DHAKA, Sept. 26 — Health Minister Sardar Sakhawat Hossain Bakul said the current government is paying the price because the previous government did not administer measles vaccines. He made the remarks Saturday after opening a special measles vaccination campaign.
The health minister said a government must always remain alert in dealing with infectious diseases. After Dec. 20, 2020, he said, the government was responsible for launching a mass vaccination program against such epidemics once every four years. But the vaccination program remained suspended from 2020 until April 2026.
He said the previous government wanted to use an open tender process for vaccine procurement instead of direct purchase through UNICEF’s delegated method. Foreign agencies repeatedly requested otherwise, but those requests were not heeded, causing delays. As a result, the current government had to pay the price after taking responsibility for the four-year gap, he said.
The health minister said many mothers suffered in the situation and many lost children. He said about one thousand children died among 1 crore 85 lakh 833 patients. Even the death of one child is deeply sad, he said, adding that a mother losing a child is also deeply painful.
He said vaccination began April 5 after the government took responsibility. In the first phase, UNICEF carried out activities in three designated phases across 18 districts. Dhaka and two other major city corporations were added in the next phase. Although the next phase was scheduled to begin May 4, it was moved up to April 20 and launched nationwide. He said 1 crore 85 lakh children were vaccinated under the program.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report