Most Bangladeshis live in rural villages, and their first loyalty is to their village. A key lesson learned by The Hunger Project as it worked to facilitate the process of community-led development is that the higher tiers (ward, union, upazila) do not elicit the same level of commitment, creativity and engagement of citizens that they bring to their village.

Our Localization Strategy creates four civil society structures at the village level:

• Youth Unit: Youth leaders organize a “Youth Ending Hunger” unit based either in the local school or the village, who organize social enterprise, coaching centers and other youth-serving
• GGS (Self-help groups) PAR Facilitators organize the ultrapoor into groups that analyze and solve their own extreme poverty through group savings, occupational skills training and enterprise formation.
• Village Development Team (VDT) made up of animators, women leaders, youth leaders, PAR facilitators and influential individuals from the village who have at least participated in a Vision, Commitment and Action workshop.
• Village Assembly: Like the more formal ward assemblies, this is a gathering of the entire citizenry for setting priorities and mobilizing collective action.

THP has therefore introduced Village Assemblies and formation of Village Development Teams as the starting point for rural development planning and action.

[add process of forming the VDT, GGS, Youth Unit and holding Village Assembly]