WFP and BBS commemorate long-term strategic MoU to strengthen national statistics in SDG monitoring

The World Food Programme (WFP) and the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) have marked a significant milestone in their longstanding partnership with the launch of a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). This MoU aims to mobilize ‘Data for Life’ and strengthen official statistics, focusing on achieving Zero Hunger and supporting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2 and 17.

Dom Scalpelli, the Country Director of WFP in Bangladesh, stated, “Our collaboration with BBS has been pivotal in generating crucial data over the years. We have jointly produced poverty and undernutrition maps and have been involved in policy research, like the Urban Socioeconomic Assessment Survey 2019 and the Vulnerable Group Development Survey. Our latest endeavour, the Food Security Assessment and Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES) Survey 2023, where WFP supported in training, analysis, and report writing, is a testament to our combined efforts towards addressing hunger and undernutrition in Bangladesh.”

Mohammed Mizanur Rahman, the Director General of BBS, expressed gratitude for the continued partnership, noting, “WFP has been an invaluable ally in our mission to deliver high-quality statistical services. This MoU is not just a formalization of our existing relationship but a step forward in integrating food security indicators into our surveys, like the Sample Vital Registration System Survey. This collaboration is essential for informing the government’s 9^th Five-Year Plan and enhancing our efforts to monitor progress towards the SDGs.

”Under the strategic MoU, WFP and BBS will extend their collaboration to include various areas such as poverty and undernutrition mapping exercises, food security surveys, and policy advocacy studies in the fields of shock-responsive social protection and urban programming with evidence-generation activities to support the upcoming 9^th FYP. This partnership is a cornerstone in the fight against hunger and undernutrition in Bangladesh and serves as a model for leveraging data and statistics in humanitarian efforts.