First batch of OIST graduates

Rabiul Islam, head of Oasis for Posterity proudly presented news about the first batch of graduates from OIST - Oasis Institute of Science and Technology.

“From OIST, 18 students were eligible for 8th semester or graduation semester examinations. Seven from the Civil Engineering Technology program, and 11 from the Computer Technology program. All the students are waiting for publication of final results. Our motivation to students is ‘Never stop studying after your diploma. Take a job, start earning money, but try to achieve higher degrees so you have a dynamic career throughout your life.’

“A few students are preparing for the national exam so they can qualify for high school teaching jobs (specially two female students from computer technology and one male student from civil engineering). We are providing guidance and will organize coaching sessions. One of our former teachers, who left OIST for a similar job, is also helping them.”

In future blog posts, we will share biographies of the graduates.

Momena’s Story: A Life of Struggle, a Need for Continued Care

Momena’s life has been shaped by hardship from an early age. She was married off in childhood, before she had the opportunity to grow, study or build a life of her own. Instead of security, her first marriage brought suffering and then divorce even before she had a child.

After that, Momena was married off again and at 15 years of age, became the wife of a 60-year old man. They were blessed with a daughter, but after only a few years, her second husband died leaving Momena alone again. Momena and her daughter then lived on someone else’s land. Poverty, uncertainty and social vulnerability continued to follow her.  

Unable to bear the burden of survival, Momena also had to marry off her daughter in childhood. Momena stayed with her daughter’s new family for a few years, but there was not enough income or proper accommodation to support Momena. Eventually, she was forced to leave.

Today, Momena lives alone in a small hut built with the support of kind-hearted local people. She works whenever her health and circumstances allow but regular work is difficult for her. She suffers from high blood pressure and diabetes. Even arranging daily food is a struggle yet she needs regular medication to remain able to work.

Oasis for Posterity (OfP) is standing beside Momena by providing regular medication support. This helps her manage her health, continue working when possible and earn something for her daily food. For Momena, medicine is not just treatment. This timely and consistent support helps Momena survive, work when possible, and live with dignity and hope.

Momena’s story reflects the painful realities faced by many vulnerable women in Bangladesh: child marriage, poverty, widowhood, displacement, illness and loneliness. We are grateful to our donors and well-wishers. You enable OfP to support people like Momena, who have very little to depend on except compassion from others.

Why learning assessments matter

BHP Director John Richards has published research findings on education in South Asia: “Primary education is the foundation of secondary and post-secondary education. Without it, human capital remains weak, so most teenagers South Asia remain illiterate. With two Bangladeshi colleagues, I have just completed a second edition of a book for University of Toronto Press summarizing the weakness of primary and lower secondary education in much of South Asia.”

John has also published numerous articles for academic journals about education in developing countries. In one article he quoted Jim Yong Kim, head of the World Bank in the 2010s: ‘Schooling without learning is a terrible waste of precious resources and of human potential.’ Given the impact for population health and other development indicators, Kim insisted on assessments of national literacy rates. BHP is now preparing the third in-depth assessment of learning at OfP’s Bluebell School to compare with other primary schools in the district. (You can read about our second assessment in 2024.)