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Govt plans to increase number of child daycare centres

Scrutinised bill to be placed in JS today


Published : 15 Jun 2021 09:26 PM | Updated : 16 Jun 2021 12:56 AM

The government has taken initiative to set up a number of child daycare centres for supporting the children of working women.

The government is going to implement its latest initiative after enactment of a law in this regard in a bid to bring the child daycare centres under rules and regulations and ensure proper management of those.

On February 8, the Cabinet approved the draft law titled ‘The Child Day Care Centre Bill, 2021’. On April 3, State Minister for Women and Children Affairs Fazilatun Nesa Indira placed the bill, which was sent to the parliamentary standing committee on the respective ministry for further scrutiny. The parliamentary watchdog was asked to submit its report before the House within two months.

The State Minister is scheduled to place the bill, which has already been scrutinised by the parliamentary standing committee, before the Parliament today (Wednesday).  

Senior Secretary of Bangladesh Parliament Secretariat Dr Zafar Ahmed Khan confirmed it to the Bangladesh Post yesterday (Tuesday). He said that ‘The Child Day Care Centre Bill, 2021’ is going to be placed in the House after submission of the parliamentary committee’s report.  

An official of the Women and Children Affairs Ministry said that the law is going to be enacted as the number of working women is increasing in the country. It is one of the purposes of the proposed law to set up a number of child daycare centres in the country under a proper authority. The draft of the law makes it mandatory to ensure health protection and other services for children of working parents, he added. 

Alongside the government, semi-government and autonomous bodies, private entities can also establish and run child daycare centres, but these will be regulated under the proposed law once it comes into force. The private child daycare centres will come under government’s monitoring after enactment of the law. 

According to the draft law, there will be four types of child daycare centres in the country. The types are-- child daycare centres run with subsidy provided by the government; child daycare centres run by government, government agencies, directorates, departments, statutory agencies or autonomous agencies to provide services free of cost; child daycare centres run by individuals or organisations for commercial purposes; and non-profitable child daycare centres run by individuals, organisations, non-government organisations, clubs, associations, corporate sector or industrial sector. 

However, registration is mandatory to set up any private child daycare centre and there would be a separate authority for the registration. After enactment of the law, none can run any daycare centre without registration. The ministry would monitor the child day centres.

At present, a total of 119 child daycare centres are running in the country under the Women and Children Affairs Ministry, while 20 under the Social Welfare Ministry.