Maintaining Momentum to 2015? An impact evaluation of interventions to improve maternal and child health and nutrition in Bangladesh

Bangladesh has experienced rapid fertility decline and reductions in under-five mortality over the last three decades. This impact study unravels the various factors behind these changes. Economic growth has been important, but so have major public sector interventions, notably reproductive health and immunization, supported by external assistance from the World Bank and other agencies. By contrast, nutrition began to improve only in the 1990s and remains high. The Bangladesh Integrated Nutrition Program (BINP) has played a small role, if any, in this progress, which is mainly attributable to higher agricultural productivity.