Heat costs BD $15.8b in lost work hours

Bangladesh lost 29.3 billion potential working hours to heat exposure in 2024, carrying an estimated economic cost of $15.8 billion, while climate-sensitive health risks impose an annual burden of $20.7 billion, or 4.6 per cent of GDP, according to a new study.

The findings are presented in a report titled “Multi-Dimensional Health Impacts of Climate Change in Bangladesh: Pathways, Costs and Policy Implications”, released at BRAC Centre in Dhaka on Thursday.

State Minister for Health and Family Welfare Professor Dr MA Muhit attended the event as the chief guest, while Knowledge Hub Institute (KHI) President Dr Khondaker Golam Moazzem presented the findings.

The estimate covers heat, vector-borne and waterborne diseases, disasters and selected health-related economic costs. The assessment is conservative, excluding air pollution and non-fatal illness, while researchers attribute $1 billion to $3.3 billion annually specifically to observed warming.

Farmers and agricultural workers accounted for nearly two-thirds of the lost working hours, highlighting the vulnerability of people whose livelihoods depend on strenuous outdoor work. Construction workers and others working in physically demanding conditions also face significant risks.

Weather data from eight divisional headquarters show that the number of days with temperatures of at least 36 degrees Celsius roughly doubled between the 2000s and the 2020s. Higher humidity further intensifies heat stress, while warmer conditions may favour dengue transmission.

“Bangladesh has developed several climate policies, but the health impacts of climate change remain inadequately addressed,” Dr Moazzem said, calling for sector-specific heat-protection guidelines, district-level heat and health action plans, and increased financing for the Health National Adaptation Plan.

The report estimates that high temperatures were linked to approximately 16,000 deaths in 2023, including cardiovascular, kidney and respiratory conditions. It also finds an association between warmer weather and increased dengue hospital admissions two to three weeks later.

A district experiencing temperatures 1 degree Celsius higher over the preceding four weeks recorded about 21 per cent more dengue admissions two weeks later. Around two-thirds of dengue admissions since 2023 occurred outside Dhaka City, although 57�"64 per cent of deaths occurred in capital hospitals receiving severe cases.

KHI recommends introducing a national heat-health action plan before the 2027 hot season, linking weather alerts to hospital preparedness and workplace protections. 

It also calls for district-level dengue risk bulletins, dedicated climate-health budget allocations, free dengue tests and inpatient care during declared outbreaks, and stronger climate-health data systems.