By Saraf Khan
In hopes of a digital Bangladesh, the country has progressed in multiple ways, from an increase in international companies like Uber all the way to food franchises like Burger King. When it comes to the healthcare and education in this country, there is a huge lack of resources allocated to these sectors by the government. This fiscal year of 2018-2019, the government set a budget of Tk 4.64 crore, of which only 5% is going towards health and 14.6% is designated for education and technology combined. With such little funding, it causes lack of infrastructure within these systems. There are multiple steps being taken to ensure that these systems are upgraded and are easier for all residents to afford and access to build a better future for Bangladesh. With more investment in these areas, this country could fix several of these issues at an accelerated rate.
According to the World Economic Forum, the cost of improving health care in the developing world is $400 billion. For every $1 invested it succumbs to only $4 of benefits. For this to take place, the government would have to collaborate with the private sectors such as banks and corporations to get as much investment into these areas as possible. Good health care and education lead to a more developed country. With a population of over 166 million people, it is considerably harder to manage a system that’s been broken for such a long period of time.
LESSON LEARNED FROM A GLOBAL PLATFORM
Comparatively, in other countries such as Canada and Switzerland where healthcare is a priority, and the population is drastically smaller, the government has either set up a fully public funded system, or they collaborate with private companies to make health insurance more accessible. In Canada, the annual spending for health care was an estimated $242 billion in 2017 making out to be $6,064 for each resident. This made health care free for all citizens and permanent residents. Everything from a monthly checkup to a heart surgery is all covered under what Canadians call Medicare. There are many disadvantages to a universal healthcare system; really long wait times, availability of physicians and doctors per resident and many more.
The Swiss model of health care is highly efficient. Out of all of the wealthy countries in the world, Switzerland has the smallest percentage of their budget allocated to healthcare, just a mere 2.7% of their GDP. The Swiss healthcare system called Santesuisse is a private insurance-based model. They don’t receive benefits from work like the United States, or from the government like the UK. Each resident has to purchase their own insurance from an insurance provider and the average premium per month is 220 Swiss Francs. There are other packages created for lower income families making it affordable for all.
Singapore, a country closer to home, has the second best and most efficient healthcare system according to Nordic Business Insider. The citizens of Singapore have a life expectancy of 83 years old. In 2015, $155.2 million was invested in healthcare. Singapore uses the saving method and allocates a portion of the residents’ income for future health expenses and they also have a nationwide life insurance policy. Bangladesh could definitely learn from these other far more developed countries. A good start may be better sourcing for investments and prioritizing these basic rights over other sectors. In the FY 18-19 the public administration sector gets 18.1% of the national budget, if these figures were distributed a little more generously there may be a difference sooner than later.
APPLYING KNOWLEDGE TO LOCAL STAGE
When it comes to Bangladesh, people in this small country are dying of illnesses that are treatable because they cannot afford it. The rate at which patients are denied health care is extreme, several people suffer due to improper care from a hospital more than in the 2000’s 60% of Bangladeshis could not afford or be denied healthcare which is about 80 million people. Infrastructure isn’t always the issue for developing countries, lack of funding often stop countries from being able to set up a stable system which can be accessed by the masses. Currently, there are problems in healthcare ranging from misdiagnosis, expired medication and even misbehaviour with patients that cannot pay the hospital fees.
The education system in Bangladesh is very scattered. International schools in Dhaka such as ISD, or AISD are higher end private schools with tuition fees ranging anywhere from $26,000-$35,000 which is 71 times the average annual income of a Bangladeshi resident, and 292 times the total fee of a top-class. Bangladeshi University. These schools eventually lead students to a better future of studying abroad or getting better opportunities. The most common is the government-funded public schools that are far more accessible for the majority of the population. Considering how education has started to become more of a priority for the nation, the enrollment rate for schools when up to an average of 75%, however, there is still a drop out rate of 40.29% when last checked in 2016. The discrepancy between the upper and lower class in Bangladesh is so vast, that the middle class is almost being wiped out. The literacy rate as of March 2018 is 72.76% which is a great improvement from the 60% in the 2000’s. The goal is to have around 99%, especially in a country filled with so many people a lot more money has to be invested for this to happen. The technology has to be updated throughout the educational sectors to ensure up to date learning and teaching; that way all Bangladeshi can have similar opportunities.
“Bank support of Bangladesh’s education sector is based on the principle that investing early for all is investing smartly, and investing in lifelong learning is investing for the future.” – The World Bank. There are numerous projects that the World Bank has initiated. Quality Learning for All Program began on June 14th, 2018, the summary of the project is ensuring quality education for all Bangladeshis. The World Bank has committed to invest $700 million into this project, however, the total cost is actually $16 billion. The project has already made several impressive gains for Bangladesh. The enrolment rate for primary education has gone up an estimated 11% in the last two years. The investment helped teachers receive better training, timely delivery of textbooks and better facilities on school grounds which at the end of the day enhances the overall quality of education.
The overall approach Bangladesh is aiming for is to be able to provide better healthcare and education for all its’ residents. With more investment from private sectors, Bangladesh has a real shot at reforming the flaws put in place by broken systems of a small nation. The economy in Dhaka is said to be the fastest growing and most happy. The economy grew by 7.1% in 2016 according to Quartz it was the fastest expansion in 30 years. As Bangladesh as a whole grows into a strong economic power with better infrastructure, investing in healthcare and education along with technology will only help grow it further. With the recent intake of Rohingya refugees, it’s become infinitely harder to Bangladesh to focus on the problems at hand. However small this country maybe, the world is giving Bangladesh a standing ovation for giving aid to the mass influx of a million Rohingyas. The advances this country has made in the past couple of years have been a lot more than what the past 50 years have brought.
Keeping in mind Bangladesh as a country is young and just starting up, with disadvantages in population growth and geographical location, Bangladesh still shows a lot of promise heading into the developed world. Many big corporations are now looking at Bangladesh as the new hub. Investing in anything here is a gold mine, numerous non-resident Bangladeshi return to this country to start up business because of the opportunities this country has to offer. So with this growing economy, it should be that much easier to focus on developing the health and educational sectors.
*Source: Expatica, Independent, Forbes, Canada Gov.
