In April 1998, the FAO-NGO a Programme and the Institute of Development Policy Analysis and Advocacy, Bangladesh, organized a workshop of gender trainers in Koitta, Bangladesh. It drew an overwhelming response from women and men from various countries. Over the course of the workshop, participants discussed and deliberated various issues, shared their respective experiences and opinions, and came to a unanimous conclusion—the space for transformatory gender work was declining steadily. That the need to create a network gender activists and trainers was both urgent and critical was strongly felt and articulated by the group. Sangat was born out of this realization. In a way, it is the continuation of the FAO-NGO Programme which worked for 25 years and was coordinated by Kamla Bhasin during its entire lifetime.