Remarks

Remarks by Chargé d’Affaires, a.i. Judith A. Chammas on Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2004 Report

Dhaka Sheraton Hotel

June 1, 2005

Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Dr. Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain
Additional Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Mr. Mohammed Mizanur Rahman Mazumder
Director General, National Institute of Population Research and Training, Mr Lokman Hakim,
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen

It is an honor to be here today and to present the Final Report of the 2004 BDHS to Dr. Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Honorable Minister, Bangladesh Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.  I am proud to be in the company of so many of you who have worked very hard to improve the health and welfare of Bangladeshi families.  The results of their work are amply demonstrated in this excellent report.

It is also a pleasure to participate in launching the 2004 Bangladesh DHS because this report is full of good news.  It describes a success story that few countries can match.  Let me list just a few highlights from the 2004 survey:

·        Fertility has declined to an all-time low of 3 children per woman, down from more than six children per woman in 1975. 
·        Contraceptive use has gone up.  Today 58% of married women are using contraception, up from 8 %  three decades ago.
·        In two decades childhood full vaccination coverage has increased from about 2 percent to 73 percent.
·        Gender disparities and inequities have declined.  Child mortality rates are now about the same among girls and boys compared to earlier days when girls suffered increased risk
of death.  And girls are now as likely as boys to be enrolled in secondary school, increasing their chances of a better and healthier future.

These are tremendous achievements.  They represent the combined efforts of multiple organizations and individuals, including many of you in this room today.

The US Government is proud of our participation in this success story and of our long collaboration with the Government of Bangladesh, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector.  Over the last 30 years the US Government has focused on making high quality family planning and reproductive and child health services available for all Bangladeshi citizens

Throughout this long collaboration, the Demographic and Health Surveys has remained an essential element in the US Government program in Bangladesh.  This survey is the fourth in a series of national surveys we have supported.

We continue to support the DHS because it is an invaluable resource that is used by the GOB and Development Partners to monitor many of the indicators of progress in the health sector. With the Bangladesh DHS, project managers and policy makers can prepare appropriate and realistic objectives for national and regional programs; evaluate progress in specific areas; identify critical problems and needs; and determine policy priorities.

Before I close, I have the great pleasure of thanking the National Institute of Population and Health Research and Training (NIPORT) , Mitra and Associates, ORC Macro/USA, ICDDRB and PHN/USAID/Bangladesh that made this survey possible.

 

Note:  A Bangla translation of this article is also available from the American Center.  If you are interested in the translation, please call the American Center Press Section (Tel: 8813440-4, Fax: 9881677; e-mail: DhakaPA@state.gov; Website: dhaka.usembassy.gov