UNDP to help Dhaka in preparation of population database

FE Team | Published: November 13, 2010 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is willing to assist Bangladesh in its National Population Registration (NPR) aiming to include the country's total population into a database system, reports UNB.
UNDP administrator Helen Clark expressed the willingness when she paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at Ganabhaban Friday afternoon.
Currently, persons aged 18 years and above are included in the electoral roll and as a result, a huge portion of the population remained out of the digitalised data base system in the country. Briefing the reporters after the meeting, Prime Minister's Deputy Press Secretary M Nazrul Islam said Clark thanked Sheikh Hasina for her government's relentless efforts to push the country forward to achieve socioeconomic progress and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
She specially referred to Bangladesh's winning the MDG-4 Award saying it proves the country is advancing on the right track towards its desired goals.
UNDP's eagerness to assist Bangladesh to constitute the Innovation Programme Fund and different aspects of South-South cooperation featured prominently during the discussion.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has also expressed its interest to support Bangladesh's digitisation programmes including land records, population registration and criminal records apart from climate change risk adaptation and management.
"We've discussed how we can support the digitisation of land records, the population registration and digitisation of criminal records as part of modernisation of the apparatus of state," said Helen Clark when she called on Finance Minister AMA Muhith at the latter's official residence at Tanmoy Friday.
UNDP Country Director Stefan Priesner was present on the occasion.
During the meeting, the finance minister has also requested the UNDP to play as a coordinator among the donors to implement the government's digitisation programmes.
Talking to the reporters, Helen Clark said they have discussed some of the new areas of work including A2I Programme where the Bangladesh government has been able to pick up the rural districts across the country.