BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman marked the International Day of the Girl Child with a call to make the state a partner—“not an obstacle”—in unlocking every girl’s potential, setting out a series of policy priorities that he said are “rooted in both legacy and intent.”

In a message posted on his verified Facebook page, Rahman urged the nation to celebrate “every girl’s right to dream, to learn, to lead, to live in dignity,” emphasizing that empowering girls is “not just policy—it’s personal.”

He said the BNP’s vision is of a Bangladesh where “every girl has the same freedom, opportunity, and safety that any parent would wish for their own child.”

Rahman tied that vision to the party’s record in government, crediting President Ziaur Rahman with steering the growth of the garment sector into a national engine of opportunity that brought millions of women into formal employment—“earning income, respect, and independence.” He also noted the establishment of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs to institutionalize progress in the lives of girls and women.

Under former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, Rahman said, girls’ education was enshrined as a right. Education was made free up to Grade 10, while Food for Education and Cash for Education programmes kept millions of girls in school—“shifting family destinies, building stronger communities, and creating a generation of empowered women.”

He highlighted the Female Secondary School Assistance Project as a “pioneering” initiative that achieved gender parity in secondary education for the first time in Bangladesh’s history and reduced child marriage—later becoming “a global model for girls’ education and empowerment” replicated in other developing countries. These achievements, he argued, demonstrate “what’s possible when governance honours the dignity of girls and invests in their future.”

Outlining future priorities, Rahman announced six key commitments:

1. “Family Cards” in the name of women heads of households to ensure direct support;

2. SME loans, business training, and financial assistance for women entrepreneurs;

3. Stronger academic and vocational pathways for girls in both rural and urban areas;

4. Increased participation of women in politics, governance, and policymaking;

5. Protections for dignity and freedom, encompassing mobility, expression, and internet access; and

6. Family and social welfare as core policy, covering health, rural empowerment, and jobs with a focus on women and girls.

“We do not speak in empty rhetoric,” Rahman wrote. “We speak from conviction—backed by legacy and intention. For every girl who dreams, we will make the state her partner, not her obstacle.”