MUMBAI: Mehboobi Sheikh, a housewife staying in a single-room tenement in a slum, with eight other family members in Dharavi was taken aback on Monday when a World Bank official along with others walked into her residence and asked to see her washroom and toilet.
The official in question was the managing director of the Bank, Ngozi Okonjo-Iwela , who walked the streets of Dharavi, inquired about social issues and came out strongly in favour of women getting a better deal. Iwela, who was taken to various spots in Dharavi, made it a point to inquire into the living conditions of families, particularly the womenfolk.
The journey to Dharavi began as a train ride from Churchgate station around noon, when Iwela took a ride in the driver's cabin to Mahim and got ready to brave the grime and dust of what is known as Asia's largest slum.
The smell and the dirt did not deter the daughter of Nigeria royalty though she seemed appalled by it initially. She walked into workshops where solid waste was being recycled and asked the women workers if they were being treated fairly. She asked if their children worked in the same trade or were being sent to school.
Drawing comparisons between the entrepreneurial spirit in the slums in Nigeria and Dharavi, Iwela said the area could be changed for the better if the people banded together and were helped by the government to build more community toilets. She was helped in her interactions with the Dharavi residents by social activist Sheila Patel who briefed her on the various projects in the area.
The official in question was the managing director of the Bank, Ngozi Okonjo-Iwela , who walked the streets of Dharavi, inquired about social issues and came out strongly in favour of women getting a better deal. Iwela, who was taken to various spots in Dharavi, made it a point to inquire into the living conditions of families, particularly the womenfolk.
The journey to Dharavi began as a train ride from Churchgate station around noon, when Iwela took a ride in the driver's cabin to Mahim and got ready to brave the grime and dust of what is known as Asia's largest slum.
The smell and the dirt did not deter the daughter of Nigeria royalty though she seemed appalled by it initially. She walked into workshops where solid waste was being recycled and asked the women workers if they were being treated fairly. She asked if their children worked in the same trade or were being sent to school.
Drawing comparisons between the entrepreneurial spirit in the slums in Nigeria and Dharavi, Iwela said the area could be changed for the better if the people banded together and were helped by the government to build more community toilets. She was helped in her interactions with the Dharavi residents by social activist Sheila Patel who briefed her on the various projects in the area.
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