International women's day: Nitu's story

Nitu has a shining smile and bright eyes that catch your attention long before you notice her crutches and the way she carefully holds her left leg. She is bright and attentive at school, sitting at the front of the class and always ready to answer a question from the teacher.

But Alam Taz, Nitu’s mother, has witnessed the prejudice her daughter faces. Nitu broke her leg when she was younger and it didn’t heal properly. “Nitu cries to me that people call her names and that at school everyone laughs at her,” she says. “This is so difficult for me to hear.”

Around a tenth of people in Bangladesh have disabilities. And whether it’s a severe physical or mental illness or a visual impairment correctable with glasses, many people suffer prejudice and discrimination.

Our partner Action on Disability and Development (ADD) runs self-help groups for people with disabilities. The groups are helping girls like Nitu, 10, to assert their rights and become valued members of society.

With ADD’s support, Nitu is now able to walk home from school, and has become adept at using the crutches her parents saved up to buy. A couple of friends join her and they laugh and chat as they walk along. “I am at the top of my class at school, “says Nitu. “I study a lot. I always want to be the top scorer, so I study more and more. I go to the disabled group once a week. I like going, it’s good to talk to other people who are disabled and are also confident.”

Alam Taz is so proud of her daughter’s progress. And she’s also getting help and advice from ADD meetings. “Going to the group meetings helps to give me the strength to carry on. Her friends in this group are positive role models. She no longer lets her disability hold her back. She has such a good mind. I feel proud that even with her limitations she is doing so well.”