The government has announced a major expansion of the country's healthcare workforce, including the immediate recruitment of 5,000 MBBS physicians and an additional 100,000 health workers, as part of efforts to strengthen healthcare services nationwide.
Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury unveiled the plan while placing the national budget for FY2026-27 in parliament today, Thursday.
The minister said the government was giving top priority to recruiting the necessary healthcare workforce to ensure quality and people-oriented healthcare services across the country.
“Steps have been taken to immediately recruit 5,000 MBBS physicians to fill the longstanding vacancies in various government hospitals and health institutions,” he said.
The minister said the recruitment drive is expected to significantly reduce the shortage of physicians, particularly at district and upazila-level healthcare facilities, enabling citizens to receive faster and better-quality medical services.
He said the government had also begun the process of recruiting an additional 100,000 health workers in line with its electoral commitments.
“With a view to strengthening women's and child healthcare, community-level services and preventive healthcare systems, a plan has been drawn up for approximately 80 per cent of total recruits to be female health workers,” he told the parliament.
The minister said the expanded workforce would play a key role in strengthening primary healthcare, maternal and child health services, disease prevention programmes and community-based healthcare initiatives.
As part of the efforts to enhance healthcare coverage, the government has already created 941 new posts for senior staff nurses and 947 posts for midwives.
Khosru said the government views investment in healthcare as an investment in human resource development and national economic progress, adding that strengthening frontline healthcare services would remain a key priority in the coming years.
The proposed recruitment programme forms part of the government's broader strategy to transform the country's healthcare system through expanded primary healthcare, improved service delivery and greater access to quality medical care for all citizens.
The recruitment initiative comes as part of a significantly expanded health budget. In the proposed FY2026-27 budget, the government allocated Tk 694.09 billion for the health sector, nearly double the revised allocation of Tk 354.77 billion in the previous fiscal year. The allocation represents around 1.01 per cent of GDP.
The finance minister today unveiled a Tk 9.38 trillion national budget for FY2026-27, his first as finance minister. The proposed budget is around 19 per cent higher than the original Tk 7.90 trillion crore budget for the current fiscal year and aims to stabilise the economy, accelerate growth and strengthen public services.