Fahmida Akter
Senior Research Fellow
Centre of Excellence for Non-Communicable Diseases and Nutrition (CNCDN)
Short Biography
Fahmida Akter is a public health nutrition researcher, currently working as a Senior Research Fellow at the BRAC JPG School of Public Health (BRAC JPGSPH) of BRAC University. She aims to contribute to making the world free from malnutrition, hunger, and food insecurity in an ecologically sustainable way. Her research areas comprise food system and food security, nutrition-sensitive approaches, food consumption and diet quality, diet-related non-communicable diseases, and maternal, child, adolescent, and geriatric nutrition. Ms. Akter received a Commonwealth Shared Scholarship (2018) from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), UK, to pursue an MSc in ‘Global Food Security and Development’ from Nottingham Trent University, United Kingdom, and Orange Knowledge Programme (OKP) Scholarships (2022) from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Netherlands, for an international course on Food systems for healthier and sustainable diets organised by Wageningen University. She has more than 10 years of practical knowledge and experience in evaluation research, action research, and implementation research employing quantitative and qualitative methods in public health nutrition. Currently, Fahmida is leading several nutrition projects of the Centre of Non-Communicable Diseases and Nutrition (CNCDN), BRAC JPGSPH. Her publications include twelve peer-reviewed journal articles and several research reports, working papers, monographs, policy briefs, and book chapters. She has successfully disseminated research findings through seminars, workshops, and conferences at the national and international level for advocacy and policy implications. Beyond her research accomplishments, Ms. Akter is deeply committed to mentoring junior researchers, MPH students, and interns, both within BRAC JPGSPH and from other institutions. Her scholarly contributions extend to serving as a reviewer for esteemed journals in her research areas.
Module(s) taught (in MPH)
- MPH 670: Public Health Nutrition
- MPH 681: Non-Communicable Diseases
- Ageing and Health
Current Projects
1. Project name: Establishment of a nutrition panel in Bangladesh [2022-2024] Donor: The World Bank Role: Co-PI 2. Project name: Impact evaluation of the project titled ‘Implementation of the World Health Organization’s framework for working with Individuals, Families, and Communities (IFC) to improve maternal and newborn health in Bangladesh [2021–2025] Donor: Enfants du Monde Role: Co-PI 3. Project name: Process documentation on building Rohingya refugee and host community resilience in Cox’s Bazar [2022-2024] Donor: UNICEF Bangladesh Role: Co-I
Selected Peer-Reviewed Publications
1. Shamim, A. A., Hossain, M. M., Akter, F., Urmy, N. J., Hanif, A. A. M., Hasan, M., Khan, M. S. A., Ullah, M. A., Bulbul, Md. M. I., & Mridha, M. K. (2023). Unhealthy Foods and Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Consumption among Bangladeshi Adolescents and their Sociodemographic Determinants: Findings from a Nationally Representative Cross-Sectional Study. Cureus, 15(7), e41262. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.41262 2. Akter, F., Tamim, M., Saha, A., Chowdhury, I. A., Faruque, O., Talukder, A., ... & Sarker, M. (2022). Implementation barriers and facilitators to a COVID-19 intervention in Bangladesh: The benefits of engaging the community for the delivery of the programme. BMC Health Services Research, 22(1), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-022-08939-7 3. Talukder, A., Islam, M. N., Sarker, M., Goswami, I., Siddiqua, R. R., Akter, F., ... & Latif, M. (2022). Knowledge and practices related to COVID-19 among mothers of under-2 children and adult males: a cross-sectional study in Bangladesh. BMJ open, 12(5), e059091. 4. Akter, F., Hossain, M. M., Shamim, A. A., Khan, M. S. A., Hasan, M., Hanif, A. A. M., ... & Mridha, M. K. (2021). Prevalence and socio-economic determinants of inadequate dietary diversity among adolescent girls and boys in Bangladesh: findings from a nationwide cross-sectional survey. Journal of Nutritional Science, 10. 5. Mistry, S. K., Akter, F., Hossain, M. B., Huda, M. N., Irfan, N. M., Yadav, U. N., ... & Arora, A. (2021). Exploring Factors associated with women’s willingness to provide digital fingerprints in accessing healthcare services: A cross-sectional study in urban slums of Bangladesh. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(1), 40. 6. Hossain, M. M., Akter, F., Hanif, A. A. M., Khan, M. S. A., Shamim, A. A., Hasan, M., ... & Mridha, M. K. (2021). Prevalence of and factors associated with insufficient physical activity among adolescents: evidence from a nationwide survey in Bangladesh. Journal of Biosocial Science, 1-14. 7. Mistry, S. K., Akter, F., Yadav, U. N., Hossain, M. B., Sichel, A., Labrique, A. B., & Storisteanu, D. M. (2021). Factors associated with mobile phone usage to access maternal and child healthcare among women of urban slums in Dhaka, Bangladesh: a cross-sectional study. BMJ open, 11(4), e043933. 8. Urmy, NJ, Hossain MM, Shamim AA, Khan MSA, Hanif AAM, Hasan M, Akter F, Mitra DK, ……. & Mridha MK (2020). Noncommunicable Disease Risk Factors Among Adolescent Boys and Girls in Bangladesh: Evidence from a National Survey. Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives, Osong Public Health Res Perspect;11(6):351-364 9. Rahman, A., Akter, F. (2019). Reasons for formula feeding among rural Bangladeshi mothers: A qualitative exploration. PLoSONE 14(2) 10. Mistry, S. K., Hossain, M. B., Khanam, F., Akter, F., Parvez, M., Yunus, F. M., ... & Rahman, M. (2019). Individual-, maternal-and household-level factors associated with stunting among children aged 0–23 months in Bangladesh. Public health nutrition, 22(1), 85-94.
Other Publications
1. Mridha MK, Abid MR, Ahmed HU, Talukder H, Hasan M, Sutradhar I, Akter F, Hanif AAM, Paul RR, et al. Chapter 9: Prevention and control of key non-communicable diseases and their risk-factors. In: Bangladesh Health Watch (eds). 50 Years of Bangladesh: Advances in Health. Dhaka: The University Press Limited, 2023. PP: 157-172. 2. Afsana, K, Jolly, SP, Akter, F. (2022). Nutrition, Food Safety and Global Health. In: Kickbusch, I., Ganten, D., Moeti, M. (eds) Handbook of Global Health. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05325-3_93-2. 3. Mridha MK, Abid MR, Ahmed HU, Talukder H, Hasan M, Sutradhar I, Akter F, Hanif AAM, Paul RR, et al. Non-communicable Diseases and Risk Prevention. In: Bangladesh Health Watch (eds). Fifty Years of Independence: Health Sector Development of Bangladesh (Published in Bengali). Dhaka: Prothoma Prokashon, 2022. PP: 153-167.
Awards
1. Travel bursary to attend the conference, “Delivering for Nutrition in South Asia: Equity and Inclusion,” (D4N2023) taking place in Kathmandu, Nepal on November 1-2, 2023. 2. Orange Knowledge Programme (OKP) Scholarships funded by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Netherlands 2022 for a short course on ‘Food Systems for Healthier and Sustainable Diets’ organized by Wageningen University 3. Commonwealth Shared Scholarship 2018 funded by Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), UK for master’s programme on Global Food Security and Development 4. Scholarship to attend the 1st Southeast Asia Public Health Nutrition (SEA-PHN) Conference" by SEA-PHN Network, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2016 5. University merit scholarship for MSc results, Nutrition and Food Science, INFS, University of Dhaka, 2012
Research Interests
Food system and food security Nutrition-sensitive approaches Food consumption and diet quality diet-related non-communicable diseases and maternal child adolescent and geriatric nutrition
Education
- MSc (Nottingham Trent University)
- MSc (University of Dhaka)
- BSc (University of Dhaka)