Global health funding strain calls for efficient resource use: State minister

State Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dr Mohammad Abdul Muhit called for the efficient and strategic use of resources amid growing global health financing pressures at the 79th World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva, Switzerland, where he is leading a six-member Bangladesh delegation.

Delivering the official national statement on behalf of Bangladesh on Tuesday (19 May), the state minister underscored the new government's strategic vision, saying, "The new government has placed health at the absolute center of national development. However, over 70% of total healthcare expenditure in the country is still borne out-of-pocket by citizens, pushing many families into poverty."

"To address this, the government is taking steps to gradually increase public health funding, alongside working on integrated primary healthcare, an effective referral system, and the digitalisation of the health framework," he added.

Alongside the main assembly, Dr Muhit also participated in a high-level ministerial meeting organised by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, joining health ministers from around the world to discuss global immunisation strategies.

On the global health policy front, he urged world leaders to urgently finalise a safe, transparent, accountable, and equitable "Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing" framework.

Outlining ongoing national health reforms, the state minister said the government is actively working to expand universal healthcare access, synchronise health data across the public and private sectors, and strengthen infectious disease prevention.

He further noted that efforts are being intensified to address non-communicable diseases (NCDs), mental health challenges, and disability-inclusive services, while simultaneously scaling up community programmes to promote health awareness and healthy lifestyles.

Addressing global environmental challenges, the state minister expressed deep concern over the adverse health impacts of climate change on Bangladesh, a nation on the frontline of climate vulnerability.

Muhit said, "Shifting climate patterns are rapidly altering disease profiles, placing additional pressure on the country's existing medical infrastructure. The global community that the protracted presence of over 1.3 million forcibly displaced Myanmar nationals [Rohingyas] continues to place an immense and disproportionate burden on Bangladesh's limited healthcare facilities and infrastructure."

He emphasised that the stark inequities and systemic gaps witnessed in vaccine and treatment distribution during the Covid-19 pandemic must never be repeated, making a robust international legal framework a necessity for the future.

The state minister urged efficient and strategic use of available resources, citing the severe impact of shrinking global health financing, conflicts, and humanitarian crises on low- and middle-income countries.

He concluded by calling for stronger global cooperation to combat silent killers, particularly non-communicable diseases and antimicrobial resistance (AMR).