KOICA donates US$8m to reduce preventable deaths

Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) has donated US$8 million (Tk 620 million) to Unicef Bangladesh to help reduce preventable deaths in children and women by improving maternal, newborn and child health interventions. Kim Bok-Hee, resident representative of KOICA Bangladesh Office and Edouard Beigbeder, Unicef Bangladesh representative, signed an agreement to this effect in the city on Sunday. This is the second time that Unicef Bangladesh received a donation from KOICA in a bid to spread out the achievements. The donation will be used over four years to provide an integrated package of priority health interventions that will cover an estimated 6.4 million people, including pregnant women, children under-5 years old and women aged between 15-49 years. It will focus on the promotion of antenatal care, skilled delivery at birth, post-natal care, essential newborn care as well as maternal nutrition, according to a press release.