Abstract

Readymade garment industry has occupied a vital place in the economy of Bangladesh and the children of the female workers of this sector would be the future contributor in the economy. Thus, the health and nutritional status of these children become a matter of concern. Keeping this in mind, the study aimed to assess the dietary diversity status of the children of RMG working mothers and explore the significant factors associated with it. Data were collected from 396 RMG working mothers using a 2-stage random sampling technique. The 24 hours recall period of dietary diversity score method was applied to estimate the child dietary diversity. To explore the significant factors associated with the child dietary diversity score, a Poisson regression model was utilized. The majority of the children had low dietary diversity. Results from the regression revealed that, mothers’ educational attainment, her access to resources, having improved kitchen in the households, presence of helping hand and keeping her child at the daycare center during her work time could significantly magnify the chances of higher dietary intake of their children. On the other hand, a significant gender bias was observed in dietary intake between male and female children. Findings of the study will assist the policymakers and related authorities to take necessary steps so that a better vigorous and active human resource could be developed in future. Also, a new body of knowledge will be added to the existing literature.

Key words: Child dietary diversity, Mothers’ education, Child sex, Access to resources, Improved kitchen, Helping hand, Daycare center