Women Deliver is pleased to announce the??Social Rising for Dowry and Early Marriage Prevention??project by S M Shaikat from Bangladesh as the winner of the?C-Exchange?Seed Grant competition. After almost 1,500 people voted, S M Shaikat will receive an additional US$500 to implement his project to monitor and prevent early marriage and dowry violence. This competition was held with the support of the Women Deliver C-Exchange, a Women Deliver-led private sector forum that includes Johnson & Johnson, WomanCare Global, Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, GE, HRA Pharma Foundation, MTV Staying Alive Foundation, and Merck (known as MSD outside the United States).
The first of its kind in Bangladesh, the Social Rising for Dowry and Early Marriage Prevention program will help 650 young people advocate against child marriage by creating youth led ?watchdog? groups.The project will use cell phones and online networking to track and report dowry and child marriage cases to local law enforcement agencies.
The winner was announced in Women Deliver?live tweet chat?on March 21st in partnership with the Devex #SheBuilds campaign.
Several members of the 10 Young Leaders who received a seed grant reaffirmed their commitment to implementing projects to better the lives of girls and women in their communities. Seed Grant? recipients were selected from a group of outstanding young advocates under the age of 30, known as the Women Deliver 100 Young Leaders. The Women Deliver C-Exchange Seed Grants were funded by Johnson & Johnson and WomanCare Global.