News from Bangladesh-Updates and Discussion

[ShadowFaux]

It's not possible to be an Awami unless he is a munafiq. Munafiqat is Awamis greatest character. This Awami has an account with Islami bank.

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[kobiraaz]

It's not possible to be an Awami unless he is a munafiq. Munafiqat is Awamis greatest character. This Awami has an account with Islami bank.

?????? ???????? ??????? ??????? ??????????! : ????? ????? ?? ????? ??? ??????

don't take him seriously. he failed to bring 200 muslim in his anti-jamati olama mashayekh protest. this man is nobody. you know atheists and chatraleague chapatileague could act neutral in Shahbag, but they couldnt grow beard overnight. muhahaha

 

[animelive]

The controversial Hall-Mark Group should be brought back in business through appointment of an administrator for the company and granting of bail to its managing director now in prison, Finance Minister AMA Muhith said on Wednesday.

The move would ensure recovery of the large amount of money swindled out of Sonali Bank Limited by the top boss of the Hall-Mark, he added.

Muhith for administrator to run Hall-Mark business :: Financial Express :: Financial Newspaper of Bangladesh

Very wise move by our mighty minister

 

[kalu_miah]

@Loki Please consider merging this thread with one of the sticky threads. Thanks.

 

[eastwatch]

Resign or face more strike: Khaleda - bdnews24.com

Resign or face more strike: Khaleda
Chief Political Correspondent, bdnews24.com
Published: 2013-04-04 19:07:57.0 Updated: 2013-04-04 19:12:05.0

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia has said there will not be any more general strikes if the government steps down and holds the next general elections under a non-party government.

“Shutdowns are going on, and there will be more of them. The country has stopped in its tracks. I will tell the government, there’s still time, resign and call elections under a non-party government if you want peace in the country,” she told a rally in Satkhira on Thursday afternoon.

“There won’t be any more strikes. You can form the government again by winning the election if the people choose you,” the BNP Chairperson continued.

“The government is killing [people] across the county. Now they have targeted me. I am not scared.”

Khaleda said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will be tried for killings.

“She has spoken about 10 dead bodies against one dead body. She has ordered killing using gunpowder. Fifty-seven army officers were killed in Peelkhana on her orders,” she added.

The opposition chief also said the Awami League-led coalition government will be tried one day for all the corruption and financial embezzlement including those involving the share market, Hall-Mark Group, Destiny-2000 Ltd, quick rental power plant and Padma bridge project.

She was addressing a BNP rally at the Kolaroa High School ground in Satkhira. She visited Satkhira, Kolaroa and Monirampur on Thursday and immediately met the families of the four victims who died in police action on Mar 2. She provided monetary help to the bereaved.

This is the first time Khaleda Zia went to Satkhira after the ninth parliamentary elections in 2008.

She spoke about different issues including the government’s ‘failure, corruption, submissive foreign policy’, political situation, crisis, next general elections and Hifazat’s long march during her 35-minute speech.

Khaleda alleged, “This government has no shame. This government wants to establish BAKSAL again. They will ban Jamaat-e-Islami. The government will annihilate BNP.”

The Awami League wants to grab power by holding a partisan election, she claimed.

The former Prime Minister also mentioned the Awami League’s movement taking Jamaat on its side against her government in 1996.

“Jamaat was very good when the Awami League had demonstrated along with them for the non-party caretaker government. And now they [Jamaat] are war criminals. This is the real face of the Awami League. They are worse than snake.”

After addressing the rally, the opposition chief started for Dhaka.

 

[CaPtAiN_pLaNeT]

Arunachal, Bangladesh discuss management of Brahmaputra


Arunachal, Bangladesh discuss management of Brahmaputra - The Hindu

A file picture of The Siang or The Dihang as the mighty river Brahmaputra is called in Arunachal Pradesh. The hanging bridge is between Jidu and Tuting about 35 kms from the border with China. Photo: Special Arrangement.

Arunachal Pradesh and Bangladesh have discussed several measures for better management of the Brahmaputra River for mutual benefit, official sources said on Saturday.

Arunachal Pradesh Water Resources Development Minister Newlai Tingkhatra during a meeting in Itanagar on Friday with the visiting Bangladesh High Commissioner to India Tariq A Khan discussed ways to tackle the problem of siltation through river dredging and building embankments so that proper water depth was developed for inland water transportation.

Mr. Khan advocated an integrated and holistic management of the flood problem in Arunachal Pradesh as well as the Brahmaputra basin, the sources said.

He also said that Bangladesh was equally concerned and apprehensive over diversion of Brahmaputra’s water in China.

“Arunachal Pradesh is the source of water for Brahmaputra basin and thus the primary stakeholder in all respects in the management of Brahmaputra in terms of hydropower generation and navigation,” he said.

The meeting was also attended by Bangladesh Commerce Minister Md Habibur Rahman Khan.

Later, the High Commissioner called on the Governor, General (Retd) J J Singh at Raj Bhawan and discussed various matters including inland waterways, Brahmaputra River project and areas of prospective trade and commercial activities.

The Governor emphasised on cooperation for mutual benefits, energy (hydropower) sharing, people to people contact and opening up of more avenues for economic opportunities.

Mr. Khan stressed on sub-regional cooperation. He appraised the Governor of the proposed meetings on Brahmaputra and Ganga basins with India, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal, the sources said.

 

[CaPtAiN_pLaNeT]

Army-run firm to install 660MW power plant in Ctg


daily sun | First Page | Army-run firm to install 660MW power plant in Ctg

→ Shamim Jahangir


Bangladesh Machine Tool Factory (BMTF), an engineering enterprise of Bangladesh Army, has proposed to set up a 660MW coal-fired power plant at Banshkhali in Chittagong, an official concerned said.

Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) forwarded the proposal of BMTF to the Power Division on March 25 for consideration.

The high-tech power plant will be set up in 48 months on a build, own and operate (BOO) basis under Direct Procurement Method (DPM), subject to approval from the government, officials said.

A consortium of US-based Cambridge Financial Group Limited, BMTF and Lone Star Ltd Chittagong will implement the project at a cost of $1.09 billion, the sources said.

However, the consortium is yet to submit necessary documents on their development and operation experience, letters from financial institutions ensuring funds, commitment letter from the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractor and debt equity and fund mobilisation for setting up the power plant, BPDB Secretary Md Azizul Islam informed the Power Division.

The consortium also did not provide any feasibility-study report on the proposed power plant at Banshkhali in Chittagong, the BPDB Secretary added.

Army enterprises started power plant business in 2010 by floating a company styled M/s DAP power generation international limited under a government crash programme.

The government undertook a programme for unsolicited deal on power plants to resolve a nagging power crisis through setting up fast-track power plants in the private sector.

DPA Power Generation International is a joint initiative of the army-run Bangladesh Diesel Plant, Primordial Energy Ltd and Germany-based Aggretech AG.

The government, however, has been planning to prepare a 5000MW coal-fired power plants hub at Moheskhali Island in Cox’s Bazar district.

A high-powered delegation of South Korea, last month, showed interest in setting up a joint-venture coal-fired mega-power plant here, a top official of power division said.

“They (S Korean delegation) have primarily shown interests to set up the mega coal-fired power plant,” Power Division Secretary Md Monwar Hossain said.

He said the Power Division has asked the South Korean delegation to submit a concrete proposal in this regard.

Monwar was hopeful about installing some major coal-fired power plants at Moheskhali Island in Cox’s Bazar. The feasibility study for a project is now at the final stage. The project will be financed by JICA.

Meanwhile, Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) and Powertek Energy Sdn Bhd, two state-owned firms of Malaysia, have decided to join equally with the Bangladesh government to construct a 1320-megawatt coal-fired power plant at Moheshkhali Island.

Earlier in December 2012, the plant became uncertain when the Malaysian firms sought two-thirds sharing, officials said.

The terms and conditions of the proposed MoU with TNB and PowerTek will be similar to the one that was signed with the National Thermal Power Company (NTPC) of India to install a 1320MW power plant at Rampal in Bagerhat.

The power division has already invited the NTPC to sign an implementation agreement and power purchase agreement (PPA) for the 1320 MW Rampal project on April 17.

Besides, the Power Division has planed to sign a MoU for setting up a mega coal-fired power plant at Anwara with support from China. Power Division has already prepared a roadmap to generate around 20,000MW of electricity from coal-based power plants by the year 2030. Of the targeted amount, 11,250MW of electricity would be generated by using domestic coal while the rest from imported coal.

The government has already asked the Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Cox’s Bazar to acquire 5,000 acres of land to install a series of power plants in Moheskhali. BPDB has sought approval to a proposal for setting up two mega coal-fired power plants, having capacity to generate 2,640MW electricity, in Moheshkhali.

The government has a plan to set up a series of power plants in the island to generate 8,320MW of electricity in 5000 acres of land, BPDB Secretary Azizul Islam informed Power Division Secretary Md Abul Kalam Azad in a letter to on November 4 last year.

Of the power plants, the government would set up coal-fired power plants to generate 5,320MW of electricity. Besides, the rest 3000MW of electricity will come from the LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) fired plants, the official said.

Besides, Qatar has proposed to set up a 1,000-megawatt LNG-based power plant in Moheshkhali under a joint-venture initiative with Bangladesh.

 

[eastwatch]

AL should leave self-defeating course

AL should leave self-defeating course



Saturday’s rally of Hefajat-e-Islam in Dhaka despite the government-sponsored general strike enforced since Friday evening that snapped road, railway and waterway communications between capital city and other districts bears testimony to the ruling Awami League’s increasing isolation with the people. If buses had not stayed off the roads, the frequency of trains not reduced and river vessels not anchored in mid-river because of government pressure, the anti-government gathering of the Islamists would have been much bigger.

In the face of obstruction jointly put up by the local administration and ruling political quarters, the Islamists held their programmes in different district headquarters. The obstruction has visibly contributed to turning Hefajat, an otherwise non-political religious organisation, to be an organised political force, which would, in all probabilities, remain politically mobilised for quite some time.

The phenomenon, created primarily by the government’s indifference towards a court ruling against ‘blasphemous’ statements of a few bloggers and then its recent attempts at appeasing the Islamists later, and finally orchestrating a general strike by some pro-Awami League socio-cultural organisations to foil Hefajat’s ‘long march,’ is bound to further Islamise the society and the state.

In the process, the already limited democratic space, which needed to be expanded for sound social debates on various issues of national interest, would rather shrink further. The acrimonious attack on the Ganjagaran Mancha at Shahabag by a section of the Hefajat gathering on Saturday evening only hints at its vindictive political approach to the liberals. The future, we are afraid, would hold the ruling Awami League responsible for acting as a political catalyst for the now inevitable regressive march of the history.

Meanwhile, combined with its undemocratic governance, the Awami League’s continued politicking with everything around it, such as the banning of religion-based politics, the much required trial of the people committing crimes against humanity during the independence war, a nationally accepted provision for non-party, caretaker government for holding general elections, et cetera, would continue to isolate the party from the people at large.

The result is obvious: the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, the organisation that the governing quarters want to be dismantled and destroyed, would be strengthened further for no positive work of its own and its demand for non-party, caretaker government for elections, already a popular one, would become further popular, and that too with all the opposition social and political forces mobilised around the party. The ruling party has thus visibly embarked on a losing course of politics, which, without an immediate course correction, would only pave the path for its humiliating defeat in the next national elections, which could only be held after a phase of nationally suicidal clashes and confrontation and its unintended consequences.

To avoid the course, the Awami League should immediately initiate a meaningful dialogue on the caretaker government issue with the BNP, which has some capacity to contain the Islamists of the day. A negotiated settlement on the contentious issue can help the Awami League to finish the war crimes trials, pacify the enraged Islamists, save it from a possible humiliating defeat in the next polls and, on top of all, can save people at large from the wrath of a mindless series of confrontation between the two rival political camps.

 

[kalu_miah]

^^ No Muslim Bangladeshi and patriotic Hindu or other minority should vote for this pro-India anti-Bangladesh party. I do not believe that AL can ever severe its umbilical cord of connection to mother India, hence what AL deserves is total irrelevance in any future election and eventual dissolution.

In short, no amount of advice by so called well wishers can turn around the built-in defect of AL, which is dependence on a foreign hostile neighbor.

 

[kalu_miah]

IRIN Asia | Analysis: Why food can kill in Bangladesh | Bangladesh | Food Security | Health & Nutrition

Analysis: Why food can kill in Bangladesh
By Mubashar Hasan

Photo: Mubashar Hasan/IRIN
Bright, fresh, green – but safety unknown

DHAKA, 11 April 2013 (IRIN) - Food can just as easily kill as it keeps people alive, experts have learned in Bangladesh, where excessive use of pesticide, unregulated street food and lack of awareness about food safety sicken millions annually.

“Every day we are eating dangerous foods, which are triggering deadly diseases,” said Kazi Faruque, president of the nonprofit Consumer Association of Bangladesh (CAB).

Children younger than five in Bangladesh are at the greatest risk from eating unsafe food, which causes at least 18 percent of deaths in that age group and 10 percent of adults’ deaths, according to a 2006 study cited by the US-based University of Minnesota’s Centre for Animal Health and Food Safety.

Shah M. Faruque, director of the Centre for Food and Waterborne Disease at the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh, told IRIN this trend has continued, and may worsen as urbanization strains clean water supply in the capital, Dhaka.

On average, he said from 300 to 1,000 patients visit his medical clinic in Dhaka daily, mostly because of diarrhoea or cholera, which are often traced back to food or drink.

Pesticides and poor planning

Experts say the farm is one starting point for how food can turn fatal.

“Many farmers in the country use an excessive amount of pesticide in agricultural products hoping to [boost] output, while ignoring [the] serious health impacts on consumers,” said Nurul Alam Masud, head of the Participatory Research and Action Network (PRAN), a local NGO.

Despite repeated warnings from the government about this issue, lack of coordination among public agencies has hampered effective controls, said Hasan Ahmmed Chowdhury, a UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) advisor on food safety policies.

FAO is advocating a “farm to table” approach that addresses how food is grown or raised, to how it is collected, processed, packaged, sold and consumed.

Urban poor

In 2009, Bangladesh’s parliament passed the country’s first consumer protection law covering food safety and security. New standards included requiring food labels, creating safety testing standards, monitoring products for chemical and microbial hazards, and holding producers accountable by levying fines for violations.

This law joined several others aimed at regulating food quality: Bangladesh Pure Food Ordinance (1959), Fish and Fish Product Rules (1997) and the Radiation Protection Act (1987).

Safe and nutritious food for all is also guaranteed in the constitution - but on the streets, it is a different matter.

“Street vendors operating small, unregulated carts feed millions of people daily, offering no guarantee of safety, with approximately one in six people becoming ill after eating out,” said Sohana Sharmin Chowdhury, head of urban development and communicable diseases at the local NGO Eminence.

This risk makes life even harder for slum dwellers who rely on street food for its ease and affordability, she said. “Health care is already a challenge for [the] slum population. This disease burden from unsafe food consumption adds up to their misery.”

At least 5 percent of Bangladesh’s 170 million people live in illegal housing settlements. According to a 2008 Asian Development Bank study, poor people in Bangladesh, particularly those in cities, find it difficult to prepare food at home as they spend so much time outside the home earning a living.

“Many of them end up eating cheap [ready-made meals] of low quality purchased from small shops or street vendors,” Chowdhury said.

Even though street food sales are illegal, and therefore unregulated, unofficial estimates hold that authorities tolerate about 200,000 food carts selling everything from samuchas - deep fried minced meat or vegetables wrapped in flour - to yogurt “lassi” drinks.

Profit at any cost

Faruque of CAB said vendors’ “philosophy of making profit at any cost” puts consumers at risk.

A common practice among food vendors is to spray fish, fruits and vegetables with chemical preservatives including formalin - a commercial solution of formaldehyde and water - to boost food’s lifespan and appearance.

Formaldehyde is typically used to preserve human corpses, as well as leather and textile products, said Razibul Islam Razon, a medical doctor in the capital who has treated food poisoning.

The chemical’s short-term effects include: a burning sensation in the eyes, nose and throat; coughing; wheezing; nausea; and skin irritation. As for potential long-term health consequences, formaldehyde has been identified as a human carcinogen.


Photo: Manoocher Deghati/IRIN
Going to the source to boost food safety
Shah Monir Hossain, a senior adviser at FAO in Bangladesh, said renal failure, cancer and liver damage - all potentially fatal - can be linked to the consumption of unsafe food, but the “extent of food-borne illness is yet unknown”. He predicted the situation will improve with more oversight.

But the private sector is hitting back.

“We are using a special preservative detector machine to check food [for] formalin at our sourcing in order to make sure that our customers receive safe food,” said Sabbir Hasan Nasir, executive director of a company running 40 all-in-one shopping centres nationwide serving about 20,000 customers daily.

“Customers can even check foods in our store through a machine in order to detect formalin,” he added.

Meanwhile, the local NGO Citizens Solidarity recently sent a notice to the government requesting legal steps to force vendors to cease and desist unethical vending practices.

But even when vendors do not knowingly engage in unsafe food handling, their lack of knowledge, coupled with long work hours and their own precarious health, can sicken customers, according to a 2010 FAO-government initiative to boost healthy street food.

The projects’ researchers tested 426 food samples from Dhaka vendors who had not undergone any food hygiene training and 135 from those who had. Samples from untrained vendors had almost uniformly “overwhelming” high bacteria counts, while results from trained vendors largely fell within international safety standards.

The researchers called on the government to develop a policy to “assist, maintain and control” street food vending.

Government efforts

The government is set to create the Bangladesh Food Safety and Quality Control Authority to boost control of street food and to criminalize unsafe food handling, the Minister of Food and Disaster Management, Muhammad Abdur Razzaque, told IRIN.

Under the National Food Safety and Quality Act 2013, this authority will be created within the next two months, said Ahmed Hossain Khan, director-general of the Directorate General of Food in the same ministry.

The draft act addresses weaknesses in the existing food safety regulatory system, including the scant enforcement of food control laws along the entire supply chain. It also introduces a national food-borne disease surveillance system and outlines an emergency response plan in case of a disease outbreak linked to food.

“We identified existing loopholes in our food safety system, and this act will help us radically improve our approach in food safety regulation,” Khan said.

But Nazrul Islam, an associate professor at the Dhaka School of Economics, said regulatory policies alone have failed to solve the food safety problem, and that the government needs to examine the economic roots of unsafe food: the underclass of farmers responsible for feeding the country.

One start, he suggested, is guaranteeing farmers fair prices, a longstanding grievance of producers who accuse middlemen traders and end consumers of profit gouging.

“This may encourage farmers not to go for unethical practices up to a certain extent,” said Islam, adding that better agricultural extension services, easier access to information for farmers and strict regulatory measures are equally important.

The Asian Development Bank is supporting private agribusiness production facilities that will pay guaranteed prices to 50,000 contracted farmers.

But more is needed, Islam said. “The biggest challenge the country is facing in ensuring a meaningful food security for its…people is food safety.”

The 2012 Global Hunger Index places the country’s hunger situation in an “alarming” range, with too few people being able to eat nutritious, life-sustaining food.

mh/pt/rz

Theme (s): Food Security, Health & Nutrition,

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

 

[CaPtAiN_pLaNeT]

Bangladesh, India sign pacts for power JV
Senior Correspondent, bdnews24.com
Published: 2013-04-20 18:28:18.0 Updated: 2013-04-20 18:55:48.0

Bangladesh, India sign pacts for power JV - bdnews24.com

Bangladesh and India on Saturday signed three agreements for a joint coal-based power company project.

The pacts - Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), Implementation Agreement (IA) and Supplementary Joint Venture Agreement (SJVA) - were inked in Dhaka in the evening for a 1320MW coal-based Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company (Pvt) Limited (BIFPCL) in Khulna’s Rampal.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Bangladesh and India during the visit of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to India in January 2011. In the MoU, the fields of cooperation in power sector were identified as exchange of power, grid connectivity, energy efficiency and electricity generation.

Last January, a Joint Venture Agreement (JVA) was also signed between India’s state-owned electric utilities company National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and Bangladesh’s Power Development Board (PDB) with ‘equal equity participation (50:50)’ for developing power projects in Bangladesh.

The 1320MW coal-based power plant in Rampal upazila will be a joint venture between the neighbouring countries. The project profile also set a goal to finish the project by 2018.

The thermal power plant is proposed to be set up over 1,834 acres of land near the Mongla seaport, though environmentalists have been warning that the plant would have a disastrous impact on the nearby Sundarbans - the world’s largest mangrove forest. They have also been staging protests to make the government cancel the project.

But the governments of both India and Bangladesh have claimed that the Sundarbans would not be affected by the plant.

At the agreements signing ceremony on Saturday, Power Secretary Monwar Islam said, “According to the master plan, the goal is to generate 20,000 megawatt electricity using coal by 2030. This is the beginning of implementation of the plan.”

A huge part of the power generated in Bangladesh comes from fuel-based power plants where the generation cost is relatively higher. The importance of coal-based power generation is increasing considering the option of multi-fuel power plants.

The government has approved establishing another 1,300MW power plant in Chittagong. Coals will have to be imported for these two plants.

Meanwhile, the plan to import 500 MW power from India is also nearing the execution stage, as construction of a power grid in Kushtia’s Bheramara for the purpose is almost complete.

Prime Minister’s Energy Advisor Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury at the agreement signing ceremony said the 500 MW would be coming from India by this July.

NTPC Chairman and Managing Director Arup Roy Chowdhury said this was the biggest initiative of the Corporation outside India and that’s why this project was special for them.

Indian Ambassador to Bangladesh Pankaj Saran said this project was also the largest joint venture taken up by Bangladesh and India.

Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister Dipu Moni, State Minister for Power Mohammad Enamul Haque and India’s Power Secretary P Uma Shankar were present at the agreement signing ceremony.

 

[CaPtAiN_pLaNeT]

Nepal keen to share hydropower with Bangladesh


Nepal keen to share hydropower with Bangladesh

20 April 2013

Nepalese Ambassador to Bangladesh Hari Kumar Shrestha has said that his country is keen to share hydro-power with Bangladesh .

In an exclusive interview with Just News, Shrestha shed a light on the immense opportunities for the two countries in this sector.

“ Nepal has a huge potentiality to produce hydro-power. In fact, our country can viably produce more than 40 thousand megawatt (MW) electricity from hydraulic sources. Nepal is always willing to cooperate with its neighbours to producing more electricity for the benefit of this region using the Himalayan rivers,” the Nepalese Ambassador said.

However, he expressed his dismay for not having utilised the huge natural resources for the benefit of the people in the region.

``Despite having immense potentials to produce hydro-electricity, the two countries have not yet used this resources for their mutual benefit and also for reducing the huge gap existing in bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Nepal``, he said.

``Besides hydro-power sector, there are many areas of economic cooperation between the two countries that can be increased and utilising that we can expand and strengthen our commercial relations. But somehow, it has not been picking up.” he lamented.

The Nepalese ambassador pointed out that steps can be taken for changing this situation by finding out a possible solution. He said both countries have to move forward to increase their efforts to find the solution.

``We have to move forward to increase our commercial relation with the view to narrow the trade gap by properly using this potentiality. The move should focus on establishing physical connectivity, setting up of cross-border transmission line and joint investment.” he said.

Apart from that, the Nepalese Ambassador said his country enjoys a very close and cordial relationship with Bangladesh . “We have been bound together from the ‘highest mountain to the longest beach’ of the world.” he stated.

Expressing his gratefulness to Bangladesh for providing transit facilities to Nepal in Chittagong and Mongla sea ports as well as the land port in Banglabandha, Shrestha mentioned that both the countries are discussing about an international connectivity which is called ‘Transit-Transport Cargo Modalities”. This instrument is mulled in order to facilitate the movement of the transit cargos from Bangladesh to Nepal and vice-versa.

“This step would be very important for utilising the port facilities provided by Bangladesh to Nepal.” the Nepalese envoy added.

 

[BDforever]

very good news, co-operation need to increase between Bangladesh-nepal

 

[DURJOY]

BD’s per capita health spending at $5.0
Published : Sunday, 21 April 2013


FE Report

The government spends about US$ 5 per head on Health, Nutrition and Population Sector Programme (HNPSP) while per capita out-of-pocket expenditure is about US$ 7 which is far short of the required level set by the World Health Organisation.

According to the WHO, the optimum per capita expenditure for the least developed countries (LDCs) is US$ 34 a year, experts said Saturday.

The present level of government allocation to the health sector is little more than 1.0 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) against the WHO target of 5.0 per cent of the GDP which is barely adequate to meet the demand of an expanding health sector.

Among the nations of South Asia, India spends same as Bangladesh, Pakistan 0.4 per cent of its GDP, Sri Lanka 2.0 per cent, the Maldives 6.3 per cent, Nepal 1.5 per cent, and Bhutan 3.0 per cent for health sector.

These were revealed at the two-day symposium on 'Health Economic Issues and Healthcare Financing' at Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban auditorium at the University of Dhaka.

Institute of Health Economics (IHE) of Dhaka University with the support of Deutsche Gesellschaft fuer Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare organized the event with an aim to bring together global health economists for the symposium.

Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor Professor AAMS Arefin Siddique inaugurated the symposium.

IHE assistant professor Azher Ali Molla and Lecturer of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) Nazmul Islam presented a paper on "Sources and Patterns of Health Sector Financing: Options and Challenges in Bangladesh".

Highlighting the challenges, the paper noted that the main barriers to improving access by the poor are high and uncertain costs for a low quality service with lack of drugs -- a major cause of low utilization of public services, along with lack of staff, specially in remote areas.

"The financial resource available to the health sector is far short of what is required to reach millennium development goals (MDGs) and further growth in the budget is likely to be slower due to global and country level recession," the paper said.

Without a conducive financing and policy environment the benefits of aid may not sustain forcing a growing interest and experience in alternative aid mechanism, it added.

Indonesia's vice-minister for health Ali Gofran Mukti said universal health coverage in a resource-starved country is possible only if there is strong political commitment.

Citing the Indonesian experience of bringing nearly 60 per cent of the population under prepaid financing schemes to cover healthcare services financing mechanisms, Mukti said this is the route to the universal health coverage in a decade.

He said people who can afford have to contribute to their pool for prepaid financing for heathcare services, but who cannot afford don't have to contribute.

Arefin Siddique said his university would do its best to strengthen the Institute of Health Economics that is now offering degrees.

BD’s per capita health spending at $5.0 :: Financial Express :: Financial Newspaper of Bangladesh

 

[eastwatch]

Beggars turn dignified earners | The Daily Star

THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
Beggars turn dignified earners
They learn handiwork under 40-day job scheme
EAM Asaduzzaman, Nilphamari

Inspired by the upazila nirbahi officer, a group of ultra poor people in Kishoreganj upazila under Nilphamari district pledge to give up begging and lead a dignified life through earning by making and selling household items that they learnt at a training programme under ‘creative diversification’ of 40-day seasonal job programme meant for the extremely poor people. Photo: Star

One hundred and six beggars of Kishoreganj upazila under the district have pledged to live with dignity through earning by work, thanks to the ‘creative diversification’ of the government’s 40-day seasonal job programme meant for the extremely poor people.

Visiting the project area on the premises of Kishoreganj upazila parishad complex on Monday (April 22), this correspondent saw a good number of beggars, mostly women, engaged in making various goods from bamboo, wood and aquatic plants.

They were making nice-looking baskets and fancy household articles using bamboo strips or fine sticks. Some were making mats using aquatic plants called ‘motha’. “We have formed several groups among the participants and arranged trainer for each. At beginning of their work every day, the upazila nirbahi officer of Kishoreganj conducts an oath, having the participants pledge to give up begging and opt for a dignified life,” said Apela Begum Rina, chairman of the project, also member of Nitai union parishad.

The former beggars making useful items with bamboo strips. Photo: Star

The government’s 40-day job programme for the ultra poor, so far limited to making or repairing earthen roads in rural areas, often saw hindrance due to lack of earth, said Mohammad Golam Azam, upazila nirbahi officer of Kishoreganj.

“As part of the authorities’ steps to add other suitable works, we have launched a pilot project for 106 beggars with a portion of the fund for 40-day programme in the upazila. Under the project, the beggars are working for daily wage, paving the way for their self-employment,” he said.

The second phase of 40-day job programme with a fund of Tk 3.13 crore started in the upazila on April 4, upazila office source said, adding that total 4341 extremely poor people are participating in the programme under several projects, including the innovative pilot project for 106 beggars.
The beneficiaries get Tk 175 for working eight hours a day.

“After my husband’s death I started begging as I became helpless with my three teenage daughters. Now I am learning to make bamboo goods and getting paid for it. I have decided to give up begging,” said Mohosena, 45, a participant at the training.

Several others including Joimala, 50, Meraj Ali, 55, Azmol, 45, Safia, 55, Morjina, 45, expressed happiness over the opportunity to earn through the training. From the money got by selling the things they are now making, instruments and working capital will be provided to selected participants, the UNO said.