The living standard of urban population is increasing, but the existing disparities in some major areas are undermining the pace of urban development, according to a recent survey of the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).
The Child Well-being Survey (CWS) shows that the country’s achievement in urban areas was relatively better in terms of the well-being of children and women, but large disparities between slum and non-slum areas within city corporations as well as with the municipality and other urban areas were undermining development process.
BBS with support from UNICEF conducted the survey between February and April this year focusing on 75 child related indicators in over 20,000 households. The key findings of the survey were disseminated on Sunday at a seminar in the capital city.
Survey results indicate that large disparities exist for many of the indicators related to child nutrition, breastfeeding, child health, access to safe drinking water and improved sanitation, reproductive health, maternal and newborn health, child development, literacy and education and child protection.
According to the survey, more than one in four under-five children in urban areas are stunted when the case in the slum people is much higher than non-slum dwellers.
About 56.0 percent of births are assisted in city corporation slums compared to 74 percent in non-slum areas.
Net attendance ratio in primary education is 15.0 percent lower in slum areas than the non-slum areas within city corporations.
Households in slum areas had a very low access to improved sanitation as compared to the non-slum households in city corporations, the survey pointed out.
Prevalence of child labour is substantially higher in city corporation slum areas at 14.3 percent against 8.1 percent for non-slum urban areas. In the slum areas about one in every three girl at the age group 15-19 years being married.
