Investing in Bangladeshis: 50 Years of Partnership in Health and Education

With U.S. assistance, Bangladesh reduced maternal and child mortality by nearly 70 percent since 2000.

Throughout 2022, we celebrated five decades of partnership between the United States and Bangladesh, reflecting on some of the major accomplishments our two countries have made together to help Bangladeshis achieve a brighter and more prosperous future. 

We now chart a path toward accelerating economic development and enabling Bangladesh to achieve its vision of becoming an upper middle-income country by 2031.

Reaching this goal will require the combined strength of an entire nation working together in unison while maximizing the full potential of each and every citizen across the country.

This is why the United States, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), continues to invest in the people of Bangladesh. 

The United States is proud to have contributed to Bangladesh’s remarkable development and economic advancement over the past 50 years through investments of more than $8 billion to improve the lives of its citizens. When people think of USAID, they might think of humanitarian assistance or traditional infrastructure projects of years past like building schools, hospitals or roads.

However, our most impressive achievements are not found in tangible objects like buildings or bags of wheat – they are found in the benefits to people and communities we assist. 

Targeting Investments in Health and Education

Improving health and education is one of the most critical investments to ensure people in this country – or anywhere in the world – have opportunities to improve their own well-being and contribute more fully to their countries’ growth. Continued economic progress requires a healthy, educated population.  

From the time of independence, the Government of Bangladesh prioritized creating a robust public health system – a decision that continues to pay dividends. Health is also an area in which the impacts of investing in people are perhaps most visibly profound. 

It is impossible to have a healthy populace without investing in developing a skilled workforce of healthcare providers. This is why USAID has focused on strengthening the national health system – from training health workers and care providers, to building staff skills within logistics and supply chains to deliver medicines and commodities more effectively.  

Our joint investments have enabled Bangladeshi medical professionals to improve their quality of care,  and help their communities lead healthier and more prosperous lives. In turn, Bangladesh is one of just a handful of countries to reduce both maternal and child mortality by more than two-thirds since 2000. 

A History of Partnership in Health 

Beginning in the 1970s, USAID programs were instrumental in establishing renowned health and research institutions like the International Center for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b) and the Social Marketing Company. USAID also partnered with the government of Bangladesh to start the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey. The survey is now managed by Bangladesh, and provides trusted evidence about progress in the health sector, which informs national policy and programming.  

Another success story is the GOB’s Expanded Programme on Immunization, which was established in 1979 and led to very high childhood vaccination rates. USAID investments helped Bangladesh leverage the latest technology and science to develop new vaccines, transport and administer vaccines safely, and strengthen routine immunizations to give children a healthy start to life. The program enabled the country to eliminate polio in 2000 and continues to vaccinate children  and prevent approximately 200,000 deaths each year. 

Past Investments Build Resilience for Future Challenges 

As we have learned over the past couple of years, investments in building a strong health system help countries adapt to emerging threats. When COVID-19 turned the world upside down, Bangladesh already had a cadre of skilled medical personnel in place to quickly shift focus and respond to the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic. USAID adapted our activities to provide health workers with urgent training on infection prevention and control, lab testing, and treatment for COVID-19 patients.

The United States stood by Bangladesh from the beginning of the pandemic, donating more than 100 million COVID-19 vaccine doses, which accounts for more than 70 percent of all international vaccine donations to Bangladesh. USAID also provided training to more than 50,000 healthcare providers and other workers to safely deliver and administer vaccines in each of the country’s 64 districts. 

Bangladesh rapidly achieved millions of ‘shots in arms’ and has since fully vaccinated 73 percent of the entire country. Much of the credit for the country’s success is due to the government’s early decision to establish a robust immunization program many years ago. 

New Horizons in Education for Early Learners

When people are healthy, they are better able to learn. Bangladesh is fortunate to have high enrollment rates and gender parity in education, but children in underserved communities still face gaps in quality of instruction and other challenges that lead them to drop out.

This is why USAID has reinvigorated early childhood learning programs in close partnership with the Government of Bangladesh to reach children with the greatest need. Over the last decade, USAID education programs have reached 1.3 million primary school students, trained nearly 17,000 teachers, and distributed more than two million reading materials to classrooms. We also continue to support the Sisimpur children’s educational television program, reaching 12 million children with entertaining learning opportunities. 

In doing so, we are striving to help the youngest generation of Bangladeshis have equitable opportunities for health and education so they can set themselves up for success for the rest of their lives. 

So while the impacts of long-term investments in people might not be as readily apparent as a new bridge, building, or school is – the impact of our work together shines brightest when a mother and father look into the eyes of their healthy newborn baby for the very first time; a baby who was delivered by a trained birth attendant. 

This impact is visible each time a young boy or girl smiles widely with the satisfaction of finishing reading a book, and when students complete their studies and start lives and families of their own.

And these impacts can be felt when Bangladesh continues to defy odds and accelerate economic growth in the face of a global pandemic. We know the impacts of our investments will continue to be felt for years to come, exemplifying the power of partnership between Americans and Bangladeshis in creating a better world for the next 50 years and beyond.

Published in American Chamber of Commerce Journal, December 2022