Family Planning in Asia and the Pacific - International Council on ...

TableTable2Budgeted amount <strong>and</strong> actual expenditure under <strong>the</strong> family plann<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> reproductive healthprogramme: 2003/04-2010/11 (In “000,000” taka)Development budget:Period Budget ExpenditureFiscal year Govt. Total Govt.Directproject aidExpenditureas % of budget2003/04 13,984 45,717 13,090 21,572 34,662 75.822004/05 8,400 38,178 6,779 27,123 33,902 88.792005/06 7,767 43,655 6,952 23,825 30,777 70.502006/07 7,844 56,641 6,441 41,589 48,030 84.792007/08 9,724 32,899 8,453 19,107 27,560 83.772008/09 12,557 50,957 11,054 20,306 31,360 61.542009/10 13,225 56,220 12,590 34,086 46,676 83.02Total2010/11 19,906 53,081 19,906 33,175 53,081Revenue budget:Fiscal yearRevised budgetActualexpenditureExpenditure as % of revised budget2003/04 30,539.05 30,263.14 99.092004/05 42,557.80 39,075.46 91.812005/06 51,484.29 46,239.95 89.812006/07 62,629.01 59,602.34 95.162007/08 62,840.71 61,566.17 97.972008/09 73,694.66 63,364.74 85.982009/10 79,397.59 78,691.18 99.112010/11 97,829.32 ------- ------Source: Directorate General of <strong>Family</strong> <strong>Plann<strong>in</strong>g</strong>.<strong>the</strong> two most common misconceptions about <strong>the</strong> humanimmunodeficiency virus – that HIV can be transmittedby mosquito bites <strong>and</strong> that a person can become <strong>in</strong>fectedby shar<strong>in</strong>g food with someone who is HIV-positive – only6 per cent of ever-married women <strong>and</strong> 14 per cent of evermarriedmen were found to have comprehensive knowledgeof HIV/AIDS (NIPORT, Mitra <strong>and</strong> Associates <strong>and</strong>Macro <strong>International</strong>, 2009).It is clear that Bangladesh is fac<strong>in</strong>g a serious demographiccrisis <strong>in</strong> terms of its grow<strong>in</strong>g population size <strong>and</strong> density,<strong>the</strong> proportion of <strong>the</strong> population younger than 15 yearsof age, <strong>the</strong> <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g number of married women <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong>reproductive age group, <strong>the</strong> stall<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong>/or near stagnation<strong>in</strong> fertility decl<strong>in</strong>e, <strong>the</strong> extremely high level of adolescentfertility, <strong>the</strong> sharp differentials <strong>in</strong> fertility by socioeconomiccharacteristics of <strong>the</strong> women, <strong>the</strong> low femaleage at marriage, early childbear<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>and</strong> high neonatal<strong>and</strong> maternal mortality. Such demographic challengesplace enormous burdens on <strong>the</strong> limited resources of <strong>the</strong>country <strong>in</strong>sofar as poverty reduction <strong>and</strong> efforts to tackleenvironmental <strong>and</strong> climate change are concerned. Also,<strong>the</strong>se factors are seen as h<strong>in</strong>der<strong>in</strong>g efforts to achieve o<strong>the</strong>rreproductive goals, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g a reduction <strong>in</strong> maternalmortality.Socio-economic changesMajor socio-economic changes have taken place <strong>in</strong>Bangladesh over <strong>the</strong> past two decades – both on <strong>the</strong> positive<strong>and</strong> negative sides – affect<strong>in</strong>g fertility norms <strong>and</strong> behaviour.Changes <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> positive direction <strong>in</strong>clude <strong>in</strong>creases <strong>in</strong>female education, employment, women’s empowerment<strong>and</strong> access to mass media; changes <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> negative direction<strong>in</strong>clude <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g l<strong>and</strong>lessness, shr<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g employmentopportunities <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> agricultural sector, cont<strong>in</strong>u<strong>in</strong>g high<strong>in</strong>cidence of poverty <strong>and</strong> grow<strong>in</strong>g urbanization.The education sector <strong>in</strong> Bangladesh has witnessedconsiderable improvements. The literacy rate of <strong>the</strong> adultpopulation aged 15 years <strong>and</strong> older <strong>in</strong>creased from 45 percent <strong>in</strong> 1995 to 51 per cent <strong>in</strong> 2006, with <strong>the</strong> rate be<strong>in</strong>ghigher among males (59%) than females (49%), <strong>and</strong> higher108