PKSF on Wednesday officially launched its Preventive Healthcare program to help prevent diseases among low-income communities, reduce their out-of-pocket healthcare expenditure, and strengthen their capacity to cope with health-related risks. The inauguration ceremony was held at PKSF Bhaban-1 in Agargaon, Dhaka, and was chaired by PKSF Managing Director Md Fazlul Kader. 

In his remarks, the Managing Director said that a healthy population is a must for achieving sustainable poverty reduction, developing human capital, and fostering the growth of microenterprises. He emphasized that ensuring the good health of microentrepreneurs is essential for helping them thrive. Illnesses often push families into financial hardship due to medical expenses, while also reducing entrepreneurs’ productivity and income. Noting that Bangladesh has one of the highest rates of out-of-pocket healthcare expenditure in the world, he stressed that expanding preventive healthcare services is crucial to reducing this financial burden.

Md Fazlul Kader further said that PKSF has long been implementing a wide range of non-financial interventions alongside promoting financial inclusion through its Partner Organizations. In alignment with the Government’s policies on health, nutrition, and maternal health, PKSF has taken the program to roll out this preventive healthcare program. As part of its efforts to develop a healthy workforce of entrepreneurs capable of creating productive employment, PKSF encourages its Partner Organizations (POs) to introduce preventive healthcare services. He emphasized that the resources allocated for this program should be viewed not as an expense, but as an investment.

In the initial phase, the program will cover approximately 680,000 members and their family members through 39 POs of PKSF. The program will give priority to pregnant women and new mothers, newborns and under-5 children, adolescents, women of reproductive age, older persons, and persons with disabilities. The preventive healthcare services will subsequently be expanded in phases to cover clients served through the overall operations of PKSF’s POs across the country.

During the open discussion, chief executives and senior officials of PKSF’s POs expressed their confidence that the preventive healthcare program would make a significant contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Bangladesh and supporting the implementation of PKSF’s Strategic Plan.