BRAC retains its position as the top NGO of the world for the 5th consecutive year

Bangladesh-based international development organization BRAC has retained its position as the top NGO of the world for the 5th consecutive year.

The rankings for 2020 were announced by the Geneva-based organization NGO Adviser which publishes the rankings every year based on publicly available data for the top 500 global NGOs.

In drawing the rankings the Public Adviser focuses on the impact, innovation, governance and sustainability of the NGO.

BRAC was founded by Sir Fazle Hasan Abed in 1972 immediately after Bangladesh came into existence as an independent nation in 1971 to help the returning war refugees with small-scale relief and rehabilitation project.

Fazle Hasan Abed died in 2019. Presently, it works in Bangladesh and 11 countries in Asia and Africa.

BRAC recently announced a new 2030 strategy with the goal to make lives of 250 million people self-sustainabe.

Expressing satisfaction at retaining the top ranking, the Chairman of BRAC Global Board Ameerah Haq said that it is a reminder to be worthy of legacy of the founder Sir Fazle Hasan Abed and continue the fight for a world free from all forms of exploitation and discrimination.

BRAC has been working in areas like poverty alleviation through extending loans to the poor, gender equality, healthcare, nutrition, environment and employment among many other things.

It disbursed loans amounting to four billion dollars reaching 7.1 million clients in 2018.

BRAC also runs a university, a bank, insurance company, a seed company among other things. BRAC has about one lakh full-time staff, 8,000 of whom work outside Bangladesh.