BANGLADESH INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL AND STRATEGIC STUDIES

BIISS-Saferworld Collaborative Programmes (2007-2008)

BIISS undertook several collaborative research projects with Saferworld, a UK based international non-governmental organization working on security and conflict issues over the period 2007-2008 which included:

• A series of projects related to Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) and Improvised Explosives Devises (IED) Proliferation in Bangladesh. The objective was to improve conditions for sustainable development through increasing community security and reducing levels of armed violence by supporting initiatives and mechanisms to control SALW and promote innovative, effective and accountable security provision in Bangladesh.
• BIISS assisted Saferworld in conducting a series of Key Informant Interviews with government and non-government officials in the Human Security Survey in Bangladesh carried out by Saferworld in 2007. The report was published by Saferworld in 2008. The aim of the Survey is to conduct an accurate assessment of the nature and extent of community insecurity and armed violence in Bangladesh.
• Another collaborative work between the two organizations is a research project on the Links between Climate Change and Security in Bangladesh. The study, carried out in 2008, assessed the impact of climate change on security in Bangladesh, and the likely patterns of environmentally induced migration within Bangladesh and to neighboring countries as a result of climate change.

BIISS-Ford Foundation Collaborative Programme on Human Security (2007-2008)

The purpose of the regional project sponsored by the Ford Foundation, New Delhi, was to catalyze mainstreaming discourses on non-traditional security (NTS) issues. The specific objectives of the projects were: to provide an intellectual understanding of the concept of human security through synthesis of academic discourse, local/indigenous scholarship and practices and policies; to provide suggestion for capacity building, human development, institutional capacity, enabling environment - for policy making on human security; to contribute to the building of standards and norms of measuring human security; and to build a system of monitoring human security index/audit. With these aims in view, 10 (ten) collaborative research works were commissioned on competitive basis from the South Asian countries for about three years. Each collaborative work was eventually published in book forms.

Following ten books are the outcome of the collaborative programme:

• Violence, Terrorism and Human Security in South Asia by Ajay Darshan Behera
• Evolving Security Discourse in Sri Lanka: From National Security to Human Security by Gamini Keerawella,
• Nepali State, Society and Human Security: An Infinite Discourse by Dhruba Kumar
• Women and Human Security in South Asia: The Cases of Bangladesh and Pakistan by Saba Gul Khatta, Kiron Habib and Foqia Sadiq Khan
• Pakistan: Haunting Shadows of Human Security by Jennifer Bennett.
• Human Security in Bangladesh: Discourse, Practice and Proposition by Shaheen Afroze and Abul Kalam Azad
• Human Security in India: Discourse, Practice and Policy Implications by Mahendra P. Lama
• Human Security Index in South Asia: Exploring the Issues by Abdur Rob Khan and A. K. M. Abdus Sabur
• Ethnicity, Ethnic Conflict and Human Security: The Cases of Bangladesh and Pakistan by Mohammad Humayan Kabir and A. T. Salahuddin Ahmed and
• Human Security in India: Health, Shelter and Marginalization by Monirul Hussain.

As a follow-up of the project, an Asia-wide NTS-Asia Network has been launched by the Raja Ratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang University of Technology, Singapore, and BIISS is a founding member of the network.

Bangladesh Human Security Assessment 2007

BIISS undertook a research project titled “Bangladesh Human Security Assessment 2007” in collaboration with Department for International Development (DFID), Bangladesh. The objective of the project was to provide qualitative and quantitative analyses of the levels, trends and drivers of human insecurity in Bangladesh, and identify significant policy implications for Government, Donors and Civil Society in Bangladesh. The project included: Inception Workshop at the end of November 2007 to obtain feedback on research design from experts and practitioners; Six Divisional Workshops in divisional headquarters to map country-wide human insecurities during January-February 2008; Household Survey of 3000 nationally drawn samples during May-June 2008 from 42 upazilas and 8 urban spots and Focused Group Discussion, Key Informant Interview and Case Study in the sample areas during June-July 2008.

Regional Stability: The Role of Small States (2003)

BIISS conducted this research project in 2003 with assistance from the Asia Foundation, Dhaka. The objective of the project was to explore the role of small states like Bangladesh in South Asian context in promoting peace and stability. Six comprehensive papers were commissioned with six renowned scholars in the country. The draft papers were deliberated in brainstorming sessions followed by a Regional Workshop in August 2003 where scholars from the regional countries deliberated on the findings of the study.

WTO : Bangladesh's Capacity Building and Coping with Differential Impacts.

BIISS commenced the research project with assistance from the Friedrich Naumann Foundation (FNF), a German foundation with its South Asian office in New Delhi and a liaison office in Dhaka. The objective of the research project was to critically analyse the institutional preparedness and challenges in implementing the WTO rules including the challenges emanating from phasing out of the MFA facilities after 2004.

Research on Free Trade Option for Bangladesh (2002)

The research project undertaken in late 2002 at the initiative of BIISS aims at exploring the feasibility of Bangladesh’s entering into bilateral free trade arrangements with her neighbours in the SAARC region. Under the project, Dr. Ayubur Rahman Bhuyia, Professor of Economics, University of Dhaka, developed a comprehensive paper on “Bilateral Free Trade between Bangladesh and India” while Prof. Ismail Hossain of the Department of Economics, Jahangirnagar University, Savar, drafted a paper on “Bilateral Free Trade of Bangladesh with Pakistan and Sri Lanka”. The papers were later submitted to the Government.

Dialogue on Interactions with the Bordering States on India (1997-2001)

The Institute initiated a series of dialogues with scholars and policy makers from the bordering states of India with the objective of better appreciation of each other's perceptions. The first dialogue was held in Dhaka in February 1997 with participants from West Bengal, Assam and Tripura. The second dialogue was held in Calcutta during August 2000 and the third one took place in Dhaka in August 2001.

Collaborative Programme on Bangladesh-South East Asia Relations (1998-2001)

BIISS has been part of a triangular cooperation with the Ford Foundation and the Singapore-based Institute of South East Asian Studies (ISEAS). Under this collaboration, two BIISS senior researchers were offered three-month fellowship to undertake research on Bangladesh's relations with South East Asia. At the end of three-year period during which ten scholars from Bangladesh availed of the fellowship, a joint seminar was held in Dhaka in May 2001 to evaluate the fellowship programme. A second component of the cooperation programme brought six scholars from the South East Asian countries to deliberate in different forums in Dhaka under the aegis of BIISS.

Integrated Coastal Zone Management in the Bay of Bengal: National Capacity Building for Bangladesh (1996 – 2000)

The first phase of a collaboration between BIISS and the Oceans Institute of Canada (OIC), Dalhousie University, Canada began in December 1996 with the visit of a delegation from the OIC. The first workshop was held in January 1997 in Dhaka with participation of OIC and concerned scholars and institutions from Bangladesh. It was followed by a training workshop on Legal and Technical Aspects of Maritime Boundary Delimitation at BIISS on 27-29 July 1998 with participation of OIC experts as resource persons. A delegation from the OIC visited BIISS during April 17-18, 2000 to work out the details of the second phase of the collaboration.

UNDP/ ESCAP Networking of Trade-related Institutions

The Institute has been part of a local network of trade related organizations in a programme in which the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) is a focal point institution.

Collaborative Study on SAARC-Japan Cooperation (1995 – 1998)

After successful completion of a major collaborative study on Schemes of Regional Economic Cooperation Aimed at Fostering Economic Growth in South Asia: The Role of Japan, in 1995-96, the Institute commenced another investigative work on Assistance for SAARC Chambers of Commerce for Regional Cooperation of the Member Countries: Bangladesh, Bhutan and Maldives in cooperation with International Development Center of Japan (IDCJ), Tokyo during 1997-98.

Degree Programmes in International Relations:

The Institute introduced a fellowship programme, known as BIISS Scholarship on International Relations (BSIR) for M. Phil and Ph. D. in International Relations in collaboration with the University of Dhaka. Funded in collaboration with the Ford Foundation, the programme was aimed at promoting research on international and strategic studies in Bangladesh, and targeted particularly to the young scholars and fresh university graduates. The fellowship included a monthly stipend, book allowances and reimbursement of tuition fees.