OUR WORK

Child Poverty

Our meticulously crafted child poverty program uses a variety of livelihood interventions to improve children’s nutritional, health, and educational status while significantly reducing the risk of abuse, exploitation, and neglect. We take our interventions to areas facing extreme poverty, undernutrition, and protection risks through strong networks that we’ve built to support developing and implementing the National Social Security Strategy. Those in poverty often lack access to education and do not understand the necessity to learn, as they are encouraged to start work early to support the immediate needs of their families. To help poverty-stricken children transform into empowered citizens, our Education for Youth Empowerment (EYE) Programme is geared towards improving their social status through accelerated education and vocational training and linking them to decent job opportunities in the future. By teaming up with the Ministry of Labour and Employment, we will support the adoption and implementation of the National Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Policy for Children. Our nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive approach has led to substantial changes in infant and young child feeding (IYCF), maternal child health & nutrition (MCHN) practices, dietary diversity, household food security, nutrition indicators, and household income and savings.

Child Protection & Child Rights Governance

Our social protection schemes and partner organizations are working to empower children, their families, and caregivers. We support the government in implementing proper care through family and community-based programs, as well as building an integrated approach that puts an end to child marriage. In early childhood, corporal punishment is known to reduce cognitive abilities. We advocate implementing the new law that bans Physical and Humiliating Punishment (PHP) in all settings, especially schools. Our child protection program creates access to income-generating opportunities for families to prevent children from joining hazardous work. It also provides mental health and case management support to children to help keep them safe following threats to their physical or emotional well-being. Our Child Rights Governance program works with children to implement child-sensitive planning, budgeting, and investment for the most disadvantaged by creating equitable access to essential and social services. Our work with the government aims to improve accountability and implement policies that promote equity in quality health and education services. Our National Children’s Task Force (NCTF) is the platform where children can directly advocate and influence duty-bearers and policymakers to take action that supports fulfilling their rights.

Education

We work closely with the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education (MoPME) to strengthen their systems and to develop and implement policy reforms. We also have strategic partnerships with the Directorate of Primary Education (DPE) and the Bureau of Non-Formal Education (BNFE) to reach out-of-school children and provide low-cost learning opportunities. In addition to supporting them in developing a curriculum covering all necessary skills and competencies, we have also worked to increase the attendance of female students, provided financial support to impoverished families, and helped create an inclusive learning environment for children with disabilities. Given the digital boom and the rising young population, we increasingly utilize technology to reach even the most remote regions—we couple ICT interventions with digital literacy and numeracy classes with after-school remedial support for underperforming students. Our interventions start with teachers, training them with the necessary knowledge and new methods to provide a more holistic approach to supporting children’s education.

Health & Nutrition

We focus on improving health service access, use, and quality, particularly for those most impacted by inequality and discrimination. It is done by enhancing knowledge and health-seeking practices among households and communities. We partnered with the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoH&FW) and other relevant ministries, donors, and civil society organizations to improve quality care at healthcare facilities. We have supported the establishment of Special Care Newborn Units (SCANU) and Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC). Save the Children works with partners to model future disease prevalence and to support the government and its ministries.

Bangladesh has made remarkable development advances over the last few decades in health indicators (SDG 3 - 'Good Health and Wellbeing) and steady performance in nutrition (SDG 2 - Zero Hunger). Some notable data below clearly speak to that. Significant efforts and investments through the Health, Nutrition and Population Sector Program (HNPSP) focused on expanding existing services to currently underserved groups, including adolescents, the poor, and those in urban and hard-to-reach areas, continue work on stabilizing population growth through education and family planning services, strengthening of core systems (procurement and supply chain management, infrastructure development, public financial management) and ensuring continuous quality improvement, expanding and strengthening the country's comprehensive Maternal, Neonatal, Child and adolescent health care approach (MNC&AH), including sexual and reproductive health services, increased investment in prevention, primary care and strengthening community engagement. 

Humanitarian

We work with the Ministry of Disaster Management and Environment, Forest, and Climate Change to review and update policies and rules to mitigate the effects of disasters and climatic events on children. We focus on rural areas and work with government agencies and city corporations to support community resilience and capacity-building initiatives. Based on our analysis of the areas most prone to experiencing disasters, we preposition vendors and prepare contingency stocks to provide urgent relief and supplies when needed. Our highest priority is ensuring the most vulnerable children, and their families receive immediate aid and services during emergencies. Our child-centered climate change adaptation initiatives, such as Green Club and Oxygen Bank, focus on improving knowledge and basic understanding of climate change among children, youth, and communities.

Sponsorship (Shishuder Jonno)

We are implementing integrated projects and programs in both development and humanitarian contexts, where different types of beneficiaries are identified from the same source by a single point of community-based workers. This is inherently more efficient as it reduces costs by combining resources, avoids duplication or exclusion of beneficiaries, and helps determine the appropriate type and amount of support. Through our Shishuder Jonno program, we support the development of children, particularly those deprived of basic needs and services like health, education, and livelihood opportunities. We follow a life cycle approach to implement a comprehensive set of activities appropriate to each life stage for children until they are 18 years old, encompassing services for mother's and new-born's health and nutrition, early childhood care and development, and basic education with a focus on digital innovation, school health, and nutrition and adolescent development. We always promote child protection, rights, and governance through our work and encourage community mobilization and gender inclusion. We actively involve children, their families, and community actors to address the needs of the children and create an enabling environment for them.

Rohingya Crisis Response

Our teams work around the clock to ensure Rohingya children and their families are supported with food, shelter, kitchen supplies, clean water, and sanitation and hygiene facilities and supplies. Our Child Safe Spaces and Child-Friendly Spaces (CFS) support vulnerable children at risk or survivors of child abuse, child labor, child marriage, and trafficking. We have been providing case management services to protect at-risk and unaccompanied children who may experience abuse, exploitation, and neglect. We have set up safe and inclusive learning centers with trained teachers and provide families with quality healthcare, nutrition support, and psychosocial support for trauma patients. Our programs are working to strengthen and expand household and community mechanisms to support the well-being and resilience of vulnerable populations affected by the Rohingya crisis and COVID-19.