Lifespan of Bangladeshis increased: Health minister

The average lifespan of Bangladeshi people has increased from 65 years to 69 in the last four years due to improvement in the health sector, said Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr AFM Ruhal Haque yesterday.
Although the government has achieved numerous successes in the health sector, those have not been recognised due to lack of publicity, the minister told reporters at his secretariat office.
Reading a report, the minister said the current population growth rate is 1.37 percent while it was 1.41 percent in 2008.
The rate of underweight babies fell to 36 percent in 2011 from 2007's 41 percent, he said.
Besides, some infectious diseases including polio were removed and other diseases like HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, avian influenza and anthrax have been brought under control, he said.
He said, “More than 15 crore people have been attended to through around 13,000 community clinics across the country.”
Ruhal Haque said the government has appointed sufficient number of doctors, nurses and other health assistants to extend health services to the root level.