ISLAMABAD: While life expectancy is the lowest in Pakistan as compared to other countries of the region, the cumulative health expenditures by federal and provincial governments in the Financial Year 2019 increased to Rs421.8 billion from Rs416.5bn of previous year, showing a growth of only 1.3 per cent.

Moreover, the allocation in health sector was 1.1pc of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

According to Economic Survey 2019-20, the national health security is increasingly threatened in Pakistan due to population growth, rising urbanisation, environmental pollution and change in lifestyle of people, among other factors.

It shows that life expectancy in Pakistan is the lowest in Pakistan i.e. 67.1 years as compared to 69.4 years in India, 72.3 years in Bangladesh, 76.8 years in Sri Lanka and 76.7 years in China.

Infant mortality rate (IMR) is 57.2 per 1,000 live births in Pakistan, as compared to 29.9 in India, 25.1 in Bangladesh, only 6.4 in Sri Lanka and 7.4 in China.

However, in maternal mortality rate (MMR) Pakistan has better number as compared to India and Bangladesh.

The MMR per 100,000 deliveries is 140 in Pakistan, as compared to 145 in India and 173 in Bangladesh. In Sri Lanka MMR is 36 and in China only 29 in 100,000 live births.

Published in Dawn, June 12th, 2020