Suicide has emerged as a major public health problem in Bangladesh. According to police records, 76,361 people died by suicide between 2020 and 2024—an average of more than 15,000 a year. That is more than three times the World Health Organization (WHO)’s estimated figure for Bangladesh in 2021.
Young people are at relatively higher risk of suicide. Family and relationship conflicts, psychological distress, depression, unemployment, academic pressure and examinations, among other social, economic and mental health factors, can increase the risk. Experts say reliable data collection, accessible mental health services and restrictions on access to lethal means such as pesticides are essential for suicide prevention.
These issues were discussed at a suicide prevention meeting held at the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b) in Dhaka on Sunday.
The meeting was organised jointly by the National Institute of Mental Health and Hospital, the World Health Organization and icddr,b under the WHO’s suicide prevention project, “Live Life: Suicide Prevention in Bangladesh.” Mental health and psychiatric specialists, researchers, police officials and representatives of various ministries attended the event.
Participants also recommended repealing or reforming the law that criminalises attempted suicide. Several speakers said people who attempt suicide are usually in deep distress and need treatment, support and compassion rather than punishment.
A deeply rooted problem
In the first presentation, Mohammad Sohel Shamik, deputy project coordinator of icddr,b’s Maternal and Child Health Division, highlighted the scale of the problem. He said the number of suicides recorded by Bangladesh Police was much higher than the WHO’s estimated figure. According to the WHO’s latest estimate, for 2021, around 4,714 people die by suicide in Bangladesh each year. Police records, however, indicate 14,000 to 15,000 suicides annually.
Participants were given a draft of the National Suicide Prevention Strategy 2026–2030. It contains suicide statistics for 2020–2024 and January–October 2025. The number of suicides was lowest in 2024, at 13,975, and highest in 2022, at 16,886. In 2021, there were 15,774 suicides—more than three times the WHO estimate. These deaths are generally recorded by police stations as unnatural deaths, with cases filed accordingly.
According to police data, the highest number of suicides occurred in Jashore. Between 2022 and 2025, 1,454 cases involving suicide were filed there. The other nine districts with relatively high numbers were Dhaka, Cumilla, Dinajpur, Bogura, Mymensingh, Kushtia, Pabna, Jhenaidah and Naogaon.
Mohammad Sohel Shomik and several other participants said not all suicides or suicide attempts are reported or recorded. There are also instances in which killings are reported as suicides.
Under Section 309 of the Penal Code, attempting suicide is a punishable offence, carrying a maximum sentence of one year’s simple imprisonment, a fine, or both. In cases of suicide resulting in death, police conduct an unnatural-death inquiry under Section 174 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. If someone is found to have abetted or assisted a suicide, Section 306 of the Penal Code provides for up to 10 years’ imprisonment and a fine.
In the second presentation, Anika Tasnim Hossain, an associate scientist at icddr,b’s Maternal and Child Health Division, said fear and stigma were among the reasons suicide and suicide attempts were underreported.
She said data on suicides and suicide attempts could be collected from three sources: hospitals and clinics, police stations and communities. Community members often have the best knowledge of such incidents, she said. Teachers, imams, village police officers, medicine-shop owners and agricultural extension officers could be important sources of information.
Combining information from these three sources would provide a more accurate picture, she said.
Anika Tasnim Hossain said a pilot project on the issue was being implemented in four upazilas under the WHO project: Shibganj in Chapainawabganj, Gowainghat in Sylhet, Abhaynagar in Jashore and Shailkupa in Jhenaidah.
Compassion instead of punishment
Professor Fowara Tasnim, additional director general (development and research) of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) and chief guest at the event, said there needed to be serious consideration of whether attempted suicide could be removed from the list of criminal offences. If that was not possible, she said, the law should be reformed.
There is no provision for legal action against a person who dies by suicide. However, participants said the law provides for punishment of people who survive a suicide attempt. The provision was introduced during British rule. Although Britain has since repealed the law, it remains in Bangladesh and most countries around the world no longer criminalise attempted suicide.
Several psychiatrists and mental health specialists at the event said mental health problems increase the risk of suicide and suicide attempts. Mental health problems should not be treated as criminal behaviour, they said. People who survive suicide attempts should receive medical care and compassion rather than punishment.
Two physicians from the National Institute of Mental Health and Hospital argued for retaining some form of punishment, saying authorities should also consider cases in which threats of suicide are used to blackmail or pressure others.
Additional Deputy Inspector General of Police (Crime Metro) Md Ashraful Islam said the existence of the law deterred some people from attempting suicide. He claimed that one reason suicide rates were lower among government employees was that they knew an attempt could lead to a year in prison and seriously damage their careers.
Participants cited a study conducted across 171 countries which found that criminalising suicide attempts was associated with higher suicide rates. They also said suicide rates had fallen in Sri Lanka and Singapore after attempts were decriminalised.
Restricting access to pesticides
Pesticides, insecticides and herbicides are among the major means of suicide in Bangladesh. Most are used in agriculture, but there is little regulation or monitoring of their use.
They are readily available, and people often leave them unsecured after using them in fields, creating a risk for those experiencing psychological distress.
Participants said suicide rates had been reduced in Sri Lanka and South Korea after certain pesticides and herbicides were banned. Mohammad Sohel Shomik of icddr,b said that in some parts of India, farmers did not have direct access to pesticides.
Instead, pesticides were obtained and used collectively through cooperatives, with village councils overseeing and monitoring their use. This had helped reduce suicides among farmers, he said.
The event opened with remarks by Md Anisur Rahman, senior director of icddr,b’s Maternal and Child Health Division. WHO National Professional Officer Hasina Momtaz then said young people appeared to face a higher risk of suicide and that their vulnerabilities needed to be better understood. She also stressed the importance of responsible reporting by the media.
In her closing remarks, Professor Safiun Nahar, director of the National Institute of Mental Health and chair of the event, said policy reform was necessary and difficult, but pesticide regulation was achievable. Authorities needed to ensure that pesticides did not become easily accessible to everyone, she said.