Press Releases

Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, founder of BRAC, passes away

It is with deep sadness that we learned of the passing of Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, the Founder of BRAC and a true humanitarian visionary. We express our deepest sympathies to the Abed Family and to our friends and colleagues at BRAC and to all those who know and loved and were so inspired by the passion and vision of Sir Abed.

He founded in 1972 what was then Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee or BRAC, later changed into Brac, to support war-torn Bangladesh’s rebuilding efforts. It eventually grew into the world’s largest indigenous NGO and a global brand in the development community

Brac’s activities range from education to extreme poverty alleviation to social business to massive microcredit operations across Bangladesh.

Brac International has operations in about a dozen countries, from Afghanistan to Africa

Born in 1936, he studied accountancy in London. The 1970 cyclone and 1971 Liberation War in Bangladesh dramatically changed the direction of his life after he started working as a senior corporate executive at Pakistan Shell

He left his job and moved to London, where he helped initiate Action Bangladesh and HELP Bangladesh in support of the war of independence from Pakistan.

He returned to Bangladesh early in 1972 and started work to support the rebuilding efforts of the new nation. He founded what was then Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee or BRAC, later changed into Brac, to support war-torn Bangladesh’s rebuilding efforts.

It eventually grew into the world’s largest indigenous NGO and a global brand in the development community. The work of Brac is world-renowned for its excellence and lasting impact on the lives for the poor.

In 2010, he was appointed Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George by the British Crown in recognition of his services to reducing poverty in Bangladesh and internationally.

We are truly grateful for his life, leadership and example.