PM affirms commitment to universal healthcare services

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has expressed her government’s firm commitment to universal healthcare services and dynamic participation of Bangladesh in all WHO initiatives and programmes. She hoped that World Health Organisation (WHO) would be turned into an effective and powerful organisation through implementing its current reform programmes to enable it providing more support to health care services. ‘Universal healthcare service is the best way to turn the country’s manpower into human resources and ensure sustainable development,’ the Prime Minister said while inaugurating the 32nd Meeting of the Health Ministers of WHO South-East Asia region and 67th session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia at hotel Sonargaon on Tuesday. She said the countries can achieve the target if they work together. She said her government has attached highest importance to the health sector and developed a large scale healthcare network across the country as health is the foremost requisite for overall peace and happiness of the people. Highlighting her government’s initiatives for development of the health sector, Sheikh Hasina said the government has undertaken a massive plan for construction of one community clinic for every 6,000 people in rural areas. Under the plan, she said more than 13,000 community clinics were already constructed and the government has embarked upon a programme for construction of sufficient number of medical college, hospital, dental college, health technology institute, nursing college and nursing training institute, according to BSS.