Prime Minister Tarique Rahman will launch a three-month special cleanliness and public awareness campaign to prevent dengue on Saturday, September 12. Considering the next three months a high-risk period for dengue, the prime minister has called on people across the country to actively participate in the programme to help contain the outbreak.

The prime minister gave the directives at a meeting on dengue prevention held at the Bangladesh Secretariat on Tuesday (September 8).

At the meeting, the prime minister said dengue control should not rely solely on mosquito-control measures. Greater emphasis must be placed on cleanliness and public awareness. To this end, coordinated field-level activities should be carried out with the involvement of local administrations, volunteer organisations and students.

Under the programme, the respective city corporations will coordinate activities in metropolitan areas, while deputy commissioners will coordinate the initiatives at the district level. At the upazila level, Upazila Nirbahi Officers (UNOs) will be responsible for coordinating local activities.

Every Saturday, volunteers and students will visit homes and other establishments to participate in cleanliness drives. Emphasis will also be placed on identifying places where breeding grounds for Aedes mosquitoes, the vector that transmits dengue, may develop and raising public awareness about keeping homes and surrounding areas clean.

Alongside field-level cleanliness drives, the prime minister has instructed the authorities to conduct extensive campaigns through the mass media and social media. He particularly directed the concerned authorities to run public awareness campaigns on television and regularly disseminate dengue prevention messages through social media.

The prime minister said the next three months would be crucial for the dengue situation. During this period, active participation by the public must be ensured alongside government initiatives. People should be encouraged to regularly keep homes, educational institutions, public and private establishments, and surrounding areas clean.

Disaster Management and Relief Minister Asadul Habib Dulu, Information and Broadcasting Minister Andalib Rahman Partha, State Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Mir Shahe Alam, State Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dr MA Muhit, State Minister for Information Yaser Khan Chowdhury, Prime Minister’s Special Assistant for Health Dr SM Ziauddin Haider, Cabinet Secretary Nasimul Gani, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister ABM Abdus Sattar, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Dr Shakirul Islam Khan, Dhaka South City Corporation Administrator Abdus Salam, Information Secretary Mahbuba Farzana, and senior officials from the relevant ministries and divisions were present at the meeting.