Partnerships for a more Tolerant, Inclusive Bangladesh (PTIB) Phase 2

Background 

Partnerships for a more Tolerant, Inclusive Bangladesh (PTIB) is a multi-year initiative to understand and prevent hate speech, digital harm, and associated intolerance and violence in Bangladesh. The project (2023-2024) builds on the foundations of the project’s earlier phase that supported Bangladesh’s efforts to understand sources of intolerance and violence, engage citizens as messengers of positive messages of tolerance and inclusivity, and develop a coherent and contextual strategy to promote tolerance and inclusivity particularly in digital space. As a nation, Bangladesh was born from a liberation war and founded on a tradition of tolerance and plurality. However, intolerant ideologies are spreading in Bangladesh online sphere as an offshoot of its development success in mass digitalization. PTIB’s research in its previous phase has evidence of this growing threat. As internet access continues to rapidly expand, Bangladeshis are increasingly exposed to the digital harms of disinformation, intolerance, hate speech, and the threat of social tension. While there has been no repeat of the large-scale violent attack in 2016 that catalysed the programme’s previous phase, PTIB’s social media monitoring since 2018 has found that intolerant ideologies flourish in Bangladeshi cyberspace. It tries to erode equality by attacking women's rights, marginalizing ethnic and religious minorities, and promoting the persecution of vulnerable groups. Without more concerted pushback, these radical ideas and hateful content will set new norms that could inspire physical violence. PTIB is a unique programme that researches these harms and threats. During its previous phase, PTIB expanded beyond its origins as a narrowly focused prevention on violence extremism project. It adopted a broader set of goals to address foundational issues of intolerance, hate speech, disinformation, and social tensions underwriting violence. International partners and the Bangladesh government strongly supported its shift in emphasis.

Area of Work 

 

  • Research and social media monitoring to understand the drivers of intolerance, hate speech, and violent extremism and its drivers 

  • Mobilizing youth and civil society to promote tolerance, inclusivity and diversity 

  • Prevent online radicalization and promote digital literacy 

 Significant Achievements

 

  • PTIB established three interlocking data collection teams, providing different types of data: Bangladesh Peace Observatory (BPO) for national crime statistics, the UN-led Cox’s Bazar Analysis & Research Unit (CARU) for Rohingya-related incidents, and Social Media Monitoring for online extremism and hate speech trends. Since July 2023, CARU has been handed over to the UNDP Rohingya Response Programme at Cox’s Bazar. 

  • PTIB’s Covid19 data initiative helped in shaping the Covid19 policy conversation in the country to mitigate social tension, stigmatization and discrimination that emerged around the pandemic. 

  • Digital Peace Movement reached 30 M+ people, pushing young people to produce digital platforms that support digital literacy and promote a tolerant or inclusive vision of Bangladeshi society. 

  • The Diversity for Peace campaigns reached 15 M people fostering a sense of national unity in diversity, and giving a voice to the minorities and vulnerable that are often targeted by divisive propaganda of hatred. 

 

Expected Results 

Outputs: 

• Research facility: Knowledge, understanding, and insights into the drivers of conflict, violence, and digital harms improved, and stronger capacity to analyse the sources and nature of disinformation, exclusion, and intolerance in Bangladesh. 

• Citizen Engagement: Evidence-based, multi-stakeholder engagement and communication strategy implemented to promote tolerance, inclusivity, diversity and gender equality in Bangladeshi communities. 

• Government Engagement: Coordination and cooperation with the Government of Bangladesh enhanced to inform their efforts to strengthen inclusivity and tolerance and prevent digital harms. 

Outcome 

• A community of citizens, civil society groups, and policymakers who have become more knowledgeable about and active in promoting tolerance, inclusivity and diversity in Bangladesh 

Objectives

The objective of the project is to develop a community of citizens, civil society groups, and policymakers who have become more knowledgeable about and active in promoting tolerance, inclusivity, and diversity in Bangladesh. 

The project uses cutting-edge research and evidence to help promote authentic and resonant Bangladeshi narratives of diversity and tolerance. So that communities, civil society groups, and policymakers become more knowledgeable about and active in promoting tolerance, inclusion, and diversity in Bangladesh.

Impact

START DATE

January 2017

END DATE

December 2023

STATUS

Completed

PROJECT OFFICE

Bangladesh

IMPLEMENTING PARTNER

United Nations Development Programme

DONORS

Facebook Inc.

Foreign,Commonwealth & Dev.Off.

GOVERNMENT OF DENMARK

GOVERNMENT OF JAPAN

GOVERNMENT OF NETHERLANDS

GOVERNMENT OF UNITED KINGDOM

Global Center on Cooperative Securities

NOR - MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

UN HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES

UNDP Funding Windows

UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

US Department of State

USAID

United nations resident coordinator offi

TOTAL CONTRIBUTIONS

$11,205,472

DELIVERY IN PREVIOUS YEARS

2017$561,850

2018$1,428,990

2019$1,744,214

2020$2,051,342

2021$1,173,380

2022$1,419,840

2023$874,267

2024$28,124

Full Project information