A majority of the workers living in Gazipur industrial area receive no benefit of family planning services offered by the Directorate General of Family Planning.
Mokhlesur Rahman, 42, lives in Sultan Market area of Gazipur Sadar upazila. A father of four, Mokhlesur works at GMS Knit Composite. He said no family planning worker approached him ever.
I realized the necessity of adopting birth control when my neighbours started talking about it, he told the Dhaka Tribune.
Azibur Rahman, a worker at The Civil Engineers Limited, resides in Tepirbari of Sreepur. Mariam Akhter, wife of the 45-year-old, works at Badar Spinning Mills Limited. The couple have five children together, with the third being a boy.
“I was never offered family planning services by any government worker. I married off my elder daughter four years ago and she has a child. I adopted birth control three months ago after learning about it from my daughter,” said Mariam.
Mariam's daughter Salma Akhter said she and her husband Alamgir Hossain work at Noman Textile Mills Limited.
“Alamgir was told about birth control by his friends earlier. After the birth of my daughter, I suggested it to my mom,” she added.
Safiqul Islam, 32, and Panna Akhter Ratna, 26, have three children. Originally from Netrakona, they now live in Joina Bazar of Sreepur and have been working at Tamishna Fashion Limited for one and a half years. They also said they were never approached by any private or government family planning staff.
Dr Abul Foyez, a family planning official at Sreepur Upazila Health Complex, said only a single family planning worker serves 500 able couples.
Family planning activities in Gazipur industrial zone suffer from shortage of manpower, he said.
Stating that there are over four lakh able couples in Gazipur, Laju Samsad Haque, deputy director at the Gazipur office of the Directorate General of Family Planning, said they were working those couples.
“Of the industrial workers able to reproduce, a large part has made Gazipur their home as the place boasts many industries. They, however, work at factories when family planning workers visit their homes,” explained Samsad.
“Another fact is that industrial workers frequently change their jobs as well as living places which is why catching up with them is a bit difficult,” he added.
There are, however, areas where birth control elements have been allocated inadequately. One of such areas is Mowchak of Kaliakoir upazila where industrial workers seeking access to the elements provided by the government have not had their names listed as fertile couples. The allocation thus fails to cater those.
There are some private family planning organisations operating in Gazipur, said Samsad.
“A separate policy in this regard is needed for workers living in the industrial area. Alternatively, the services could be offered inside factories with supervision by officials of respective firms,” he said.
Additional Secretary of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association Rafiqul Islam said about 10 lakh garment workers live in Gazipur but no step to offer family planning services by the factories in the area has yet been taken.
“However, we from the association offer the services in Chittagong, Mirpur, Malibagh and Narayanganj,” he added.
