Cash incentives in offing for poor pregnant women

Bangladesh is going to introduce cash incentives for poor pregnant women and under-five children in seven northern districts to improve maternal and child health.

The LGRD ministry and health ministry yesterday signed an agreement in this regard at the latter's office in the capital, said a health ministry statement.  

Under this five-year project titled "Income Support for the Poor", pregnant women will get Tk 200, up to four times, after having checkups at health facilities.

Up to 24 months of a child, each mother will get Tk 500 per month while Tk 1,000 will be given every three months for the child's growth check-up until the kid turns five.

A pregnant woman and a mother of under-five child will also get Tk 500 each for attending any workshop on child nutrition and development.

Six lakh women of 42 upazilas of Gaibandha, Kurigram, Nilphamari, Lalmonirhat, Mymensingh, Jamalpur and Sherpur will be benefited from the project starting next month. The beneficiaries, to be selected from poverty database, will get the cash through postal cash cards.

The initiative is taken at a time when at least 194 women per 1,00,000 die during childbirth while under-five mortality rate is 41 per 1,000 live births. Also, over one-third of under-five children suffer from malnutrition in Bangladesh.

With the cash incentives, Bangladesh will progress even more in cutting child and maternal mortality rates, said Health Minister Mohammed Nasim at the agreement signing ceremony. The World Bank is contributing Tk 2,340 crore while the government the rest in the Tk 2,377-crore project.