writes, "The new OfP website is now live: https://ofp.ngo/. Since I already had all the necessary data and information, I was able to develop the site in just one day using Claude.ai, without writing a single line of code. The website is performing very well, with an A grade and 96% performance score according to GTmetrix."

The website is engaging with lots of photographs and information on all the programs that OfP delivers. Rabiul has written, "Each program here grew out of a real conversation with the communities we work in. None of it happens in isolation, education opens up health, health supports income, income builds resilience." The "Notes from the Field" are short, honest dispatches about the work — what's going well and what's harder than it looks.There is a donation form for those who choose to support OfP efforts.

In addition to the fresh design and additional information, BHP supporters may also enjoy using the Google Maps feature to "tour" the Jaldhaka-Dalia Road where OfP is headquartered. This is an agricultural community. Oasis Institute of Science and Technology stands where once there were farmers' fields. The neighbourhood has built up somewhat with tea-stalls and small shops close to OIST, but because this is rural Bangladesh small farms are never far away, including this one directly across the road!

Across the street from OIST

Mabia’s journey back to hope: How timely care can save a life

Mabia is around 35 years old, but her appearance shows the effect of many years of struggle. She was married off in childhood, long before she could understand what family life, responsibility, and motherhood would mean. Today, she is the mother of one son and two daughters. Her daughters were also married off before the age of 15, and Mabia is already a grandmother to several grandchildren. Mabia’s husband is unable to work and earn a livelihood for the family. As a result, the family depends mostly on her only son, who is around 15 years old. At an age when he should be studying, growing and dreaming about his future, he sometimes catches fish, pulls rickshaw, or travels to the city for construction work. His small and uncertain income supports Mabia and her husband.

For a long time, Mabia has been suffering from anemia and gynecological complications. She needs regular medicine and proper medical care to survive and live with some stability. But for a family living in such hardship, regular medication is almost a luxury. Her teenaged son was already doing more than a child should have to do and still medical treatment remained beyond their reach. With no access to proper diagnosis and treatment, Mabia used to consult a local healer for herbal remedies. The healer, unaware of the actual nature of her illness, could not provide the care she truly needed. As months passed, her condition continued to worsen, and her life became increasingly fragile.

At a very critical stage, Mabia came to Oasis for Posterity [OfP]. OfP arranged medical consultation with a doctor, supported her to understand her diagnosis, and helped her begin regular medication. This intervention brought a meaningful change in her life. She is still not strong enough to work very much but she is now living with better health, more comfort, and renewed hope.

Mabia’s story is not only about illness. It is about poverty, child marriage, child labor, lack of access to healthcare and the quiet suffering of women who are often left unseen. It is also a story of how timely support can prevent a vulnerable life from falling further into crisis.

We are deeply grateful to our donors and well-wishers. Your support enables OfP to stand beside people like Mabia when they have nowhere else to turn. Through your kindness, a woman who was once struggling without proper care is now receiving treatment and living a better life. Together, we can continue to bring dignity, healing and hope to Mabia and many others like her. Your support helped Mabia when she needed it most. Thank you.

We spend most donations for Bangladesh Health Project and Oasis for Posterity on our major programs in education and health care. A very small portion is used to help Jaldhaka residents who experience extreme conditions, the "ultra-poor". This story is about one such person.