TDS Desk:

Bangladesh’s health sector has long been plagued by shortages of manpower, a lack of modern equipment, disparities in service quality, and management weaknesses. Despite being the sector of meeting the people’s basic needs, the sector has remained neglected for years and continues to suffer from inadequate budgetary allocations. As the 13th parliamentary election approaches, political parties are making various pledges on healthcare, including promises to increase funding. Experts say that while commitments to higher allocations are positive, there is still no clear and coherent plan for sustainable development or for improving the quality of care. Although various directions are being outlined, how these will be implemented remains unclear.

Public health experts argue that building medical colleges, specialised facilities, or general hospitals alone will not improve healthcare delivery. They noted that without an adequate number of experienced teachers, specialist doctors, nurses, and modern management systems, these institutions cannot provide proper services. They point out that election pledges lack concrete strategies to address shortages of doctors and nurses in rural hospitals, to incentivise healthcare workers to deliver services, and to effectively curb corruption and waste in the sector. According to them, the core challenge in healthcare is not infrastructure but the availability of skilled human resources, accountable management, and the assurance of quality services. Stakeholders believe political commitments fall short of offering realistic and effective plans to tackle these fundamental issues.

A review of pledges made by various parties shows that almost all have promised to establish new hospitals and medical colleges. Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman said at a public rally, “People in the northern region have to travel to Dhaka for advanced treatment, which isn’t feasible for everyone. If Jamaat forms the government, no district in the country will remain without a medical college. A medical college will also be set up in Thakurgaon.” At Jamaat-e-Islami’s Policy Summit–2026, the party pledged to establish 64 specialised hospitals in 64 districts, provide free healthcare for senior citizens aged over 60 and children under five, and bring maternal and child health and nutrition — from pregnancy until a child reaches two years of age — under social protection through the ‘First Thousand Days Programme’.

Jamaat-e-Islami Assistant Secretary General Ehsanul Mahbub Jubayer said, “We’ll decentralise healthcare services. Our aim is to ensure that no one has to come to Dhaka for treatment. Hospitals in divisional cities will be upgraded into specialised facilities, and they will be developed in a way that patients won’t need to seek treatment abroad.”

Claiming that there is a plan to provide affordable services, he added, “We’re planning to develop area-based specialised hospitals — upgrading community hospitals and equipping them with various facilities — so that people in even the most remote areas can access basic healthcare. We hope to achieve good outcomes without making massive investments.”

In recent years, Bangladesh has allocated less than 1 percent of its GDP to the health sector. In its outline for restructuring the state, the BNP has announced to raise health spending to 5 percent of GDP. The party has also declared to adopt the principles of ‘health for all’ and ‘no death without medical treatment’, introducing health cards and expanding social safety net programmes for the poor. In addition, it has promised to establish a ‘universal healthcare system’ modelled on the UK’s National Health Service (NHS).

At a public rally last week, BNP Chairperson Tarique Rahman said, “If BNP comes to power, ‘health carers’ will be appointed in villages across the country so that ordinary people, especially women and children, can receive primary care at home and don’t have to crowd hospital corridors even for minor illnesses.”

Recalling the village doctor model, the BNP chairperson said, “These health carers will be given modern training. They’ll regularly visit every household to check the health of mothers and children. For minor ailments, people will no longer have to endure the hardship of travelling to distant health complexes; instead, they’ll receive free advice and medicines at home.”

On the issue, BNP Election Steering Committee member Dr Ziauddin Haider told journalists, “People in our country tend to avoid hospitals unless they are seriously ill, because healthcare costs are very high. This needs to change. Our focus has to shift from treatment to prevention. We’ll take the healthcare system to people’s doorsteps, so that symptoms are detected before a person becomes seriously ill, and health promotion can be carried out accordingly. Our aim is to identify and treat diseases at their earliest stages. This will reduce people’s financial burden, lower disease incidence, and ease overcrowding in hospitals. Prevention will be our core focus.”

In its election manifesto, the NCP has outlined comparatively more modern and technology-driven plans. The party has pledged to introduce a National Electronic Health Record (EHR), a unique health ID, a GPS-enabled ambulance system, expansion of mental health services, and the establishment of specialised treatment centres.

NCP Joint Member Secretary Mahmuda Alam Mitu said, “Every day, around 40,000 patients in our country have to stay on hospital floors because they don’t get beds. We’ll work to ensure that no patient is forced to receive care on the floor. There is also a severe shortage of ICU beds in government facilities. Poor patients cannot access services due to a lack of money. This is essential to increase ICU beds. Another critical area that needs attention is health education. We are far behind in this sector.”

Public health expert Lenin Chowdhury said that the commitments being made by political parties ahead of the election largely remain rhetorical. He told journalists, “There is no clear plan anywhere for building a comprehensive and sustainable healthcare system for 180 million people. Since independence, issues such as restructuring the health sector, increasing budgetary allocations, and reducing people’s out-of-pocket expenses have not been clearly articulated in political pledges. An effective health system requires the integration of five pillars — promotive, preventive, curative, rehabilitative, and palliative care — but political parties continue to confine healthcare to hospitals, doctors, and medicines alone. There is also a major human resource crisis: compared with World Health Organization (WHO) standards, Bangladesh has a critically low number of nurses and technologists. Moreover, there is no clear plan to make community clinics effective, ensure primary healthcare for urban populations, or transform the Ministry of Health into an efficient, technology-driven institution.”

Another public health expert, Dr Ahmed Parvez Zabeen, told journalists, “We want universal healthcare for protecting the health of marginalised populations to be clearly stated in the commitments of all political parties. BNP has spoken of allocating 5 percent of GDP to health, which they have indicated would be increased gradually each year. That would be a very positive step. However, whichever government comes to power in the future must work to build a people-friendly healthcare system and ensure that allocated funds are properly utilised for public benefit.”