Bangladesh

Background

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Bangladesh has a stable, growing economy, but living standards have yet to improve for the poorest and most vulnerable segments of the population. About 36 per cent of the population lives on less than $1 a day. Bangladesh is vulnerable to the effects of to natural disasters, such as the catastrophic flooding that struck in late 2004.

Issues facing children in Bangladesh

• Maternal mortality remains high. Most rural women give birth at home, without medical assistance.
• Millions of children are malnourished. Roughly half of all children under age five are underweight.
• Primary school enrolment is relatively high, but many children – especially those in urban slums – are still denied their right to a basic education.
• Seven percent of Bangladeshi children under age fourteen are in the labour force.
• Birth registration is extremely low, hindering enforcement of child protection measures.
• The rise in sea levels predicted due to global warming has the potential to displace millions.

Activities and results for children

• New cases of polio in early 2006 sparked a massive immunization drive that reached 96 per cent of the 22 million Bangladeshi children aged under age five.
• Nearly 200 medical facilities have been upgraded to provide improved prenatal care and safe deliveries.
• In 25 districts with high child mortality, thousands of health-care workers have been trained to effectively treat childhood illnesses.
• The coverage rate of vitamin A supplements stands at 83 per cent, and more than 12 million children have received deworming treatment. Immunization campaigns have been launched to combat measles and neonatal tetanus.
• With iodized salt now widely available, disorders related to iodine deficiency are in decline.
• Urban development centres in the poorest neighbourhoods of major cities now offer health and nutrition programmes for mothers and children.
• More than 2,220 community workers have made a remarkable impact in the impoverished Chittagong Hill Tracts. Each worker provides 25 to 30 families with preventive health care and early-learning programmes.
• Sanitation coverage has almost doubled since 2003. By the end of 2006 the country had achieved 81per cent coverage, with a target of full coverage by 2010.
• Throughout Bangladesh, 2,700 peer educators are reaching thousands of young people with vital information on HIV/AIDS prevention.
• ‘Kishori Abhijan’ is a project that promotes the rights of teenage girls and opposes practices such as child marriage. Vocational training has improved economic opportunities for more than 25,000 girls.
• Hundreds of learning centres in urban neighbourhoods and in the Chittagong Hill Tracts now offer preschool programmes.
• Bangladesh has achieved gender parity in primary education, with girls’ enrolment rates at 86 per cent, compared to 82 per cent for boys.