National Conference 2023: Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Bangladesh (NCSRHR2023)
On 3 May 2023, the National Conference 2023: Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Bangladesh | Showcasing Research through Ideas, Ingenuity and Innovations (NCSRHR2023) was organized in the InterContinental Dhaka, Bangladesh. Over 400 policymakers, researchers, academicians, and public health practitioners from around 50 organizations attended the event, which was covered by 40+ print and electronic media.
The conference started with acknowledging the lifetime contribution of Professor TA Chowdhury and Dr Halida Hanum Akter in promoting SRHR in Bangladesh through the Excellence in SRHR Award 2023. In the first scientific session, keynote speakers discussed the status and context of cervical cancer, family planning, genital fistula, and the key population's SRHR needs in Bangladesh. In the second scientific session, UNFPA, a2i, Ipas and Share-Net showcased their SRHR innovations through plenary presentations. In addition, the Innovation and Evidence Hub by AdSEARCH was launched during the conference, which comprises 50 early career researchers who will receive exclusive mentoring for two years by more than 20 eminent SRHR experts. The Innovation and Evidence Hub showcased an innovation marketplace, 6 oral presentations and 70 posters by hub members.
Md. Anwar Hossain Howlader, Secretary of the Health Service Division (HSD) at the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, graced the conference as the chief guest, while Joe Goodings, Head of Development Cooperation, High Commission of Canada, Dhaka, Md. Saidur Rahman, Additional Secretary, Health Service Division (HSD) Admin Wing & World Health (WH) Wing, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and Md. Shafiqul Islam, Director General of the National Institute of Population Research Training (NIPORT), was the special guest. Dr Shams El Arifeen from icddr,b, Syed Rubayet from Ipas Bangladesh and Arnob Chakrabarty from Share-Net Bangladesh co-chaired the inaugural session.
The conference was organized by Advancing Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (AdSEARCH) by icddr,b, in partnership with Share-Net Bangladesh and Ipas Bangladesh.
