Bangladesh’s Rikta Akter Banu Named in BBC’s 100 Most Influential Women of 2024

Since 2013, the British media organization BBC has released a list of 100 powerful and inspirational women worldwide each year. A Bangladeshi woman named Rikta Akter Banu has been included in the BBC’s 2024 list of 100 notable women. Let’s take a closer look at her successful path today.

In December of 2024, BBC 100 Women was released. In five different categories, they released the names of 100 women from around the world. Only one Bangladeshi, Rikta Akter Banu, qualified for the Science, Health, and Technology category. By starting a school for kids with special needs, Rikta Akter Banu, a nurse by profession, overcame numerous obstacles and made the list.



The beginning journey

Northern Bangladesh is home to Rikta Akter Banu, who lives in a secluded place. Her occupation is nursing. At Kurigram’s Chilmari Upazila Health Complex, she serves as the senior nurse. Her daughter Tanvin Dristy Moni, also known as Brahmaputra, came to her lap in 1999. In the neighborhood where Rikta Banu resides, crippled or autistic children are viewed as a curse.

In 2007, she enrolled her autistic and cerebral palsy-affected daughter in school. However, the school administration expelled her three times in three years. After a few days, the teachers at the government elementary school refused to educate Tanveen anymore, despite Rikta Banu’s repeated attempts to get her admitted.

Following several unsuccessful attempts to gain admission to a school, she sold her property and opened a school in 2009. The school was given the name “Rikta Akter Banu Learning Disability School” by her. At the moment, over 300 students are enrolled there. A variety of intellectual and physical difficulties can now attend the school, despite the fact that it was originally intended for students with autism or learning problems.



Lastly

This school, which was established by Rikta Akter Banu in spite of numerous obstacles, has been significant in transforming the unfavorable perception that the public has of children with autism and disabilities. In addition to founding a school, she has helped shape society in ways that benefit children with disabilities. She is among the struggling women who are trying to transform our culture.

Read More: https://bstandard.info/english/bangladeshs-rikta-akter-banu-named-in-bbcs-100-most-influential-women-of-2024/