Community clinics are a crucial part of Bangladesh’s healthcare system, particularly for rural populations. These government-run facilities offer essential health services, such as maternal care, child immunization, and infectious disease prevention. However, Community Healthcare Providers (CHCPs), who are the backbone of this system, are currently facing a severe financial crisis that threatens the sustainability of these vital services.
Seven Months Without Pay: Growing Hardship
In Dinajpur’s 13 upazilas, 315 community clinics are functioning without properly compensated CHCPs. These healthcare workers have not received their salaries for the past seven months, placing them in extreme financial distress.
Md. Abdul Mannan, a CHCP at Hossainpur Community Clinic, expressed his frustration, stating, “With the rising cost of essentials, it was already difficult to manage household expenses on our modest salaries. Now, after seven months without pay, survival has become a daily struggle. We are living in complete uncertainty.”
Similarly, Kalidas Sarkar, a CHCP from Kalimela Community Clinic, shared, “No salary for seven months. Festivals have come and gone, yet we received no financial support. Whatever little savings I had are now exhausted. We have no way forward.”
Is a Solution on the Horizon?
Morshed Hossain Chowdhury, President of the CHCP Association’s Dinajpur Chapter, emphasized the urgency of the situation: “We have reached out to the authorities repeatedly, only to receive empty promises. Time passes, but our problems remain unresolved. We urge the government to release our salaries immediately.”
Government’s Response:
Dr. Md. Asif Ferdous, the Civil Surgeon of Dinajpur, acknowledged the issue, stating, “The salary crisis of CHCPs is deeply concerning, not just in Dinajpur but nationwide. We have formally notified the higher authorities, and efforts are being made to resolve the matter swiftly.”
Job Regularization: Unfulfilled Promise
Since 2011, CHCPs have been working under a project-based employment system. The project officially ended in June 2016, but its tenure was extended three times. Despite these extensions, salaries have not been increased, and since July of last year, CHCPs have gone without pay. Following a protest in Dhaka on August 20, the interim government assured that their jobs would be transferred to the revenue sector. However, neither the project nor the revenue sector has taken responsibility for their wages.
Urgent Action Needed to Prevent Healthcare Disruption
Community clinics are the primary healthcare lifeline for millions in rural Bangladesh. If CHCPs continue to be deprived of their salaries, the sustainability of these services will be at serious risk. CHCPs stress that this is not just an employment issue but a critical matter for the country’s rural healthcare infrastructure. Without job regularization, the entire network of community clinics may collapse.
The government must act swiftly, ensuring the immediate payment of salaries and securing permanent employment for CHCPs. Failure to do so could lead to an unprecedented crisis in the nation’s rural healthcare system.
