BRAC Bank has organized a learning session for its employees on gender prejudices for bringing about positive changes both in the society and at work.

The session — part of TENDERtalk – a series of BRAC Bank’s internal learning sessions — was organized on a digital platform today, April 6, 2021, with more than 650 participants. The objective of this session was to sensitize the employees on the third gender issues, a press release said.

Tashnuva Anan Shishir said: “I had to prove to the society that I exist. Today, I feel honoured that BRAC Bank invited me to talk about my journey with its senior executives. I appreciate this change-making initiative and I’m hopeful that this will further open the path for social inclusion of the trans-persons in the formal job markets”.

She is now pursuing a Master’s in Public Health at BRAC University, where she is the first trans-person to receive a scholarship to obtain a master’s degree. She has been a leader in various Bangladeshi NGOs supporting the trans-persons, such as Bondhu Social Welfare, TransEnd, the National Human Rights Commission of Bangladesh, Rethink, and her platform, Shree: Voice of Sexual Minority.  

BRAC Bank’s Head of Human Resources Akhteruddin Mahmood said: “BRAC Bank is a pioneer in taking change-making initiatives, be it financial inclusion of the CMSMEs, or the social inclusion of the less fortunate people. Earlier, we employed acid victims in our workforce and we’re planning to employ the trans-persons in our bank. Tashnuva’s struggle and success have made us confident towards the inclusion of all walks of people in our bank”.

TENDERtalk is a BRAC Bank HR-initiated series of dialogue for the employees to lead many changes in the society. The HR team invites experts and activists to TENDERtalk and the invitees share their knowledge and experiences with BRAC Bank’s people.