Health Sector Governance: An Overview of the Legal and Institutional Framework in Bangladesh

Abstract

The on-going COVID-19 outbreak has unveiled the inadequacy, inefficiency, mismanagement and deeply ingrained poor governance in the healthcare system of many national jurisdictions. In addressing these drawbacks and challenges, the present article examines the organizational structure of the healthcare sector in Bangladesh with a specific focus on its legal, policy and regulatory frameworks. Background information and data used in the article are mostly derived from desk-based analysis of health sector institutional studies and media reports as both primary and secondary sources as well as reviewing scholarly texts and commentaries relating to health sector governance in Bangladesh. Accordingly, from a critical analysis of an assortment of facts, thoughts and speculations it has been noted that the health sector of the country has been long struggling due to challenges emanating from deficient national policy priorities, absence of dynamic stewardship and effective planning and management, high inequity and low quality in service delivery, lack and abuse of resources, widespread corruption, inadequacy of health professionals and urban centred service structure, among others. In addition to mapping out a coherent and comprehensive legal and regulatory framework for the nation’s healthcare system, a key recommendation of the paper is on devising short, intermediate and long-term plans and policies in coordination with other relevant sectors and agencies-both public and private-ensuring optimum accountability, transparency and predictability in reorganising a comprehensive sectoral approach to health service administration and management.