The classroom has long been heralded as the crucible of a nation’s future. In Bangladesh, our journey towards universal education is a point of national pride.
However, two seminal evidence bases -- the “WASH in Educational and Healthcare Facilities Survey 2024” and the “Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) 2025” -- expose a structural "dignity gap" that threatens this very foundation.
For the millions of children entering our schools, the lack of safely managed water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) is not merely a logistical failure but a systemic violation of their fundamental right.
While 95.4% of schools ostensibly have access to "improved" water sources, the "basic" service level -- which accounts for functionality and year-round availability -- drops to 86.1%. The sanitation crisis is even more acute: A staggering 71.4% of schools fail to meet the recommended student-to-toilet ratio.
Furthermore, only one out of five schools provides a private space for girls to manage menstruation with water and soap available.
The human cost of these figures is best illustrated through the eyes of students like 13-year-old Sumaiya from a rural school in Rajshahi.
"I often skip school for three or four days every month," she confides. "There is no private place to change, and the common toilet is always broken or dirty."
Such anecdotes are supported by recent research which demonstrates that inadequate school WASH facilities are directly correlated with higher female absenteeism and a significant decline in cognitive focus among students of all genders.
The Bangladesh Constitution, under Article 17, mandates that the state adopt effective measures to "establish a uniform, mass-oriented and universal system of education." This cannot be achieved in a vacuum. Article 18(1) further elevates the improvement of public health as a "primary duty" of the state.
Furthermore, the National Strategy for Water Supply and Sanitation 2021 and the Water Act 2013 provide a clear statutory framework, prioritizing water for human consumption and hygiene. Neglecting these standards thus is not just a policy oversight but constitutes a breach of the state's protective duty under the Children Act 2013, which demands that the best interests of the child be the primary consideration in all actions.
Bangladesh is also a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
These international instruments, alongside our commitment to SDG 6, obligate the government to ensure that school environments are safe and inclusive.
The present government’s election manifesto and its subsequent 180-day implementation plan recognize the intersection of health and education. The manifesto explicitly commits to "modernizing education" and "ensuring climate-resilient infrastructure."
To turn these manifesto commitments into reality, the 180-day plan must prioritize "safely managed" standards. Data from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics shows that the sanitation value chain is weak; where toilets exist, the management of faecal sludge remains a "devastating gap."
We must move beyond building toilets to institutionalising their maintenance. "We built the latrine last year," says a primary school headteacher in Barishal, "but after the first monsoon flood, the pit overflowed and the pipes broke. We have no budget to fix it."
Immediate action is required to bridge the "dignity gap." This means to strictly enforce the National Building Code and WASH standards in schools, and implement a public-facing rating system for transparency and also mandate that all renovations comply with the Rights and Protection of Persons with Disabilities Act 2013.
Responsibility for the school environment is shared. Parents and school management committees (SMCs) must demand transparency and use digital platforms to report non-functional facilities directly to the authorities.
Development partners and UN agencies' role is to inspire and scale. Investments should shift from "one-off" infrastructure projects to strengthening national systems for data collection and climate-resilient engineering.
Safe water, sanitation, and hygiene are the "first lines of defense" for a child’s dignity and right to learn. Let us ensure that no child in Bangladesh misses school simply because they lack a safe toilet or a glass of clean water.
Fayazuddin Ahmad is an Advocate and Development Professional.
