The meeting of the 11 ministers of World Health Organisation's (WHO) South East Asian region begins in the city tomorrow (Tuesday) with major focus on environmental pollution, climate change and their impact on health in the context of increased pollution in the region.
A World Bank report of 2011 showed that every year in the Dhaka City around 10,800 premature deaths along with several million cases of illness are being caused by air pollution.
According to a Directorate General Health Services (DGHS) data until June 2009 there have been clinically confirmed 46,000 arsenicosis cases in Bangladesh. The number has risen to 62,000 now, experts said.
It is estimated that 35 to 77 million of roughly 125 million inhabitants of Bangladesh have been drinking contaminated well water.
These were revealed during a WHO media workshop at CIRDAP auditorium in the city Sunday on the upcoming 67th session of regional committee for WHO's South-East Asia Region in Dhaka from today (September 08) until September 12 and 32nd meeting of health ministers from September 09.
Health ministers from 11 countries of WHO South-East Asia Region (WHO-SEAR) will meet for a four-day meeting which begins on September 9 to discuss key health issues facing the region. The countries are: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Korea, India, Indonesia, the Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and East Timor.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to inaugurate the meeting at Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel in the city. WHO Director-General Dr Margaret Chan and Regional Director for South-East Asia Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh will be present along with WHO experts at both the meetings.
In the media workshop, WHO public information and advocacy officer, SEARO, Ms Vismita Gupta Smith, WHO regional adviser, Occupational Health Dr Leslie Jayne Onyon and assistant professor, NIPSOM, Manzurul Haque Khan made three presentations.
In his presentation, Manzurul Haque said in Bangladesh children and adolescents have high levels of exposure, and children under five particularly have serious exposure.
Among adults, men have half the exposure of women (whose exposure is similar to that of children and adolescents). Elderly men have significantly lower exposure than elderly women.
Exposure to air pollutants can lead to increased risk of diseases including respiratory infections, low birth weight, cataracts, and cardiovascular events and increased hospital visits or hospitalisation for respiratory or cardiovascular illnesses.
He said household air pollution is mainly caused from kitchen and is severe in rural areas.
Industrial and household waste, spillage from shallow boats, textiles, tanneries, pulp and paper mills are the main cause of water pollution for which dissolved oxygen reaches zero level. Fishes cannot live in this polluted water and the river is called a dead river where there is no oxygen, he added.
