Strengthening Health- Applying Research Evidence (SHARE)

European Union supported SHARE (Strengthening Health, Applying Research Evidence) project of icddr,b has taken initiative to form a Think Tank- a policy advocacy group involving eminent scientists, academicians, development thinkers and civil society members, who have  expertise and knowledge in the area of public health, human rights and development issues. The establishment of proposed Think Tank is an agreed outcome of the SHARE project which aligns with the broader aims of evidence-informed health policy making in Bangladesh.

Think Tanks, traditionally, provide rigorous and robust analysis on Government and public policy matters and their role is critical in generating independent, high quality policy-focused evidence and advice to influence government and other stakeholders. In Bangladesh, currently, there is no functional Think Tank in the area of health that is actively engaged to identify gaps in health service provision by both public and private sectors. Thus SHARE project’s new initiative of ‘Think Tank for Health’ may facilitate discussions on health issues and reach mass people and policy makers in a meaningful way. Constituting autonomous and independent nature for the Think Tank is one of priorities of this initiative. In line with this intrinsic principle, SHARE project will institutionalize this ‘Think Tank for Health’ to guide policy dialogues on health with key stakeholders on emerging health issues, such as; the health needs of the urban poor, universal health coverage, health in hard-to-reach areas, and the new and emerging diseases that demand urgent policy attention.

In Bangladesh, policy making process is almost centralized, non-inclusive and lack policy-relevant research. SHARE project is trying to establish national health think tank that will be engaged in providing policy advice, conducting policy dialogue and commissioning relevant research. In order to create supportive policy environment and facilitate trust between mass people and health service providers, this think tank will work as platform for bringing together national health experts, policy makers and citizens.

To launch this initiative, SHARE project is going to organize a national level discussion event on ‘Health Services in Bangladesh: Peoples Expectation and its Realization’ where representatives from government stakeholders, academicians, researchers, community, health managers, mass media, NGOs, development partners, and civil society groups will participate and develop recommendations. This event is expected create a process of reviewing emerging best practices and innovative approaches of health sector to achieve impact, facilitate research-policy communication and attribute to a better understanding of what is needed to bring enabling policy environment in the area of Health in Bangladesh.

High quality, policy-relevant outputs from the Think Tank will carry high salience within policy-making circles in Bangladesh and promote evidence-informed decision making - which is an expected outcome of the think tank initiative.

This article is jointly written by Dr. Sohana Shafique, Assistant Scientist and Deputy Project Coordinator, icddr,b and Monjur Ahmed, Communication Specialist, icddr,b