STAFF CORRESPONDENT

A recent UN study revealed that Bangladesh records over 63,000 stillbirths each year, meaning there is one stillborn in every 41 births, the highest rate in the region.

Meanwhile, another study showed that over 1 lakh children in Bangladesh die before reaching five, with nearly two-thirds of those deaths occurring within the first 28 days of being born.

The new reports were published by the United Nations Inter-Agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME) recently. While progress has been made since 1990, Bangladesh continues to record the highest rate of stillbirths in South Asia.

Experts said Bangladesh faces significant challenges in maternal and newborn care, with the country needing to save an additional 28,000 newborns annually to meet its Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target.

“Over 1,00,000 newborns in Bangladesh die annually from preventable causes such as premature birth, complications during delivery, and infections like sepsis and pneumonia,” said Farook Adrian Doomun, deputy representative (operations) of Unicef in Bangladesh.

This violates their basic need -- the right to survive and thrive, he said. He stressed the need for increased investment in strengthening the healthcare system, particularly in primary healthcare, and expanding the number of trained professionals, including midwives, to ensure safe births.

WHO Representative in Bangladesh Dr Ahmed Jamsheed Mohamed, said, “Stillbirths and preventable child deaths remain a heartbreaking reality. While Bangladesh has made significant progress in maternal and child health, disparities in access to quality and timely care persist.”

He emphasised that implementing WHO’s prenatal,

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