Health and Family Welfare Minister Zahid Maleque on Thursday said the proposed health budget was not adequate to meet the demand of the health sector.
“The budgetary allocation for the sector has increased by Tk 1,200 crore this year comparing to the previous year but it is inadequate to raise the quality of health services,” he said.
The health minister came up with the statement while speaking at a discussion at Osmani Smriti auditorium in the capital, marking the Nursing and Midwifery Day.
Mentioning that 45,000 nurses and midwives are working in the country at present, he said involvement of the nurses should be increased to keep the hospitals clean and increase health services for the patients.
Secretary of Health Services Department Md Anwar Hossain Hawladar, Secretary of Health Education Department Md Azizur Rahman, Director General of Family Planning Department Sahan Ara Banu and World Health Organisation (WHO) representative Dr Bardan Jung Rana, among others, addressed the discussion with Director General of Nursing and Midwife Directorate Maksura Noor in the chair.
In the post-pandemic national budget, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal proposed allocating Tk 38,052 crore for the country’s health sector. He made the proposal while unveiling the budget for the next financial year in the parliament on June 1.
The allocation for the Health Services Division, Health Education and Family Welfare Division is up by Tk 1,189 crore or 3.22 percent than the outgoing fiscal year.