Current Situation of Bangladesh Senior Citizens
Thanks to improvements in quality of life, the number of people over 60 in Bangladesh is rapidly increasing - an emerging challenge, since the country lacks a broad social assistance system for elderly welfare and medical services.
Family structures are shifting too: as more working-age adults move to cities or abroad, elderly parents are often left without the financial and social support they once relied on. National census data shows the elderly population has grown steadily since the 1970s, and studies show that more than half of Bangladesh's elderly are widowed or living alone, with many still working out of necessity.
The Bangladesh government introduced an old-age allowance in fiscal year 1997-98 and has since expanded it, but coverage still falls well short of the full elderly population's needs. Community organizations continue to fill gaps in care, but broader investment in age-appropriate health services remains a pressing need.
Source: Bangladesh Journal of Bioethics 2016; 7(1):27-36