DHAKA, April 3, 2024 (BSS) - Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today said that the government has been able to reduce the child and maternal mortality rates along with poverty rate in the country through various pragmatic steps.

"We've established community clinics across the country to ensure the primary medicare facilities for the people. As a result, the child and maternal mortality rates have reduced," she said.

The Prime Minister made this remark when the management team of Sheikh Fazilatunnessa Mujib Memorial KPJ Specialised Hospital and Nursing College called on her at her official residence Ganabhaban here.

President and Managing Director of KPJ Healthcare Berhad Chin Keat Chyuan led the team. Youth and Sports Minister Nazmul Hassan was present on the occasion.

PM's Speech Writer Md Nazrul Islam briefed reporters after the call on.

The Prime Minister said that the Sheikh Fazilatunnessa Mujib Memorial KPJ Specialised Hospital was established at the industrial belt so that the workers and people of the area could get the medicare facilities easily.

Mentioning that the hospital is run under the Bangabandhu Memorial Trust, Sheikh Hasina said, "I and my sister Sheikh Rehana donated all our properties to the Trust in people's interest. We have no more and we've donated our properties for the welfare of the people," she said.

She recalled that once upon a time people of Bangladesh were poor and deprived of the healthcare facilities.

"We've been able to reduce the poverty rate," she said.

Sheikh Fazilatunnessa Mujib Memorial KPJ Specialised Hospital and Nursing College was established by the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Trust.

The 250-bed hospital is operated by KPJ Healthcare Berhad, a renowned Malaysian Private Healthcare organization. KPJ Healthcare Berhad currently has a chain of 29 hospitals in Malaysia.

Named after Bangabandhu's wife Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib, the 250-bed world class hospital has been serving people since its inception in 2013.

Established at Kashimpur union under Kaliakair upazila in Gazipur by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Trust, the state-of-the-art facility is being operated by Kumpulan Perubetan Johor (KPJ) Healthcare Berhad, a renowned Malaysian private healthcare organisation.

The facility has become the first integrated management system (IMS) certified Hospital & Nursing College in Bangladesh, providing patients with more confidence in healthcare. Bureau Veritas, an international certification agency, awarded it for its contributions to Bangladesh's health sector in 2017.