On 12 December 2012, the United Nations endorsed a resolution urging all countries to provide universal access to healthcare without financial hardship. The universal health coverage day was celebrated on 12th December 2014 for the first time, in solidarity with health for all, everywhere.
As part of the programme, ‘Building Awareness on Universal Health Coverage: Advancing the Agenda Forward in 2016’, Centre of Excellence for Universal Health Coverage (CoE-UHC) at JPGSPH in collaboration with Health Economics Unit (HEU), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) and USAID’s Health Finance and Governance Project observed Universal Health Coverage Day 2016 with various programmes and activities to highlight the importance of UHC.
The celebrations kicked off on 12th December with a rally from Shahbag to Shahid Minar, which was attended by staff from the School as well as Diploma in Midwifery Education students. The celebrations then continued with an in-house programme aimed to raise awareness on core concepts and some misconceptions and quality of care for advancing UHC agenda in Bangladesh. The day continued with a dinner reception before wrapping up with a TV talk show on Kemon Bangladesh Chai where Malabika Sarker discussed the role of academics for advancing UHC. She was joined by Md. Ashadul Islam (DG, HEU, MoHFW), Md. Khairul Islam (Country Representative, WaterAid), Muniruddin Ahmed (Professor, Department of Clinical Pharmacy & Pharmacology, University of Dhaka), Rashid-E-Mahbub (Joint Secretary General of Diabetic Association of Bangladesh), Taufique Maruf (President, Health Reporter’s Forum) and Syed Ashik Rahman (CEO, RTV) who moderated the discussion.