WHO: Covid-19 deaths in Bangladesh five times higher than official numbers

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that in Bangladesh the excess death toll during the first two years of the Covid-19 pandemic was roughly 141,000 deaths, over five times the official number of deaths reported by the government.

Between January 2020 to the end of December 2021, Bangladesh’s official government tally of Covid-10 deaths was 28,070.

The estimates for Bangladesh, along with those for nearly every country in the world, were calculated by a global panel of experts assembled by the World Health Organization and published on May 5th. 

Bangladesh is not alone in under-reporting the number of Covid-19 deaths. According to the WHO data, the estimated figure for Pakistan was eight times higher than the reported number, and for India it was 10 times higher.

Prior to publication of the research, WHO says that it conducted consultations with member states, including Bangladesh, to review the draft estimates, data sources and methods, and countries were also asked to provide advice on primary data sources that may not have been previously reported or used, and share inputs or additional feedback.

Netra News previously reported about the likely under-reporting of Covid-19 deaths in Bangladesh.●