Where do adolescents stand in our agenda?

With all the focus on adults and children, adolescents slip through the cracks

SALEEM SAMAD

The neglect of the need for adolescent development and protection by 2030 in Bangladesh is likely to harm the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), early girl-child marriage, child bride pregnancies, and infant mortality amid the coronavirus pandemic.

A private think-tank, the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), critiquing the budget, said it didn’t prioritize lives and livelihoods, even though the Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal claimed in the Jatiya Sangsad (parliament) that it was focused on livelihood.

In the case of adolescents in the scenario, inadequate fund allocation of the government has impeded the implementation of the adolescent health program.

Dripping disbursement of funds has affected the program implementation for more than one-fifth of the population of adolescents in our country.

Nevertheless, there is a National Strategy for Adolescent Health 2017-2030. As usual, from 2017 until now, there is no visible progress in providing adolescent service.

In fact, different governmental departments, as well as national and international NGOs, are implementing the adolescent health program -- unfortunately, it does not cover the entire adolescent population of the country.

The policy-makers, politicians, and a segment of the society believe that the population are children and adults only, sans adolescents. This notion has trained the mindset of parents and community leaders, as they do not recognize the need for adolescent health care services.

It’s worth appreciating that the government has a political commitment from policy-makers and community representatives to implement the program according to the laws related to the rights of the child.

As Wahida Banu, executive director of Aparajeyo Bangladesh, said, the adolescent program should be expanded to all levels of the country involving government, NGOs, and civil society to cover all adolescents.

It was indeed a frustrating initiative to establish Adolescent Friendly Health Services (AFHS) corners in all educational institutes, including schools and health centres in the country for providing medicines, sanitary napkins, and health advice and counselling.

Bangladesh is home to 36 million adolescents, making up 22% of the population. But adolescent-friendly services are not a familiar concept, remarked Wahida Banu.

Both Plan International and Aparajeyo Bangladesh fear that the present coronavirus pandemic has begun to take its toll on the high rate of child marriage -- adolescent girls in Bangladesh are at risk from early pregnancies, violence, and a lack of nutrition.

Of the women aged between 20 and 24, as many as 53% were married before the age of 18. There is a high fertility rate among adolescents, coupled with their families who have limited awareness of health needs.

As understood, adolescents lack access to health facilities and information on hygiene, especially during first menstruation, said Rehan Uddin Ahmed Raju, who conducted a research on “Analysis of Annual NPoA Budget of the National Strategy for Adolescent Health 2017-2030” on behalf of Plan International and Aparajeyo Bangladesh.

Raju stressed the need for the government’s urgent intervention for the adolescent population in the country during the Covid-19 outbreak.

This includes key information on reproductive health, nutrition, and psycho-social counselling. These conditions contribute to high mortality rates of newborns in Bangladesh, besides neonatal and maternal morbidities.

The program for the adolescent population needs to be augmented at the soonest, and Wahida Banu fears that urgent action is needed to achieve the targets, in order to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

First published in the Dhaka Tribune, 23 June 2021

Saleem Samad is an independent journalist, media rights defender, recipient of Ashoka Fellowship and Hellman-Hammett Award. He can be reached at saleemsamad@hotmail.com. Twitter @saleemsamad

Feeding the children in coronavirus pandemic

Children School Meal Policy/Photo: Latif Hossain

SALEEM SAMAD

The coronavirus pandemic severely dents free meal programme to help mitigate hunger and malnutrition amongst the most vulnerable school children

In 240 government and BRAC-run educational institutions for children in Trishal, Mymensingh, thousands of school students enjoyed attending classes as the authorities provided a free midday meal.

The cooked food ingredients include rice, lentils, and mixed vegetables -- in total 178 grams which costs Tk10.50. The school students’ nutritional intake of calories was 545 kcal and protein 11.46 gm. The hot cooked meal is culture-specific and nutrition-rich. Dietary diversity is ensured through a change in the recipe to maintain appetite.

The midday meal in rural and urban schools mitigates short-term hunger -- for most students, it was the only full meal.

A study by key civil servants in Bangladesh known as MATT (Managing at Top Team) showed that almost 60% of children go to school hungry. 

In the third year, the school attendance in urban areas in BRAC-operated midday meal projects increased from 55% (2011) to 81% (2013), and in rural areas, attendance increased from 64% (2011) to 92% (2013).

Basanta Kumar, Kar chief of Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) in Bangladesh pushed the idea of a midday meal in schools with the Bangladesh government in 2011 after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s political pledge in Vision 2021 articulated a strong priority on primary school education and nutrition to ensure food security.

However, the Covid-19 crisis has contributed to a child rights crisis. For children, the costs of the pandemic were immediate.

In Bangladesh, like most developing countries, accessibility and affordability of food and nutrition become challenging, while keeping staple food distribution and local food markets is an uphill task for the governments amidst a lack of accountability and weak transparency.

The brunt of the suffering when it comes to access to adequate nutrition with depleting income sources falls on the children, adolescents, and women.

According to the Primary Education Census (2011), there are 20 million primary school-age children, of which 18.4 million children are enrolled in primary schools.

Various studies show that quality education in primary school is hindered by a high dropout rate caused by hunger and malnutrition and widespread micronutrient deficiencies.

The provision of nutritious food improves the cognitive and physical development of children, remarks Basanta. An estimated 20.9% have sub-clinical Vitamin-A deficiency, 19.1% are anaemic, and 40% are iodine deficient.

To ensure the sustainability of the free-midday meal in schools in Trishal, local government representatives, school committees, and participation of mothers of the students have ensured accountability of free mid-day meals in schools.

Unfortunately, after the departure of Basanta, the fruitful negotiations with development partners and international multilateral donors have become weak.

The pioneering program initiated by GAIN with development partners BRAC and Banchte Shekha emerged as a “game-changer.” Recently the government renewed commitment to replicate and scale up the school feeding model nation-wide in primary schools.

“It is critical to ensure food diversity and adequate nutrition, including key micronutrients and fortified staples,” Basanta said.

On Universal Children’s Day which is on November 20, the United Nations claims a definite impact has been found in investing in children. In response to the global nutrition crisis, school feeding programs can be adapted and scaled up to reach the most vulnerable children.

First published in the Dhaka Tribune on 17 November 2020

Saleem Samad is an independent journalist, media rights defender, recipient of Ashoka Fellowship and Hellman-Hammett Award. He can be reached at saleemsamad@hotmail.com. Twitter @saleemsamad