SRHR is human rights: Information Minister
Information minister Hasanul Haq Inu inaugurated the Share-Net Knowledge Fair on May 3.
“Every citizen in Bangladesh has a right to discuss sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHS) without fear”, said Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu at the Share-Net knowledge fair.
“If any radical group bars people from discussing these issues, the Bangladeshi government will protect its citizens and stand for their rights”, he promised when he inaugurated the Share-Net Knowledge Fair on SRHR as the Chief Guest.
He also emphasized the importance of issues related to disseminating right based information on SRHR through a knowledge platform.
Three scientific plenary sessions discussed three major SHRH topics: child marriage, gender based violence and menstrual regulation.
The fair’s interactive sessions inspired to lively and fruitful debates.
The organizations promoted and presented their activities at exhibition stalls and highlighted research findings at poster presentations.
The Knowledge Fair was jointly hosted by Red Orange Media and Communications and James P Grant School of Public Health, BRAC University. It was held at the Six Seasons Hotel on May 3, 2017.
The Fair attracted more than two hundred participants representing approximately 60 organizations.
H.E. Martine van Hoogstraten, the Deputy Head of Mission, the Embassy of Kingdom of Netherlands, was the special guest of the Fair.
She emphasized on sharing knowledge and builing institutional structure to serve the purpose. She also said that men and women should know their roles in SRHR issue.
Karen ‘t Hooft, Share-Net International Country Coordinator, discussed the vision of Share-net in her presentation.
Bangladesh has reached milestones in family planning and fighting maternal mortality but there are still several other SRHR issues to work on. Many organizations are engaged in improving the situation practices.
Dr. Annie Vestjens, First Secretary, SRHR & Gender, the Embassy of Kingdom of Netherlands, gave the closing speech of the event. She said that the Embassy will be supporting Share-Net working on these vital issues also in the future.
