Women will be the driving force of tomorrow’s Bangladesh
Farida Akhtar, Adviser on Fisheries and Livestock, has called on Bangladeshi women to step forward in every sphere of national life.
She asserted that "women's merit, commitment and sincerity put them ahead — they will be the main strength of tomorrow's Bangladesh."
She addressed the gathering as Chief Guest at the July Konya Awards 2025, organised by the July Konya Foundation at the KIB Auditorium in Farmgate.
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From the policy-making perspective, Ms Akhtar said efforts are underway to bring "July daughters" — women shaped by the spirit of the July uprising — to the forefront. She added, "Regrettably, major national platforms still fail to give them their due place." Paying deep respect to the parents of the martyrs, she said, "We stand with your demands. We want a Bangladesh where no mother's arms are emptied and no father has to carry a child's body."
Recalling the 1952 Language Movement, the 1971 Liberation War, and the 2024 mass uprising, she noted that women stood in the vanguard each time. Yet, she said, they were too often sidelined afterwards — "a tendency that is simply unacceptable."
She emphasized that with women comprising 51% of the population, they must no longer be left behind. She insisted that rights are earned, not given, and called on the July Konya Foundation to support women's continued advancement regardless of their backgrounds.
The programme was presided over by Jannatul Naeem Promi, Founder and President of July Konya Foundation. Speakers included the mother of martyr Abrar Fahad, Nusrat Jahan Tumpa (Stamford University student), the mother of martyr Naima Sultana, and Ayman, a fighter injured in the July uprising.
The event honored 100 women with 'July Konya Awards 2025' crests. Their life stories were shared as inspiration for public service, leadership, and humane values.
