a2i (Aspire to Innovate), a flagship project of UNDP together with the government of Bangladesh, recently won two awards from the ‘Apolitical Global Public Service,’ a global learning platform for governments.

Innovation Lab (i-Lab) of a2i, was announced the winner in ‘Citizen-Centred Innovation’ category, fending off competition from over 100 initiatives from across the globe, meanwhile, the ‘333’ helpline was awarded the runner-up prize in ‘Digitising Public Services’ category. 

i-Lab, a platform for young social innovators to devise solutions to pressing challenges of the society, was recognised for its contribution in nurturing citizen-centred innovations in the public sector.

‘333’, a one-stop helpline for citizens where they can ask for information about public services as well as complain about various societal problems such as child marriage, narcotics, etc, fell just short of the winner’s tag but received the prestigious runner-up trophy for their role in digitising public service delivery in Bangladesh. The helpline has responded to over 3.5 million calls, provided solutions to more than 15,000 societal problems and stopped over 3,500 child marriages. 

For the second year in a row, Apolitical Public Service Team of the Year Awards celebrated teams with a focus on innovative policy, putting citizens’ needs at the heart of their work.