News

Bangladesh Office Worker Honored as Longest-Serving International Staff Member
(International Foundation, May, 2010)

Ms. Amina posing with her record-setting 30-year service plaque

Amina Abedin has seen a lot of change at NRECA International's Dhaka office in Bangladesh. Her 30 years of service makes her the longest-service local staff ever for an International facility.

In March of this year, Ms. Amina, as the office staff call her, was honored with a celebration and a service plaque presented by NRECA International Program Senior Vice President Vivek Talvadkar.

"Ms. Amina has been an anchor for NRECA’s operation in Dhaka for more than 30 years," said James Ford, NRECA's country director in Bangladesh. "She has been an invaluable resource for information about NRECA’s project activities in support of the continuing development of the Bangladesh Rural Electrification Program."

Dhaka Office Philanthropy Helps Northern District Residents Stay Warm

This winter, as icy weather gripped much of Bangladesh, the employees of NRECA International's Dhaka field office decided they needed to do something to help their fellow citizens. So they pooled their resources and solicited blankets and warm clothes to donate. On January 15, they delivered what they collected to several towns in the country's hardest-hit northern districts. Donated and purchased items totaled 152 blankets and 200 sets of warm clothes. Recipients were primarily low-income women, children and elderly residents, and proceeds were distributed via a local NGO.

Born and raised in Dhaka, Abedin first joined NRECA in December 1979, just two years after the Dhaka office opened. She was promoted to secretary to the team leader in 1980 and rose to executive secretary in 1986. In 1990 she was named administrative assistant for finance, her current role.

Colleagues praise Abedin for her ability to acquire and expand her technological skills. Among other accomplishments, she was instrumental in converting the office to its first computerized accounting system in the late 1980s, and helped integrate modern accounting software in the late 1990s.

"Despite the challenges that come with the introduction of new technologies, Ms. Amina has continued to grow in proficiency in dealing with automated systems," Ford said. "This is quite amazing when considering the fact that she joined NRECA without any computer skills."

Others are amazed by Abedin's near flawless memory.

"Her institutional memory regarding previous projects is quite remarkable," Ford said. "You could ask her for a report or some other document from an earlier project and she would only request some time for locating the requested information and placing it on your desk. I for one would have been lost without such an 'asset' in the Dhaka office."