Prime Minister Tarique Rahman -File photo

SANGSAD BHABAN, June 17, 2026 (BSS) - Prime Minister Tarique Rahman today informed the Jatiya Sangsad (JS) that the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has already started the process to recruit 1 lakh health workers to address manpower shortages in healthcare centres across the country.

"In line with the election manifesto, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has adopted a long, medium and short-term action plan to recruit 1 lakh health workers, for which activities are underway in various stages to implement it," he said.

The Leader of the House said this while replying to a starred tabled question from opposition bench lawmaker from Netrokona-5 constituency, Masum Mustafa, in the House this afternoon with Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad, Bir Bikram, in the chair.

Noting that services are currently being delivered through maternal and child health units under the Directorate General of Family Planning in all upazila hospitals, the Prime Minister said 3,290 Union Health and Family Welfare Centres are also providing healthcare services across the country.

Tarique Rahman said there are 17,870 approved posts at upazila and union-level health service centres, of which 11,501 posts are filled while 6,359 remain vacant. 

He said recruitment activities are ongoing to fill these vacant posts to ensure uninterrupted healthcare services at the grassroots level.

Replying to another starred question from treasury bench lawmaker from Dinajpur-1 constituency Md Monjurul Islam, the Prime Minister said the government is committed to ensuring universal health coverage under its "Health for All" policy as outlined in the election manifesto.

Highlighting several initiatives taken to build world-class healthcare facilities in the country, he said steps have been taken to upgrade the Mental Hospital in Pabna into an international-standard mental health institute with full government funding.

Tarique Rahman said a project has been taken to build a 1,000-bed hospital in Nilphamari Sadar with Chinese grant assistance. The project has already been approved by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC).

Besides, work is under way to set up a 150-bed Burn and Plastic Surgery Unit at Chattogram Medical College Hospital, he said.

The Prime Minister further said that a 500-700-bed specialized hospital in the North City Corporation area of Dhaka and a rehabilitation centre at Krishnanagar in Dhamrai have also been proposed with Chinese assistance.