BACKGROUND:
Like other developing countries, Bangladesh also suffers from resource constraints in public health sector. Unlike previous attempts through training, financial & logistic support, private sectors now-a-days focus on community resource mobilization as alternate strategy to ensure adequate service delivery through public sector health system – specifically in developing countries.

OBJECTIVE:
This evaluative study was conducted in 2002-2003 to assess the strategic impact on program implementation and immunization coverage status in Nasirnagar, Bangladesh.

METHOD:
Save the Children(SC)-USA, Bangladesh Field Office has adopted "Community Mobilization" as the key strategy for implementing EPI program to ensure 90% immunization coverage among children in Nasirnagar sub-district of Bangladesh. In addition to its facilitative focus on action planning and field supervision-monitoring, the project staff also assisted public sector to mobilize community resources for organizing out-reach immunization sessions and to ensure social awareness.
Available immunization service statistics, local coverage evaluation survey reports, disease surveillance reports from WHO, discussion and interviews with community members were examined to assess the impact of community mobilization activities on achieving wider and increased immunization coverage within the operational area.

RESULT:
Facilitation to public sector health staff in program planning and field monitoring improved quality and regularity of immunization services at community level. Social mobilization programs and mobilizing existing community resources are found effective in managing resource constraints within public sector health system and increased community financing to implement public sector health programs. Community awareness raising activities also resulted in increased proportion of fully immunized children, lower BCG-Measles drop-out rate, less number of "zero-dose" child with OPV among target children population.

CONCLUSION:
Private sector's facilitation on social mobilization and community resource mobilization ensue community ownership of the program that consequently helps capacity building within public sector health system particularly in a resource-poor setting like Bangladesh.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
Participants attending this session will be able to recognize the impact of Public-Private partnership to implement immunization program in a developing country setting.