Diplomatic Desk:
Catherine Breen Kamkong, Country Representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), paid a courtesy call on Professor Dr. A Z M Zahid Hossain, MP, Minister for Women and Children Affairs and Social Welfare.
The meeting took place on Sunday (September 20, 2026) at the Minister’s office in the Bangladesh Secretariat. Dr. Rawshan Ara Begum, Secretary of the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, was also present.
During the meeting, fruitful discussions were held on various issues, including the Family Card program, women’s education, achieving gender equality, preventing violence and sexual harassment against women and children, raising awareness to prevent child marriage, domestic violence, adolescent health, the Maternal and Child Benefit Programme (MCBP), DNA laboratories, One-Stop Crisis Centres (OCC), child rights protection, the elimination of child labour, preventing the misuse of online technology, cyberbullying, and primary healthcare.
The Minister described UNFPA as a friendly development partner of Bangladesh. He expressed gratitude for UNFPA’s cooperation and support in Bangladesh’s development at various times since independence. He expressed optimism that UNFPA’s development and technical cooperation for the country’s progress and public welfare would continue in the future.
The Minister briefed the UNFPA Country Representative on the operations of the state-of-the-art DNA laboratory managed by the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs. He stated that the government has planned to gradually expand DNA laboratory operations to the divisional level to ensure transparency in the judicial process and further strengthen legal protections for women and children.
The Minister sought UNFPA’s technical and knowledge-based support for the rapid and successful implementation of this initiative. In response, the UNFPA Country Representative expressed a positive attitude towards the matter.
The Minister further mentioned that adolescent clubs have been established in every union to raise awareness at the grassroots level regarding various social issues, including child marriage. She also noted that these clubs are fostering positive social change and raising awareness at the local level.
During the meeting, Catherine Breen Kamkong shared her experiences of working in Bangladesh. She commended the various development initiatives and commitments undertaken by the Government of Bangladesh to prevent child marriage and protect women’s rights. She urged for the closer involvement of local religious figures and prominent community members to completely eradicate child marriage at the grassroots level.
The UNFPA Country Representative briefed the Minister in detail about the upcoming ‘International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women’ and the associated 16-day program. In response, the Minister expressed the hope that the day’s activities would not be limited to the capital, Dhaka, but would also be extended to the district and grassroots levels.
Towards the end of the meeting, the Minister for Women and Children Affairs and Social Welfare sought the cooperation of development partner agencies in creating opportunities to export traditional and handicraft products made by grassroots-level women to international markets, as well as in providing training on modern marketing techniques to women entrepreneurs.
