Bangladesh’s first nationwide blood lead assessment highlights widespread exposure among young children while raising concerns over unsafe battery recycling, electronic waste management and the need for stronger safeguards as the country expands renewable energy.
Nearly four in every ten young children in Bangladesh are exposed to elevated levels of lead, according to the country’s first nationally representative assessment of childhood blood lead levels, revealing a major public health challenge as Bangladesh pursues industrial growth, renewable energy expansion and a low-carbon economic transformation that must also protect public health, workers and vulnerable communities.
The findings, released in the final report of the Bangladesh Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) 2025, titled “Progotir Pothe” (On the Path to Progress), show that 38.4 percent of children aged 12 to 59 months have blood lead levels of at least 5 micrograms per decilitre, the internationally recognised threshold requiring public health intervention.
The survey was conducted by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), the national statistical agency under the Statistics and Information Management Division of the Ministry of Planning, with technical support from UNICEF. Data collection took place between January and June 2024, making this Bangladesh’s first nationally representative assessment of blood lead levels among young children and pregnant women.
The comprehensive survey provides updated social and health indicators for children, women and families across the country. Conducted across 3,149 primary sampling units nationwide, it covered 62,980 households and successfully completed interviews in 61,207 families, achieving a response rate of 99.6 percent. The dataset provides representative insights at the national, divisional, district, urban, rural and specific city corporation levels, including North and South Dhaka and Chattogram.
The findings reveal that lead exposure is significantly higher among children living in urban areas and communities located near industrial activities, informal recycling facilities and lead-related industries.
For millions of families living near factories, battery recycling sites, informal waste processing areas and polluted environments, lead exposure is not an abstract environmental concern. It is a daily reality that threatens children’s health, education and future opportunities.
Public health professionals warn that childhood lead exposure can permanently affect brain development, reduce learning ability, influence behaviour and contribute to lifelong health complications. Even low levels of exposure can harm children’s neurological development and there is no known safe level of lead exposure.
Unlike many environmental hazards, the impacts of lead exposure are largely irreversible, making prevention, early detection and stronger regulation essential.
A growing environmental health challenge
Bangladesh’s lead pollution challenge reflects a wider issue of rapid industrialisation, urbanisation and weak environmental management. Children living near industrial zones, informal recycling centres and lead-related operations face greater risks due to prolonged exposure to contaminated dust, soil, water and consumer products.
The findings highlight the urgent need for stronger pollution prevention measures, improved monitoring systems and effective enforcement of environmental regulations.
The Government of Bangladesh has finalised a comprehensive National Strategy and Action Plan on Lead Pollution, which is awaiting Cabinet approval before implementation. The strategy aims to address major sources of lead exposure, including batteries, food, consumer products and environmental contamination, through coordinated action involving government agencies, industries, development partners and communities.
However, policy approval alone will not be enough. The success of the strategy will depend on adequate financing, effective implementation, regulatory enforcement, industry accountability and meaningful participation by affected communities.
Growing e-waste risks from Bangladesh’s green transition
While renewable energy is essential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the technologies that enable the transition also require responsible production, use and disposal systems. Without proper safeguards, vulnerable communities may face new environmental burdens.
Bangladesh’s clean energy expansion is creating new demands for stronger waste management systems. Solar panels, batteries and electronic equipment play a critical role in reducing carbon emissions, but their end-of-life management requires urgent attention.
Used lead-acid batteries, widely used in electric three-wheelers, solar systems and backup power solutions, represent one of the critical pathways through which lead enters the environment. Unsafe recycling practices can expose workers, children and surrounding communities to hazardous contamination.
Although solar panels generate clean electricity throughout their operational life, damaged or discarded panels, batteries and associated electronic equipment can release hazardous substances if dismantled or disposed of improperly. Without formal recycling systems, valuable materials are lost while toxic substances can contaminate soil, groundwater and surrounding ecosystems.
A study by Jahangirnagar University, a public university in Bangladesh, in collaboration with the Climate Centre of the Christian Commission for Development in Bangladesh estimates that existing solar photovoltaic installations alone could generate more than 33,000 tonnes of solar electronic waste in the coming years.
Long-term projections indicate that Bangladesh could generate around 5.5 million tonnes of discarded solar panels between 2025 and 2060 as renewable energy deployment continues to expand.
Despite these emerging challenges, Bangladesh has yet to establish a comprehensive national framework for managing end-of-life solar panels, lithium-ion batteries and other renewable energy technologies.
A study by Transparency International Bangladesh found that although the Hazardous Waste (E-Waste) Management Rules were introduced in 2021, implementation remains weak. A large majority of electronic waste continues to be processed through informal systems using unsafe methods such as open burning, manual dismantling and acid extraction, exposing workers and nearby communities to hazardous chemicals.
Many informal recyclers operate outside formal regulatory systems, often without protective equipment, healthcare services or adequate information about hazardous exposure risks.
Circular economy solutions for a sustainable transition
Experts argue that Bangladesh’s clean energy transition must move beyond simply expanding renewable energy capacity and focus on building responsible systems for the entire life cycle of solar panels, batteries and electronic products.
A circular economy approach based on reducing, reusing and recycling electronic products can help Bangladesh recover valuable resources while reducing pollution and creating safer employment opportunities.
Professor Mustafizur Rahman, Distinguished Fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), a Bangladeshi policy research organisation, said Bangladesh needs stronger systems to ensure that its clean energy transition remains environmentally sustainable.
Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL), a state-owned infrastructure financing institution, which has facilitated the installation of nearly six million solar energy systems across Bangladesh since 1997, has also highlighted concerns over the growing use of substandard solar equipment that shortens product lifespans and increases electronic waste generation.
IDCOL’s experience reflects both the success of Bangladesh’s solar expansion and the emerging responsibility of managing the technologies that supported that transformation.
Experts say improving product quality standards, strengthening testing and certification systems, introducing Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and developing modern recycling infrastructure will be critical to preventing future waste challenges.
Under an EPR framework, producers and importers would share responsibility for collecting, recycling and safely managing products after their useful life.
Manufacturers, importers and technology providers must also share responsibility for the environmental footprint of their products. Strong EPR mechanisms can ensure that clean technology remains clean throughout its entire life cycle.
Experts recommend establishing national recycling targets, strengthening hazardous waste enforcement, creating producer accountability mechanisms and supporting safe formal employment pathways for informal recyclers.
A well-designed circular economy could allow Bangladesh to recover valuable materials such as lead, aluminium, copper, glass and silicon while creating safer green jobs and reducing environmental risks.
Government calls for coordinated action against lead pollution
“Addressing lead pollution requires coordinated action across government, development partners, industry and communities,” said Dr Fahmida Khanom, Acting Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
She said district administrations have been requested to identify and monitor informal lead-acid battery recycling and smelting facilities, while a comprehensive national strategy and action plan on lead pollution is awaiting Cabinet approval.
The strategy addresses major sources of lead exposure, with responsibilities assigned across multiple ministries.
Dr Khanom said the forthcoming Basel Convention technical guideline on waste lead-acid batteries is expected to strengthen national efforts on traceability, collection, transportation, recycling and monitoring.
The approval and implementation of the strategy will be a critical test of Bangladesh’s ability to translate policy commitments into measurable action.
Experts say consumer awareness, battery traceability, long-term financing mechanisms and digital tracking systems, including QR code-based information tools, can improve accountability across the battery value chain.
A proposed USD 1.3 million grant for lead poisoning remediation, along with collaboration involving organisations such as Pure Earth and local NGOs, could provide an opportunity to strengthen monitoring, promote practical incentives and accelerate action against unsafe recycling and lead exposure.
Workers at the frontline of the lead and e-waste crisis
Thousands of informal workers involved in battery collection and electronic waste recycling remain among the most exposed groups, often working without protective equipment, safety standards or access to healthcare.
Workers involved in informal recycling must be recognised as key actors in the circular economy. A just transition means improving their working conditions, protecting their health and creating pathways into safer formal employment.
Experts argue that informal recyclers should not simply be removed from the sector. They should be supported through formalisation, skills training, social protection, decent wages and occupational safety measures.
Formalising the recycling sector could create new green employment opportunities while reducing pollution and recovering valuable resources.
Sohanur Rahman, Executive Coordinator of YouthNet Global, said Bangladesh’s renewable energy transition must also become a just transition that protects children, workers and vulnerable communities.
“Lead pollution is not only an environmental issue but also a public health crisis, a child rights issue and a development challenge,” said Sohanur Rahman.
He called for stronger enforcement against unsafe battery recycling, implementation of Extended Producer Responsibility, investment in modern recycling infrastructure, formalisation of informal recycling systems and protection for workers and vulnerable communities.
“Clean energy should never come at the expense of children’s health. A truly sustainable future is one that delivers climate action, environmental justice and a toxic-free environment for present and future generations,” he said.
He added that investing in a formal circular economy for batteries and electronic waste would reduce pollution, create decent green jobs, recover valuable raw materials and strengthen Bangladesh’s long-term climate resilience.
Building a safe and inclusive green future
Experts say Bangladesh has a major opportunity to build a modern electronic waste recycling industry that protects public health, creates decent green jobs, recovers valuable resources and strengthens the country’s circular economy.
They also warn that Bangladesh is not alone. Similar challenges are emerging across Asia and Africa as countries rapidly expand renewable energy without developing adequate systems to safely manage discarded solar panels, batteries and other clean technologies.
As countries across the Global South accelerate renewable energy deployment, Bangladesh’s experience offers an important lesson: climate transitions require not only clean technologies but also systems to manage waste, protect workers and prevent new forms of pollution.
Bangladesh’s clean energy future will not be judged only by how quickly it reduces emissions or expands renewable energy capacity. It will also be measured by whether it protects children, safeguards workers, creates decent green jobs and prevents vulnerable communities from carrying the hidden costs of a greener future.
A successful green transition must deliver both climate action and environmental justice.
