A 1,000-bed hospital fully funded by China is set to transform healthcare in northern Bangladesh by 2028. The Bangladesh-China Friendship General Hospital in Nilphamari will provide advanced medical services that are currently available only in major cities such as Dhaka and Rangpur.
The $126 million project will be built on a 25-acre site in Charaikhola Union, Sadar upazila, adjacent to the Darwani Textile Mill along the Saidpur-Nilphamari road. Health officials said the land has already been acquired, and the Health Services Division has directed the Public Works Ministry to prepare a master plan and move forward urgently.
Health Adviser Nurjahan Begum, who visited the site in August, said the hospital will specialize in oncology, neurology, cardiology, nephrology, and pediatric and neonatal intensive care. It will include a 200-machine dialysis center, modular operating theaters, emergency surgical rooms, and a diagnostic block with PET-CT, MRI, and molecular laboratories.
The project is expected to ease the pressure on tertiary hospitals in Dhaka by reducing the need for patients in Nilphamari, Panchagarh, and Gaibandha to travel for advanced treatment. Officials said the hospital’s proximity to Saidpur Airport and its location along a major road will ensure good accessibility.
The hospital is part of a wider set of China-funded healthcare projects in Bangladesh, including a proposed 500- to 700-bed hospital in Chattogram, a 100-bed rehabilitation center in Dhamrai, and a robotic physiotherapy center at Bangladesh Medical University.