Explore billion-dollar healthcare market potential

Bangladesh has emerged as an exemplary player on the global stage in pharmaceutical manufacturing, meeting domestic demand while exporting medicines to numerous countries. However, the medical device and equipment sector, the backbone of modern healthcare, is offering a contrasting picture. According to recently published data, nearly 90 per cent of the country’s medical equipment is imported, while domestic entrepreneurs account for only 10 per cent of the market. This billion-dollar market, with its immense potential, has trapped in a quagmire of policy inconsistencies, high borrowing costs and bureaucratic complexities.
Rising incomes, an ageing population and the growing prevalence of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disorders have significantly increased demand for life-saving medical technologies in Bangladesh. However, rather than leveraging this vast domestic market to build a robust local manufacturing industry, the country’s dependence on imports continues to deepen. The volatile exchange rate of the US dollar, complex registration procedures, and a longstanding bias towards foreign equipment in public procurement have left domestic manufacturers struggling to compete.
Ordinary citizens are bearing the ultimate cost of these structural failures. Nearly 73 per cent of total healthcare expenditure in Bangladesh comes directly out of patients’ pockets, exposing citizens to severe financial hardship. Meanwhile, public health expenditure remains below one per cent of GDP.
Like the ready-made garments and pharmaceutical industries, the medical device sector could have become the next major frontier of economic growth for Bangladesh. Realising this potential, however, requires political will and administrative reform. Instead of relying on fragmented incentives, the country needs a transparent and long-term national strategy that ensures access to affordable financing, enhances further collaboration between industry and academia, and creates a supportive environment for domestic manufacturing.
Breaking free from this vicious cycle of import dependence and achieving self-reliance in medical technology are no longer matters of economic ambition alone. They have become an indispensable national imperative for safeguarding the fundamental right to healthcare of millions of people across the country.