Experts at a two-day journalists’ workshop have called for amending and strictly implementing the Birth and Death Registration Act to achieve the government’s target of universal registration by 2030.
They said the existing legal limitations and weak implementation remain the main obstacles to achieving this goal.
The workshop, titled “Birth and Death Registration in Bangladesh: Progress, Challenges, and Way Forward,” was held on 5–6 November 2025 at Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA) Bhaban in Dhaka.
It was organised by PROGGA (Knowledge for Progress) with support from the Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI). Thirty journalists from print, television, and online media took part in the event.
During the discussions, it was revealed that the current rate of birth registration in Bangladesh stands at 50%, while death registration is 47%—both far below the global averages of 77% and 74%, respectively.
Speakers said birth and death registration are essential to ensuring fundamental rights such as education, healthcare, voting, inheritance, and access to social protection programmes.
The absence of registration, they warned, increases the risk of child labour, child marriage, and statelessness. Registration is not merely a statistical process but the foundation of equitable national planning and good governance.
Under the current law, families are responsible for reporting births and deaths, while the role of the health sector is optional. Yet nearly 67% of children in Bangladesh are born in healthcare facilities.
In contrast, several countries in the Asia-Pacific region have achieved near-universal registration by legally requiring hospitals to register all births and deaths.
Speakers therefore stressed the need to revise the Birth and Death Registration Act, 2004, to make all hospitals and healthcare facilities legally responsible for such registration.
They said this amendment would help Bangladesh meet its targets under the Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) Decade and Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16.9—ensuring legal identity for all by 2030.
Muhammad Ruhul Quddus, Bangladesh Country Lead of GHAI, said, “We are committed to ensuring universal birth and death registration by 2030. To achieve this, we must reform the law and ensure its effective implementation.”
Md Nazrul Islam, Country Coordinator of Vital Strategies, said, “Awareness about the importance of birth and death registration among the mass people must be increased. We also need to strengthen the capacity of registrars, improve technology, and enhance intersectoral coordination.”
Md Moyeen Uddin, Country Coordinator of Vital Strategies; Kawsar Rahman, Chief Reporter of Janakantha; and ABM Zubair, Executive Director of PROGGA, also joined as discussants. PROGGA Head of Programmes Md Hasan Shahriar and Coordinator Mashiat Abedin delivered presentations during the sessions.
