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Unintended pregnancy is a global social health concern among women from developing countries. It plays a significant role in the women's health condition, their children, and their family economy, particularly in South Asia (SA) and Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The prime concentration of this study was to explore the prevalence of unintended pregnancy and point out the factors associated with unintended pregnancy in the women from the SA and SSA regions. This study utilized the Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data of 35 developing countries from the SA and SSA region for analysis purposes. Univariate analysis was conducted to calculate the prevalence, and bivariate and multivariate analyses were applied to explore associated factors of unintended pregnancy. Results revealed that unintended pregnancies accounted for 20.50 % of combined data of the SA and SSA region. There were 17.40% and 25.10% unintended pregnancies found in SA and SSA countries. Binary logistic regression indicated that the age of the respondent (OR=1.28, CI=1.20-1.36) was a highly influential factor for unintended pregnancy in the selected countries. Besides this variable, place of residence, educational level, family size, household head, wealth index, age at first birth, contraceptive method, and current residence with a partner were found to be significant critical factors in determining the risk of unintended pregnancy in both regions. Several intervention programs on reproductive and maternal health care, such as increasing awareness among teenage women from the rural areas, and women with wealthy family backgrounds, are highly recommended to reduce the risk of unintended pregnancy.

The study was conducted through a survey on 108 women representatives elected in the Union Parishad (UP) election of 2003 purposively selected from 36 Unions of Bagerhat District of Bangladesh with an interview schedule. These women representatives mainly came to UP through the provision of reserved seats of Union Parishad Act, 1997. They are not given equal access in project distribution, committee memberships and their opinions in the UP decision making were ignored. The adversarial conditions were manifested by the patriarchal social structure that does not put up with women in the leadership position. The surveyed women representatives suggested that significant political and institutional changes will be required for them to be empowered. To ensure good governance and to remove gender discrimination in local government, more supportive policies and laws have to be incorporated and implemented along with the reservation of seats for women.

ObjectivesThe prime objectives of the study were to measure the prevalence of facility delivery, assess socioeconomic inequalities and determine potential associated factors in the use of facility delivery in Bangladesh.DesignCross-sectional.SettingThe study involved investigation of nationally representative secondary data from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey between 2007 and 2017–2018.ParticipantsThe participants of this study were 30 940 (weighted) Bangladeshi women between the ages of 15 and 49.MethodsDecomposition analysis and multivariable logistic regression were both used to analyse data to achieve the study objectives.ResultsThe prevalence of using facility delivery in Bangladesh has increased from 14.48% in 2007 to 49.26% in 2017–2018. The concentration index for facility delivery utilisation was 0.308 with respect to household wealth status (pConclusionsThis study found a prorich inequality in the use of facility delivery in Bangladesh. The socioeconomic disparities in facility delivery must be addressed if facility delivery usage is to increase in Bangladesh.

In Bangladesh, 36% of children under the age of 5 are moderately or severely stunted, impeding the country’s overall public health outcomes. Some differences have been found in the associations of risk factors and two forms of stunting; therefore, investigating why these differences exist is necessary. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and risk factors for moderate and severe stunting in Bangladeshi children < 5 years old. Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2014 (BDHS 2014) data were analyzed in this study; the information of 7131 mother-child pairs was available. Height-for-age z-scores (HFAz) according to the World Health Organization (WHO) 2006 growth standards were used to define moderate (HFAz

Background We aimed to determine the factors that increase the risk of HRFB in Bangladeshi women of reproductive age 15–49 years. Methods The study utilised the latest Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) 2017–18 dataset. The Pearson's chi-square test was performed to determine the relationships between the outcome and the independent variables, while multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify the potential determinants associated with HRFB. Results Overall 67.7% women had HRFB among them 45.6% were at single risk and 22.1% were at multiple high-risks. Women’s age (35–49 years: AOR = 6.42 95% CI 3.95–10.42), who were Muslims(AOR = 5.52, 95% CI 2.25–13.52), having normal childbirth (AOR = 1.47, 95% CI 1.22–1.69), having unwanted pregnancy (AOR = 10.79, 95% CI 5.67–18.64) and not using any contraceptive methods (AOR = 1.37, 95% CI 1.24–1.81) were significantly associated with increasing risk of having HRFB. Alternatively, women and their partners’ higher education were associated with reducing HRFB. Conclusion A significant proportion of Bangladeshi women had high-risk fertility behaviour which is quite alarming. Therefore, the public health policy makers in Bangladesh should emphasis on this issue and design appropriate interventions to reduce the maternal HRFB., Plain Language Summary High rates of maternal high-risk fertility behaviour (HRFB) have a variety of unfavourable repercussions for both the mother and the child. However, because there have been few studies on this topic to date, we set out to identify the determinants that enhance the risk of HRFB in Bangladeshi women between the ages of 15 and 49. Using latest demographic and health survey (BDHS) data we have found that 67.7% of women had HRFB, with 45.6% having a single high-risk factor and 22.1% having multiple high-risk factors. This high prevalence rate demonstrates that HRFB are all too common in Bangladesh, potentially endangering the health of the country's women. We found that women practicing Islam as core religion, age above 35 years, having normal childbirth, having above 3 children, having unwanted pregnancies and not using birth control methods were at increased risk of having HRFB. As a result of the study's findings, interventions are urgently needed to prevent high-risk fertility behaviour among Bangladeshi women aged 15 to 49 years.

Gender inequality in the labor market is a common occurrence across the developed or least developed countries. The objective of the study was to explore how the nature and extent of gender inequality in the labor market vary between a developed and a least developed country. In this regard, the Czech Republic as a developed and Bangladesh as a least developed country were selected purposively considering their socioeconomic status. A quantitative content analysis was done to compare the gender inequality in labor market using key databases including Labor Force Survey 2010 of Bangladesh, Labor Force Survey 2013 of Czech Republic, Eurostat 2014, ILO 2013, and World Bank 2012. The findings reveal that for the labor force participation, the number of Bangladeshi women (36 percent) is found less than half of men (82.5 percent) whereas, in Czech, the difference between men (68.1 percent) and women (59.5 percent) is much lower in this sector. While women in both countries failed to keep pace with men in employment, this gap is broader in Bangladesh. Moreover, in two countries, women’s appearance in higher level positions such as administrative, managerial and technical remain negligible and gender pay gap is found 21 percent for the Czech Republic and 25 percent for Bangladesh. In general, although gender inequality persists in the labor market of both countries, the ratio of inequalities is minor in the Czech labor market than that of Bangladesh. Attending of women in technical and vocational education and promoting gender blind mindset during recruitment can ensure gender equality in the labor market to a great extent. This study calls for integrating new dimensions of gender inequality such as underemployment, parenting and unemployment, and comparing more than two countries to have a holistic picture,which could stimulate dialogue of social research.

Child undernutrition is a major public health problem throughout the world, particularly in developing countries. The main objective of this study was to identify the risk factors for acute undernutrition among under-5 children in Bangladesh. Data were taken from the nationally representative Bangladesh Demographic Health and Survey conducted in 2014. The study sample comprised 7131 under-5 children. Of these, 4.6% were found to be severely wasted (Z-score < −3.0), 11.1% moderately wasted (−3.0≤Z-score < −2.0) and 84.3% adequately nourished (Z-score ≥−2.0). Chi-squared analysis was used to investigate the association between child nutrition status and selected covariates. Multinomial logistic regression was applied to identify the risk factors for acute undernutrition. The selected factors division, place of residence, sex of child, place of delivery, child age, respiratory illness, size at birth, measles vaccination, fever, diarrhoea, maternal BMI, maternal education, paternal occupation, wealth index and household toilet facilities were found to be highly significant (p < 0.05) in the analysis. Multinomial regression analysis revealed that residence in Barisal and Chittagong divisions, a smaller than average size at birth and low maternal BMI (≤18.50 kg/m2) were significant determinants of both moderate and severe acute undernutrition among under-5 children in Bangladesh.

Globally, malnutrition in mother–child pairs is steadily diminishing. However, the coexistence of different forms of double burden of malnutrition (DBM) is rising worldwide, including Bangladesh. This study aimed to explore the coexistence of different forms of DBM and their associated factors in the same household level for Bangladesh. The study utilized the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) 2014 dataset. Chi-square test of association was conducted to identify the significant factors for various forms of DBM. For the measurement of adjusted odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals, multivariate logistic regression (MLR) analysis was performed. In this study, the overall prevalence of DBM was 5.8% as several sociodemographic and economic factors correlate and contribute to this burden. Results of MLR analyses showed that potential factors with increasing DBM were: poor wealth stratum, use of unhygienic toilet, mother's age in years, child delivery procedure, child's birth order, and father’s education. The prevalence of DBM is still high in Bangladesh, based on different associated sociodemographic factors. Public health stakeholders in Bangladesh should address these factors and implement appropriate interventions with regard to minimizing the DBM.

Background High maternal mortality is still a significant public health challenge in many countries of the South-Asian region. The majority of maternal deaths occur due to pregnancy and delivery-related complications, which can mostly be prevented by safe facility delivery. Due to the paucity of existing evidence, our study aimed to examine the factors associated with place of delivery, including women’s preferences for such in three selected South-Asian countries. Methods We extracted data from the most recent demographic and health surveys (DHS) conducted in Bangladesh (2014), Nepal (2016), and Pakistan (2017–18) and analyzed to identify the association between the outcome variable and socio-demographic characteristics. A total of 16,429 women from Bangladesh (4278; mean age 24.57 years), Nepal (3962; mean age 26.35 years), and Pakistan (8189; mean age 29.57 years) were included in this study. Following descriptive analyses, bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions were conducted. Results Overall, the prevalence of facility-based delivery was 40%, 62%, and 69% in Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan, respectively. Inequity in utilizing facility-based delivery was observed for women in the highest wealth quintile. Participants from Urban areas, educated, middle and upper household economic status, and with high antenatal care (ANC) visits were significantly associated with facility-based delivery in all three countries. Interestingly, watching TV was also found as a strong determinant for facility-based delivery in Bangladesh (aOR = 1.31, 95% CI:1.09–1.56, P = 0.003), Nepal (aOR = 1.42, 95% CI:1.20–1.67, P Conclusion Our findings suggest that the educational status of both women and their husbands, household economic situation, and the number of ANC visits influenced the place of delivery. There is an urgent need to promote facility delivery by building more birthing facilities, training and deployment of skilled birth attendants in rural and hard-to-reach areas, ensuring compulsory female education for all women, encouraging more ANC visits, and providing financial incentives for facility deliveries. There is a need to promote facility delivery by encouraging health facility visits through utilizing social networks and continuing mass media campaigns. Ensuring adequate Government funding for free maternal and newborn health care and local community involvement is crucial for reducing maternal and neonatal mortality and achieving sustainable development goals in this region.

The purpose of this study is to explore the basic constraints to get access to maternal healthcare utilization during the pre- and post-delivery period of women in selected lower-middle-income countries around the world. This paper is a review of the literature of previous articles published from 2000 to 2019 in different database. The findings of the study show that different types of intervening factors including socioeconomic status, health literacy of the women and their husband, education, employment status, decision-making power of the women and religion significantly influence the full and free access to the maternal health care facilities in lower-middle-income countries.

Antenatal care (ANC) contacts have long been considered a critical component of the continuum of care for a pregnant mother along with the newborn baby. The latest maternal mortality survey in Bangladesh suggests that progress in reducing maternal mortality has stalled as only 37% of pregnant women have attended at least four ANC contacts. This paper aims to determine what factors are associated with ANC contacts for women in Bangladesh. We analysed the data, provided by Bangladesh demographic and health survey 2014, covering a nationally representative sample of 17,863 ever married women aged 15-49 years. A two-stage stratified cluster sampling was used to collect the data. Data derived from 4,475 mothers who gave birth in the three years preceding the survey. Descriptive, inferential, and multivariate statistical techniques were used to analyse the data. An overall 78.4% of women had ANC contacts, but the WHO recommended ≥8 ANC contacts and ANC contacts by qualified doctors were only 8% for each. The logistic regression analysis revealed that division, maternal age, women's education, husband's education, wealth index and media exposure were associated with the ANC contacts. Likewise, place of residence, women's education, religion, and wealth index were also found to be associated with the WHO recommended ANC contacts. Furthermore, the husband's education, division, religion and husband's employment showed significant associations with ANC contacts by qualified doctors. However, Bangladeshi women in general revealed an unsatisfactory level of ANC contacts, the WHO recommended as well as ANC contacts by qualified doctors. In order to improve the situation, it is necessary to follow the most recent ANC contacts recommended by the WHO and to contact the qualified doctors. Moreover, an improvement in education as well as access to information along with an increase of transports, care centres and reduction of service costs would see an improvement of ANC contacts in Bangladesh.