Dhaka, May 17 -- As many as 2,000 doctors and 5,000 nurses were recently appointed at 10 days' notice, the minister said at the inauguration of a temporary COVID-19 hospital in Dhaka's International Convention City Bashundhara on Sunday.

"The process has begun to appoint at least 5,000 medical technologists to strengthen the health care system. They will be recruited very soon," he added.

As the coronavirus pandemic rages on across the world, public health experts have been quick to stress the importance of adequate testing for the disease in shaping a country's containment strategy.

In Bangladesh, however, the efforts to test samples for potential COVID-19 cases have been handicapped by a marked shortage of medical technologists.

The...