Bangladesh has a remarkable primary education enrolment rate – 97.97%, but 18.85% of students drop out before completion. Drop-out rates are even higher in urban informal settlements, hard-to-reach areas, such as haor (wetlands) and char (riverine islands). BRAC is seeing significant improvements in drop-out rates through the implementation of its Bridge Schools initiative – specially-designed, accelerated programmes to bridge learning gaps and support children to complete primary education
The Community Fort for Resisting COVID-19 project is a protracted effort to contain the virus within communities in Bangladesh, by equipping 81 million people across 35 high-risk districts with the tools and knowledge to keep themselves and their families safe. The project is implemented by a coalition of organisations who work at the community level. BRAC sat down with one of the partners, Manusher Jonno Foundation, to get an update on what they are learning:
The Global Education Summit convenes this week in London, gathering in virtual or hybrid form. It offers an extraordinary chance for the world community to focus on the vital role of education in transforming lives.
More than one year since the first COVID-19 case in Bangladesh, infection rates are reaching new records. The delta variant is spreading across the country. Despite the rampant spread of the infection in communities, there is still reluctance towards following healthcare guidelines.
As COVID-19 continues to disrupt economies around the globe, the number of people living in urban poverty is increasing at an alarming rate. Urban contexts present unique challenges to poverty that require contextualised, adaptable interventions. Learn how BRAC is helping communities living in urban poverty address these challenges.
What prompts people to wash their hands and how can we use behavioural design to increase hand washing? Here is what we have learnt so far.
BRAC, in partnership with The Behavioural Insights Team (BIT) and Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC), installed bright yellow posters inside buses so that they would be visible when harassment actually occurs. Here is what we unpacked from that experiment.
Can increasing access to portable handwashing devices and soap in people’s homes lead to improved hand hygiene? Here is what we found out.
Every year on 28 May, nonprofit organisations, government agencies and the private sector come together to celebrate Menstrual Hygiene Day, and advocate for the importance of menstrual hygiene. This year’s theme is action and investment in menstrual hygiene and health. Since the inception of BRAC’s water and sanitation programme in 2006, it has taken a holistic approach in addressing menstrual health, working closely with the government and other stakeholders to improve the situation.
A saying goes in Africa: “If you think you are too small to make a difference, you have not spent a night with a mosquito”. The five millimetre species has overwhelmed humankind for over 500,000 years, making it one of the world’s deadliest antiquated disease-carriers. Bangladesh, however, has made remarkable progress over the past 50 years in battling malaria, one of the most deadly diseases the mosquito carries.
Bangladesh ranks seventh in the global top ten most affected countries in the climate risk index 2021 report. Approximately 13.3 million Bangladeshis are estimated to be displaced by 2050 due to climate change impacts. To combat challenges of climate-induced disasters, learning from the past can be instrumental in reducing risks and better support people living in ultra-poverty.
Stories of families losing their businesses due to the pandemic are all too common. But when it comes to families like Molly’s, the fight is much harder.