SHIDHULAI SWANIRVAR SANGSTHA

Operating school-boats since 2002



ABOUT US



Shidhulai Swanirvar Sangstha is registered
as a non-profit organization with
the NGO Affairs Bureau of Prime Minister’s Office
of Bangladesh Government.



Where We Work



Shidhulai Swanirvar Sangstha is working for the disadvantaged people in the flood-prone regions in northwestern Bangladesh. Here many people have no land with which to support themselves and no access to education, information and training. Every year during the rainy season, which lasts from June to October, plenty of rainfall and water from upstreams cause hundreds of rivers to swell and overflow onto the lands, forcing schools to close. Libraries, clinics, playgrounds and other community services are not available in the flood-prone areas. Girls are not allowed to move around freely, which affects their enrolment to the school. The country has the fourth highest rate of child marriage in the world. Women can not make their own decisions about their health and well-being.



How We Started




Mr Mohammed Rezwan grew up in the country’s northwest, where his organization operates. He saw many of his friends and relatives were denied access to education due to the monsoon. It was difficult for him to accept the situation. Later he studied Architecture. He considered dedicating his life to building schools and hospitals, but then he realized they would be under water soon. He thought of boats. But he did not find any one to invest in his ideas on floating community. Then he started working as a social entrepreneur and founded the non-profit organization Shidhulai Swanirvar Sangstha in 1998.



Mr Rezwan started the organization with US $500 of his own school scholarship money and savings, and with an old computer. He had no experience with writing grant proposals, but just researched on the internet and wrote emails and submitted proposals to hundreds of organizations he thought could help. It took him four years to generate funds to build the first floating school in 2002.



"If the children can not come to the school because of poor communication,
then the school should go to them".



Mohammed Rezwan, FRSA



About Our Founder



MOHAMMED REZWAN, Executive Director



Mr Rezwan developed, expanded, and sustained floating schools over 19 years. Drawing on his architectural expertise, he designs spaces on boats that successfully accommodating the need of a school, library, playground to training center. He develops graphics and designs that are used in distance-learning tutorials and animated handouts making curriculum easily understandable for patrons.


He served on international advisory committees dealing with education, technology, and environment. He regularly presents at global conferences on his innovations, climate change, green energy, and education. He gave keynote speeches at 5th annual International Conference on Education and New Learning Technologies (EDULEARN13) in Barcelona, and 2015 Rotary District 5330 Conference in Cathedral City.


In 2019 Mr Rezwan was recognized as one of the 20 Earth Heroes of the world by the British book “Earth Heroes”. His floating school design was exhibited at the “Design with the other 90%” exhibitions, organized by Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in United States. Also, his design was showcased at the “Bengal Stream” architectural exhibition in Switzerland and France.


He has received international awards including the Curry Stone Design Prize 2017, Sri Sathya Sai Awards for Human Excellence 2016, and Rotary District 5330 Service with Passion Awards 2015.

He is an alumnus of the U.S. Department of State's International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP).

He is a Fellow of The Royal Society of Arts (RSA).



Shidhulai Swanirvar Sangstha
GPO Box No. 876, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh
© 2021 Shidhulai Swanirvar Sangstha