10. COVID-19 Pandemic Management through Civil Administration: Lessons from Bangladesh

Authors

Mohammad Samiul Islam
Associate Professor, Department of Public Administration, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet, Bangladeshs.

Synopsis

The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as SERS, began in Wuhan, China, in December 2019 and has significantly impacted the global economy, healthcare, education, human rights, basic food security, and nutrition (WHO, 2020). Bangladesh, a lower-middle-income country in Southeast Asia, has experienced rapid economic progress but has been severely affected by the virus (Panday, 2020). The government took various steps to control contamination, including identifying suspected cases, ensuring quarantine, establishing RT-PCR labs, starting COVID tests, suspending mass gatherings, declaring a lockdown, and providing food to informal workers. However, the civil administration faced challenges such as non-adherence to strict lockdown, a lack of face masks, inadequate relief for informal workers, corruption, and conflict between bureaucrats and representatives of the people. The Ministry of Health has implemented essential precautions to prevent and control the pandemic, and the Bangladesh National Preparedness and Response Plan has been prepared. The cabinet's decisions are carried out by civil administration at both the central and field levels. Under the leadership of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh has done better than most other countries in preventing the spread of the coronavirus (Panday, 2021). The paper aims to explain how civil administration managed the COVID-19 pandemic and saved lives and livelihoods during the pandemic. It also presents new insights from the perspective of Bangladesh's public administration, which was forced to take measures with limited resources, governance challenges, and relief management to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Published

January 30, 2025

How to Cite

10. COVID-19 Pandemic Management through Civil Administration: Lessons from Bangladesh. (2025). In Contemporary Issues and Problems of Public Administration in Bangladesh. A H Development Publishing House. https://doi.org/10.71359/prz0wv61