THE Awami League government, before its downfall on August 5, had revised the budget on June 6 allotting, Tk 414,080 million in the 2025 financial year, with a 9 per cent increase from the 2024 budget to accommodate macroeconomic challenges sucg as pandemic, price inflation and banking sector instability in banking. The health budget accounted for 5.2 of the outlay and 0.7 per cent of gross domestic product for the 2025 financial year
The World Health Organisation recommended a 15 per cent allocation for health and 4鈥�5 per cent of gross domestic product to ensure universal health coverage to meet the SDG target. The percentages created disappointment and challenges among policy advocates in health sector. This shows the negligence and hurdles that the health sector has endured for a decade. Although the government allocated Tk 100 crore for 鈥榠ntegrated health-science research and development fund, it accounts for only 0.3 er cent of gross domestic product.
Campaigners have have expressed concern regarding transparency and potency of the distribution and availability of the funds. It is also critical to assess the current status of the funds in the light of the changed political contest to empower and inspire researchers to make significant contribution. Such a situation also exists in private sector and universities. Regardless of health, the research and development sector is still neglected and less encouraged. The University of Dhaka has revised its research allocation to only 2.12 per cent of its budget for the 2025 financial year, with significant portion allotted for administration and human resource management, which leaves little scope for research.
This creates a gap among the data availability, dissemination and efficiency as there were poor regulatory mechanism and accountability for resources for transparent fund management. The research and development sector needs immediate, mid-term and long-term planning to enhance research-based data management and innovation. The initiation and enhancement of development in the research sector, the provision of government fund, especially for health sciences, is considerably negligible and bare minimum among other Asian countries.
World Bank data show that it was 0.54 per cent in Vietnam, 0.70 per cent in India and 2.55 per cent in China while Bangladesh invested only 0.03 per cent of its gross domestic product in overall research and development investments in 2023, as Planning Commission data show. Government organisations such as the National Institute of Population Research and Training, Bangladesh Medical Research Council, Health Economics Unit under the Health Services Division, the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control And Research, the Institute of Public Health, the Institute of Child and Mother Health and the National Institute of Preventive and Social Medicine conducted research under government surveillance, facing potential challenges because of oversight and evaluation deficit.
Additionally, the World Intellectual Property Organisation highlighted that Bangladesh has ranked in the 102nd position among 126 countries in the Global Innovation Index 2023 while Rwanda, a lower income-country, securing the 100th position.
The interim government is, therefore, expected to bolster the research capacity. A gradual increase in research budget, especially for health, aligning with international standards are the crying needs. Moreover, transparent and autonomous mechanisms should be established to ensure an effective use of research funds as well as oversight and evaluation of overall activities. Additionally, key research institutions should be strengthened with increased funding, improved regulation and enhanced oversight. Public-private partnership schemes, donor organisations and private-sector engagement can also leverage additional resources and expertise under autonomous and transparent regulatory system.
Research-oriented universities should introduce research-based academic activities and prioritise research by allocating more funds and implementing policies that incentivise research. The National Health Research Strategy 2009 needs to be upgraded and refined, outlining clear goals, timeline and responsibilities. Other Asian countries can be a benchmark for setting ambitious targets to drive progress while international engagement for exploring global best practices can be exercised side by side to access technical assistance, funding and knowledge-sharing opportunities.
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Dr Md Shamim Hayder Talukder is member secretary and Dr Maliha Khan Majlish is project associate of the Bangladesh Urban Health Network.