About us

Our Journey

CBDP's journey began in 1978 in Barguna, a southern coastal district of Bangladesh, at a time when inequality, poverty, and disaster vulnerability were deeply entrenched in society. What began as a youth-led movement, powered solely by local resources and collective energy, soon grew into a people-centered development initiative. For 45 years, this people-centered organization has used a rights-based approach to champion equal rights, empower youths (particularly girls), and foster sustainable livelihoods. The founding spirit was simple yet transformative: to create a society free of inequality by fostering hope, dignity, and resilience with an everlasting reach. Today, thousands of empowered youths drive its mission.

Over four decades later, CBDP has remained true to its founding vision while evolving with the needs of time. Today, it stands as a dynamic community-based development organization that empowers women and youth, strengthens social cohesion, and promotes entrepreneurship and resilience for sustainable and inclusive growth.

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Vision, Mission, Achievement and Purpose

✨ Vision:

A society free of inequality, where every individual—regardless of gender, age, or background—can live with dignity, resilience, and opportunity.

🎯 Mission:

To empower marginalized communities, particularly women and youth, by enhancing access to rights-based services, fostering entrepreneurship, and strengthening social cohesion through participatory, innovative, and sustainable development practices.

🏆 Key Achievements

•Over 40 years of grassroots impact in one of Bangladesh’s most vulnerable coastal regions.

•Strengthened women’s leadership in community governance, disaster management, and entrepreneurship.

•Youth-led advocacy platforms established for social accountability, digital inclusion, and democratic participation.

•Ecosystem protection and sustainable fisheries through community-led conservation projects.

•Built strong partnerships with local government, NGOs, donors, and media for accountability and transparency.

🔭 Looking Ahead:

“From rights-based services to entrepreneurship to digital inclusion and disaster resilience, CBDP is scaling solutions that empower women, youth, and vulnerable communities across Bangladesh.”

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Empowering Communities Through Opportunity

Meet our Successor

Dedicated community heroes driving our success

Saiful Islam Rasel

Professional Swimmer and World record holder

Saiful Islam Rasel was 12 when he joined NCTF, the CBDP child advocacy wing. He was always passionate about creating a sustainable future and is always involved in all aspects of physical education, and sports.

Mich Stark

Chief Commercial Officer

COO Mich Stark thrives on challenges and brings years of experience as a Commercial Director in the software industry to our team. His expertise has been instrumental in getting us to where we are today, and he is one of the best minds in the business.

Aline Turner

Chief Technical Officer

CTO Aline Turner is a passionate leader who mentors our in-house developers and looks after our community of thousands of developers.

Iris Joe

Chief Financial Officer

Join us in our mission to protect and preserve the planet's most exceptional wild places.