bdnews24.com’s Mamun wins Grand Prize at CGAP photo contest in Washington

bdnews24.com’s Senior Photographer Muhammad Mostafigur Rahman, also known as Mamun, has received the Grand Prize in the 2017 photo contest of Washington-based Consultative Group to Assist the Poor or CGAP.

Mamun’s photo, ‘Honey Collectors’, was selected by a panel of three judges out of 3,000 entries submitted from 76 countries.

The photo taken in April 2015 shows a traditional honey collector gathering honey from a wild beehive in the Sundarbans.

“The image pulls you in,” said judge Indira Williams Babic of the Newseum. “It's immersive for the person in the image and the person viewing the image. It does a great job of making you part of that experience."

“It has a mythical feel to it,” said judge Karly Domb Sadof of the Washington Post.

“You can tell the photographer was part of the experience. Out of all of the images, this is the most different -- the only image that I thought was something completely new.”

According to the CGAP, the honey collectors risk their lives to harvest thousands of pounds of honey each year, using smoke and torches to disperse the bees, but only make enough to sustain a living.

Muhammad Mostafigur Rahman

They are extremely poor and isolated, with extremely limited access to basic financial resources.

“I am delighted that a photo from our Sundarbans can win the prestigious CGAP prize,” said Mamun in his instant reactions. “I feel as if my eighteen years of work in this region have been recognised.”

“The Sundarbans are Bangladesh’s priceless treasure, but we are destroying it. We must be vigilant if we want to preserve it.”

Each year the CGAP invites photographers around the world to depict the impact financial inclusion can have on the people lacking access to basic services.

CGAP, housed at the World Bank in Washington, is a global partnership of over 30 leading organisations that seek to advance financial inclusion.

The photos show how people cope with crises and how new technology, digital innovation and the spread of smartphones have created new opportunities for the poor and marginalised, the organisation said.

This year submissions were taken in four categories: Innovations in Digital Finance, Creating Opportunities for People in Crisis, Building Sustainable Livelihoods, and Connecting People and Services.

"Translating the ongoing work of inclusive finance into visual form is an interesting challenge,” said judge Sarah Richardson, director and global curator of Citi.

“These photographers created compelling narratives that illustrate the profound impact of inclusive finance. Each photo tells a different story, which made reviewing the group like a trip around the globe."