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SANGSAD BHABAN, July 13, 2026 (BSS) - Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Md. Sakhawat Husain today said the government has been expanding mental healthcare services in remote and hard-to-reach areas through telemedicine platforms, enabling people to receive consultations from specialist psychiatrists.
He also said the government is implementing various programmes to integrate mental healthcare into primary healthcare services across the country.
The minister made the remarks while replying to a written question from treasury bench member Md. Abul Kalam (Cumilla-9) in the Jatiya Sangsad (JS).
The day’s sitting resumed today with Deputy Speaker Barrister Kayser Kamal in the chair.
Quoting recent data from the World Health Organization (WHO), Sakhawat Husain said mental disorders are rapidly emerging as one of the leading causes of disability worldwide.
Depression and anxiety-related disorders, in particular, have become major contributors to long-term disability and reduced productivity, although cardiovascular diseases and cancer remain the leading causes of death globally.
He said the National Mental Health Survey 2018-19 found that around 16.8 percent of adults and 12.6 percent of children and adolescents in Bangladesh suffer from some form of mental health disorder. However, more than 92 percent of those affected do not receive any treatment.
The minister said mental health services in Bangladesh remain inadequate compared to the country’s population. Currently, there are only 1.17 mental health workers per 100,000 population, while the number of registered psychiatrists in the public sector stands at around 350.
To address the shortage, he said, the National Institute of Mental Health and Hospital in Dhaka and the Pabna Mental Hospital are being operated as the country’s two principal specialised mental healthcare institutions.
Sakhawat Husain said the government has enacted the Mental Health Act, 2018, and has been implementing the National Mental Health Strategic Plan and Action Plan (2020-2030) to strengthen the institutional framework for mental healthcare.
“A proposal to create a separate director’s post for mental health programmes under the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) is also under process,” he added.
The minister said under the WHO’s Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP), doctors, nurses and other primary healthcare providers are being trained through the DGHS to improve mental healthcare delivery. The training programme is currently underway in 10 districts—Khulna, Jashore, Jhenaidah, Noakhali, Bandarban, Sylhet, Sherpur, Netrakona, Chapainawabganj and Kurigram.
He added that the DGHS, in collaboration with the WHO and the National Institute of Mental Health, is implementing suicide prevention programmes in Jashore, Jhenaidah, Sylhet and Chapainawabganj districts.
The minister further said Bangladesh is one of the nine countries selected under the WHO’s Special Initiative for Mental Health. Through the initiative, the government is integrating mental healthcare into primary healthcare services to ensure quality mental health support reaches people at the grassroots level.
