Pally Bikash Kendra (PBK) is a non-government organisation working with the poorest people to improve their socio-economic development in 600 villages of 13 Upazillas under Kishoreganj, Gazipur and Narshingdi districts. PBK was established on 23 March in 1990 at Egarosindur Union of Kishoreganj district. PBK is registered under Social Service Department (Reg. no. DHA-02256, 16.03.1989), NGO Affairs Bureau (Reg. no. 544, 23.10.1991) and currently operates under the joint stock company mandate (Reg. no. S-2597(10) 2001, 22.07.2001). Following its initial funding from Institute of Integrated Rural Development (IIRD), Oxfam America and Canada Fund/CIDA, PBK has now expanded its activities and spearheads an integrated approach to poverty reduction through a combination of programmatic interventions including micro finance, income generation, institution building, education, training, health and enterprise development. Through these programmes, PBK broadly aims to improve the socio-economic status of the rural poor, especially women and children and to enhance community capacity and the ability of the poor to control their own lives. From its fifth year of operation, this organisation has been running its operation without any outside assistance except substantial support from IIRD to continue PBK’s education program for the hardcore poor children. That support ended in 2002. BRAC is also providing support for several schools and this support is still continuing. Besides, PBK has established a rural industry in 1993 namely Bikash Food Products. Presently Bikash Food employed 90 workers and 50% of them are women. Its yearly turnover stands approximately 30 million taka. Bikash Food has also constructed another factory in BSCIC industrial plot in Kishoregonj district and started its operation from 2004.

Micro finance was introduced as a programmatic intervention in 1993 and currently its members reached 35,000; among them 30,000 are borrowers. Recently PBK also started micro finance technical assistance (MFTS) with financial assistance from PKSF. This programme has given PBK the opportunity to start a poverty focus program targeting hardcore and very poor families, off-burdening them of their vulnerabilities, and developing them so that they can mainstream them with the rural economy and society they live in. PBK also has introduced a product, a kind of household consumer credit by which they providing clients mosquito nets, mattresses and RCC pillar, or furniture etc on loan. It is worth mentioning over here that PBK’s members are both from the hardcore poor or very poor and the moderately poor. Besides, PBK activities are coordinated through a liaison office in Dhaka and implemented by 19 area offices in 3 districts of Bangladesh namely Kishorgonj, Gazipur and Narshingdi.