Tourism infrastructure is expanding in Cox’s Bazar, and plans to develop its blue economy are plentiful. Yet residents with serious illnesses still have to travel to Chattogram or Dhaka for treatment. This contradiction exposes a basic weakness in the region’s development: economic progress cannot be separated from people’s access to reliable healthcare. Completing the 500-bed Cox’s Bazar Medical College Hospital on schedule, and preparing it to deliver comprehensive care, must be a priority.
The district’s main public facility, the 250-bed Cox’s Bazar Sadar Hospital, has long struggled with overcrowding. Reports published in 2025 described 800 to 900 patients admitted at a time. In May that year, 76 of its 328 approved posts were vacant. One report said only three doctors were assigned to an emergency department seeing around 500 patients daily. Shortages of beds, staff and specialist services force seriously ill patients to seek treatment elsewhere, often at considerable personal risk and expense.
Demand extends beyond local residents. Tourists, Rohingya refugees and people working in coastal industries all need access to healthcare. For a fisher injured at sea or a visitor facing a medical emergency, timely treatment can be decisive. Gaps in emergency care threaten lives and livelihoods, while undermining confidence in Cox’s Bazar as a destination. Disasters and major accidents only heighten these risks. Protecting the people who sustain tourism, fisheries and maritime activity is essential to a resilient blue economy.
The fragility of specialist care is equally troubling. A May 2025 report described how funding difficulties disrupted the Sadar Hospital’s coronary care unit before services resumed with limited staffing. The episode illustrates why equipment alone is insufficient: dependable funding and skilled personnel are essential to continuity of care.
Established in 2008, Cox’s Bazar Medical College still lacks its own fully operational teaching hospital. Students must travel roughly eight to ten kilometres to Sadar Hospital for clinical training. Approval and a construction contract for the 500-bed hospital followed in 2025, with a foundation-stone ceremony held in August 2026. Under the contract, construction is due for completion in June 2028.
But a finished building is not a functioning hospital. Recruitment, equipment procurement and phased specialist services must be planned alongside construction, with clear timelines and public progress reports. Meanwhile, vacant posts at Sadar Hospital need filling, and essential emergency services require sustainable public funding rather than dependence on temporary projects.
We therefore urge the government and relevant authorities to meet the construction deadline and resolve staffing, administrative and equipment needs before opening. Better healthcare for Cox’s Bazar is not merely a medical necessity; it is an indispensable condition for the region’s sustainable economic development.
By Salam Abu
Editor
