Bangladesh’s State Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Dr. M A Muhit, announced that the government plans to increase the national health budget fivefold in line with its election manifesto. He made the statement on Wednesday at the launch of the ‘Comprehensive Eye Care Services’ project held at Six Seasons Hotel in Dhaka’s Gulshan. The project is jointly implemented by Sightsavers and Gildan Activewear.

Dr. Muhit described the country’s health sector as suffering from unprecedented corruption and mismanagement, calling the reform of the broken system a major challenge. He noted that budget allocations often remain underutilized due to limited capacity, which requires urgent improvement. The minister, who has long worked in blindness prevention, expressed personal emotion about returning to his field through this initiative.

The project will provide eye screening, cataract surgery, medicines, and glasses for garment workers and marginalized communities in Savar’s Pathalia and Dhamsana unions, along with school-based eye health and awareness programs. Dr. Muhit emphasized that access to healthcare is a citizen’s right and urged industrial entrepreneurs to support similar initiatives.