Dhaka: Health and Family Welfare Minister Mohammad Nasim on Sunday said all private medical colleges must comply with rules to ensure quality medical education.  

"We are overseeing academic activities of all private medical colleges to improve medical education in Bangladesh," he told the 3rd International Congress of Association of Pediatric Surgeons of Bangladesh(APSB) in Dhaka.  

The two-day International Congress and 5th annual congress of APSB began at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU).  

Director General of Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Prof Dr Abul Kalam Azad, Pro-Vice Chancellor of BSMMU Prof Md Sharfuddin Ahmed, Secretary General of Bangladesh Medical Association Prof M Iqbal Arslan, Secretary General of APSB Prof Abdul Hanif, among others, addressed the congress with APSB President Prof Dr Md Abdul Aziz in the chair.  

Nasim said, "Some private medical colleges were set up ignoring conditions of private medical college policy. These medical colleges have been running without adequate infrastructures and proper academic facilities."  

He said, "We will go for tougher action against these private medical colleges, if they fail to ensure proper academic facilities in line with private medical college policy."  

Nasim said, "We would not compromise in case of providing medical education as quality education can produce better healthcare professionals."  

Many private medical colleges and diagnostic centres in the country lack healthcare facilities, the health minister said, adding the government will take necessary action against these private medical colleges and diagnostic centres.

Pediatric surgery is an established discipline and progressing fast to claim its due share in the health care field of Bangladesh, Dr Abdul Hanif said.  

"There are 54 million children under 14 years of age in the country. We have only 150 pediatric surgeons, meaning one pediatric surgeon for 4.66 lakh children" he added.