The BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health (BRAC JPGSPH) at BRAC University hosted a roundtable titled “Rethinking Urban Health Systems: From Research to Policy” on Tuesday at Crowne Plaza Dhaka Gulshan in Gulshan. The discussion was based on findings from the CHORUS project.
The CHORUS (2020–2026) Research Programme Consortium, funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, works to strengthen urban health systems in Bangladesh, Nepal, Ghana and Nigeria. In Bangladesh, the research is being led by BRAC JPGSPH and ARK Foundation, with participation from communities, policymakers and health professionals to improve city-based healthcare systems.
BRAC JPGSPH has focused on designing and evaluating strategic purchasing models and identifying ways to strengthen the capacity of purchasing entities in urban Bangladesh. The project is led by Prof Zahidul Quayyum, co-director of the Centre of Excellence for Urban Equity and Health (CUEH) at BRAC JPGSPH.
The roundtable brought together representatives from government, academia and civil society. State Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dr MA Muhit attended as chief guest. The session was moderated by Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman, chairman of PPRC, and opened with remarks from Dr Laura Reichenbach, dean of BRAC JPGSPH. Prof Quayyum delivered the keynote presentation on behalf of the CHORUS team.
Prof Quayyum said research often remains fragmented, overly technical and disconnected from policymakers. The study identified four key areas: poverty estimation, technical efficiency, a discrete choice experiment on community preferences for urban primary healthcare, and a media analysis.
He said the CHORUS project aimed to bridge these gaps by identifying existing policies, assessing shortcomings and generating evidence-based recommendations to improve urban health systems.
Participants raised questions about the progress of the Urban Health Policy 2026. They also highlighted structural barriers to financing urban primary healthcare and concerns about sustaining reform efforts.
There was consensus on the need for policy clarity—whether Bangladesh should adopt a universal or targeted approach, and whether the government should act as both purchaser and provider or solely as a purchaser.
Prof Atonu Rabbani of the University of Dhaka and Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies said fragmentation in the health system has led to the neglect of effective practices from rural healthcare. Dr Imran Ahmed Chowdhury, programme head at BRAC Health Programme, stressed the need to improve the quality of health data collection.
Prof M Shafiqur Rahman of Institute of Statistical Research and Training highlighted the potential inclusion of health insurance in urban health planning and emphasized the need for a consolidated national database.
State Minister Dr MA Muhit described the research-to-policy linkage established by the CHORUS project as highly valuable. He said a holistic approach is needed, considering disease patterns, financing and patient needs.
He also emphasized integrating health economics more effectively within the ministry to ensure research findings are translated into practice.
Highlighting the importance of patient-centered care, he said: “The body may heal, but the mind does not always recover.”
He called for a concrete policy framework or draft that can be presented in parliament to build a transparent and accountable health system.
Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman proposed an integrated framework based on four pillars: technical efficiency at the provider level, user priorities such as cost, waiting time and quality, strategic purchasing with clear modalities, and effective use of data. He also stressed the need to identify implementation barriers.
Prof Md Abdus Sobur of Ad-din Hospital highlighted the need to assess the implications of the World Bank’s planned $100 million financing in Dhaka North, Dhaka South and Chittagong.
Dr Shafiqul Islam, health adviser at the FCDO, urged leveraging the commitment to increase health spending to 5% of GDP.
Prof Liaquat Ali emphasized placing urban health within a broader primary healthcare framework and called for stronger intersectoral collaboration.
Participants said Bangladesh is at a critical juncture, with political momentum, an engaged government and strong research evidence aligning together. They stressed the need to translate this opportunity into a concrete, people-centered and evidence-based urban health policy.
BRAC JPGSPH is a leading public health institution in South Asia, working to advance health equity through research, education and policy engagement.