Summary

In the report on her visit to Bangladesh from 7 to 15 February 2023, the Special Rapporteur on the elimination of discrimination against persons affected by leprosy and their family members, Alice Cruz, explores issues related to the progress made by Bangladesh in eliminating leprosy-related discrimination and stigma, as well as the challenges Bangladesh faces in this regard. Cruz also offers constructive recommendations in relevant areas, including how to address the social determinants of leprosy and the root causes of systemic discrimination, how to ensure independent living of affected persons and their family members, how to ensure unrestricted access to justice, how to allocate adequate resources to the national leprosy programme and how to include leprosy as a prohibited ground of discrimination in the Anti-Discrimination Bill 2022.