Ad-Din Welfare Centre

Ad-Din Welfare Centre a voluntary organisation for the service of the disadvantaged. With the patronage of sheikh akijuddin (1929-2006) and with the initiative of Professor mohammad sharif husain (1934-2007), Ad-Din Welfare Centre was established in 1980 in Jessore. Ad-Din Welfare Centre is registered with NGO Affairs Bureau and Ministries of Social Welfare and Health and Family Welfare. At present the employee number of the organisation is 2242.

For rehabilitating the orphan children and orphange (Ad-Din Shishu-Kishore Niketon) was established in 1980 by Ad-Din Welfare Centre. Since its inception the organisation made arrangements for modern education for seven hundred orphans. Ad-Din Welfare Centre also initiated in 1985 projects for Quranic, non-formal and female education in remote villages. In 1999 Lichutala of East Barandi Para of Jessore Town Sakhina Model Girls' School was established. The organisation initiated maternal and child health and family planning activities by establishing a health sub-centre at Balarampur village of the Sadar Upazilla of Jessore district in 1989. With different working areas allocated by the Family Planning Department of the government, Ad-Din Welfare Centre is providing maternal and child health and family planning services through satellite clinics. Currently in the working areas of Ad-Din Welfare Centre every month 398 satellite clinics are being organized. Since 1990 microfinance programme of Ad-Din Welfare Centre to help the women is being implemented through 57 units and 11 area offices. Women from the rural areas are also receiving health education, contraceptive, knowledge of nutrition, training and necessary information to produce handicrafts and grow vegetables and seasonal crops. The organisation has been performing these activities with the support of Palli Karma Shahayak Foundation. Since 1990 paramedic training, TBA (Traditional Birth Attendants) training, training on maternal and child health, family planning and primary health care and other health-related trainings are provided through Ad-Din training centre established in 1985. Ad-Din Welfare Centre undertook in 1991 water and sanitation programme in its working area to protect the people from diarrhoea and other water-borne diseases. With the assistance of UNICEF a six month long sanitation project was implemented and currently low-cost hygienic latrines are being distributed through 4 rural sanitation centres in Jessore and Magura districts. With active support of CARE and UNICEF Ad-Din Welfare Centre undertook elaborate aids prevention activities and primary treatment of sexually transmitted infection.

In August 2003 Ad-Din Welfare Centre initiated the mobile eye care project in Jessore, Narail and Jhenaidah districts. Sightsavers International/ Royal Commonwealth Society is supporting this project for the blind. Till 2008 15,117 patients have received cataract surgery and artificial lens implant. In 2007 in Magura district a project to socially rehabilitate blind people and in Dhaka City Dhaka Urban Comprehensive Eye Care Project were introduced. Since 2004 to prevent HIV/AIDS among the youth, Ad-Din Welfare Centre has been implementing various projects of The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. These projects include life skills education, youth friendly health services and dissemination of condom-related knowledge. It has implemented in 2006 a project called HIV/AIDS Intervention Fund.

Ad-Din Welfare Centre established Ad-Din Foundation in 2004 Ad-Din Foundation oprates Ad-Din Hospital, Ad-Din Women's Medical College, Nursing Institute, Ad-Din Women's Institute of Health Technology, Ad-Din Training Centre and Ad-Din Pharmaceuticals Ltd.

Providing health care to women and children through hospitals is an important activity of the organisation. Although Ad-Din hospital is chiefly known for its hospital services to women and children, the hospital services of Dhaka and Jessore branch are also rendered to men. In 2009 Ad-Din Women Medical College was established at Bara Magbazar in Dhaka. Ad-Din Nursing Institute was established in Jessore in 1997. In these training institutions Diploma in Nursing science and Midwifry Cource are conducted. In 2004 Safina Nursing Institute was opened at the five-storied building of Kushtia Ad-Din Hospital. Besides, in 2006 Fatema Nursing Institute was opened near Dhaka Ad-Din Hospital. In 2007 Ad-Din Women's Institute of Health Technology, Jessore received approval from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and became affiliated and registered the Bangladesh State Medical Faculty and Bangladesh Pharmacy Council.

Ad-Din Welfare Centre has its own five-storied training building adjacent to the Ad-Din hospital at Jessore. Besides, at Ad-Din Hospital Dhaka and Kushtia there are training halls equipped with adequate training materials. To expand the qualitative standards of health care Ad-Din Pharmaceuticals Ltd. established in 1997 in Jessore is marketing 43 drugs in 31 districts of the country. Its factories are located at Jessore BISIC Industrial Estate. Ad-Din Welfare Centre has an offset printing press and one dairy farm to initiate institution-based income generating activities. [Muhammad Abdul Mazid]