Reza Mahmud :
Acute crises of birth control products such as condoms, pills and injections, have created across the country, threatening AIDS infections, unplanned pregnancy, abortion.
There are huge shortages of those items in stock of the Directorate General of Family Planning which posed not only the risks of uncertainty in the birth controlling arena but also creating huge risks of rising of HIV/AIDS infections across the country.
The government’s programme is going through a shortage of medicine stock. From the field level to the central level, there are huge shortages of stock of birth control materials in almost every place.
Due to lack of stock of family planning materials, the family planning programme of the government is under threat.
When contacted, Professor Dr. M. Muzaherul Huq, former Adviser of the World Health Organisation (WHO), told The New Nation on Saturday, “There is an information that in almost half of the upazilla hospitals are experiencing shortage of family planning requirements e.g condoms tablets or injections & other essential support materials.”
The public health expert said, “Moreover it’s quite uncertain when these will be available.”
“These are while a most essential things for people as well as essential to limit pregnancy & population growth, it helps prevent many sexual transmission of diseases including HIV/AIDS,” he said.
The professor said, government should make an assessment of the present situation and take urgent necessary measures to make the essential things available as early as possible.
Sources said, more than half of upazilas in the country are lacking in stock of family planning materials, condoms, pills, injections, maternal and child health medicines.
As a result, there is a fear that the common people of the country will be deprived of these urgent services.
A review of the current stock of family planning products at the upazila level shows that there are no condoms in 349 upazila stores, 97 upazilas will soon be out of stock. And 22 upazila stores have minimum stock.
38 upazila stores have no pills (sukhi), 105 upazila stores will go out of stock very quickly and 207 upazila stores have minimum stock. 67 upazila stores have no food pills (Apan), 102 upazila stores will go out of stock very quickly and 99 upazila stores have minimum stock.
298 upazila stores have no injection, 155 upazila stores will go out of stock very quickly and 33 upazila stores have minimum stock.
Besides, in the case of drugs and dietary supplement (DDS) kit, which is one of the tools of maternal and child health services, it can be seen that there is no DDS kit in 476 upazila stores, 16 upazila stores will out of stock very quickly and 2 upazila stores have minimum stock.
375 upazila stores are out of stock of general delivery kits required for regular delivery services, 19 upazila stores will be out of stock very soon and 27 upazila stores have minimum stock.
According to the supply management information of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, condoms for one month, food pills (Sukhi) for 5.5 months, food pills (Apan) 6.5 months and 20 days of injections are in stock.
Sohail Parvez, Director of the Directorate, said he joined the post on May 24 last year. So far after joining, he has taken initiatives to purchase contraceptives, but could not be successful.
But according to government rules it may take 3-4 months to complete this purchase and get the goods. According to him, this crisis is likely to be prolonged.
Marzia Haque, Director of the Directorate, said, “Medicines related to women and children’s health are currently in short supply.
Especially the condom and pill supply at the end. But efforts are being made to increase the stock. We hope that this crisis will be resolved soon.”
When trying to contact with Sahan Ara Banu, Director General of the Directorate, she cut off the phone call after getting identity of a journalist.
Since 1953, the journey of family planning services started in this country by giving importance to issues like population control, maternal and child health, maternal mortality and infant mortality.
In 1973, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman laid emphasis on population control in the first five-year plan.
The achievements of the Directorate in the last 15 years in terms of population control and maternal and child health services are remarkable.
Bangladesh’s success in population control, reducing maternal and child mortality is recognized internationally.
After independence, the birth rate in this country was 6.3 which has been brought down to below 2.3. Birth control use has also increased, fertility rates have fallen, maternal mortality has fallen by nearly 40 per cent to 169 per thousand: a target of 70 by 2030.