The dengue situation is less severe than had been feared, State Minister of Health and Family Welfare Dr MA Muhit has said.
The state minister has attributed the lower infection rate to coordinated efforts involving multiple stakeholders.
“The dengue infection rate is lower this year compared to previous years because we have taken initiatives involving everyone,” he said while visiting a vaccination session of the Special Measles-Rubella Catch-up Campaign 2026 at the Korail T&T playground in Dhaka on Wednesday.
The state minister said 20 million children across the country have already been vaccinated under the measles-rubella immunisation program. The government is working to vaccinate another 3.5 million children under the campaign over the next month.
He said the government was working to address challenges in rebuilding the country’s healthcare system.
“Under the leadership of the prime minister, healthcare for the people has been given special importance in the election campaign and manifesto. Alongside disease prevention, the health sector is also being prioritized to increase people’s productivity,” he said.
The government is prioritising the continuation of various vaccination programmes, Muhit said, adding that the US government, Gavi, Unicef, Dhaka North City Corporation and health and field-level workers across the country are supporting the efforts.
Highlighting measures taken to prevent measles, the state minister said work on the issue began after the government took office.
“Through the joint efforts of the health ministry, local government, city corporations and field-level health workers, we have already been able to vaccinate 20 million children,” he said.
He said the government had not stopped the programme after vaccinating 20 million children because “every child’s life is important.”
“The government’s goal is to ensure that not a single child is left unvaccinated. That is why this year’s programme has been taken up as a mop-up campaign,” he said.
Under the campaign, children in remote and hard-to-reach areas, children with disabilities and those who missed vaccination during earlier phases for any reason are being identified and vaccinated.
The state minister said efforts were being made to reach every child.