Nasima Begum is a retired secretary and former chairman of the National Human Rights Commission of Bangladesh, with the rank of a judge of the Appellate Division of the Bangladesh Supreme Court. [1] [2] She was the first woman to head the commission. [3] She was a member of the Bangladesh Planning Commission. [4]
Begum was born in 1960 in Munshiganj District, East Pakistan, Pakistan. [3] She did her bachelor's degree and masters in Islamic history and culture at the University of Dhaka. [5]
Begum joined the admin cadre of Bangladesh Civil Service in 1983. [3]
In 2003, Begum was the deputy secretary of the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs. [3] She was the secretary of the Bangladesh Freedom Fighter Welfare Trust. [5] She served in the Local Government Division, Ministry of Establishment, and the Ministry of Public Administration. [3] As part of the Geological Survey of Bangladesh, she was part of the investigation committee that examined the impact of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami on Bangladesh. [6]
Begum was promoted to joined secretary in 2009 and appointed to the Ministry of Social Welfare. [3] [7] In 2012, she was made the director general of Department of Social Services. [3]
In 2017, Begum was the joint secretary of the Ministry of Textiles and Jute. [8] She was the Additional Secretary to the Cabinet Division. [9] In January 2019, Begum retired as the senior secretary of the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs. [3] She gave Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina a UNICEF award for her contribution to ending child marriage. [10]
In September 2019, Begum was appointed chairman of the National Human Rights Commission of Bangladesh replacing Kazi Reazul Hoque. [11] [12] She was given the rank and status of a judge of the Appellate Division of the Bangladesh Supreme Court. [11] She identified legal restrictions on the commission preventing investigation of law enforcement personnel as a drawback. [13] She established an online complaint system for her commission. [14] She was replaced by Kamal Uddin Ahmed as chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission of Bangladesh. [15] Civil society members criticised the appointment of retired civil servants like Begum and Uddin as chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission of Bangladesh. [16]
In 2022, Begum was a member of the Bangladesh Planning Commission. [17]
Begum is married to M Faizur Rahman Chowdhury, secretary of the Posts and Telecommunications Division. [3]