UNFPA Bangladesh shared the evaluation findings from 9th Country Programme (2017-2020) in a stakeholders’ meeting on 3 October. The meeting brought together the key stakeholders to the UNFPA mandate in Bangladesh, including the government, NGOs, development partners, UN agencies and collaborating partners, who reflected on the achievements made in the Programme, as well as the remaining challenges. Participants at the meeting commended UNFPA’s contribution to the advancement of reproductive
rights and choices for all in the country, and reiterated the need for strengthened collaboration between the different stakeholders.

Ms. Sultana Afroz, Additional Secretary, Economic Relations Division (ERD), was present as the chief guest at the event, while Professor Dr. Nasima Sultana, Additional Director General, Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), was present as the special guest. UNFPA Representative in Bangladesh Dr. Asa Torkelsson chaired the meeting. UNFPA Bangladesh received insightful and valuable feedback and comments from all stakeholders.

It was agreed that as the development landscape is changing, our way of working cannot remain the same moving forward. Emerging issues include the growing urban population, as it is predicted that 50% of the population will live in urban areas by 2047. The population in Bangladesh is also ageing, and the needs of the elderly need to be appropriately addressed. Other issues discussed in the meeting included the safety of midwives at the workplace, ensuring the quality of care, SRH differences between minority groups, non-brothel-based sex workers’ access to SRH services and scaling up SRH education for adolescents and youth. 

Overall the evaluation team found that UNFPA Bangladesh has done a commendable job delivering on its targets despite the Rohingya crisis and limited resources. However, there is still a lot of work to be done in order to reach the SDGs by 2030, and it is crucial that different partners collaborate, as no single organisation can do this alone. UNFPA would like to thank the stakeholders for attending and providing their insights and recommendations. Open dialogue is needed in order to ensure successful planning of future programmes.

To get updated on the Evaluation findings please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWX1lhzlJpM&t=5s