Efforts are underway to disburse social allowance to 7.613 million more beneficiaries through mobile cash transactions, Government-to-Person (G2P), in Mujib Borsho, for ensuring transparency and accountability.
“Some 1.23 million beneficiaries have been receiving allowances through agent banking from Bank Asia Limited, NRB Commercial Bank Limited and Modhumoti Bank Limited,” Additional Director (Social Security) of the Department of Social Services (DSS) Farid Ahmed Mollah told BSS.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on January 14 inaugurated the mobile banking transaction system, to send the allowances of social security programs directly to beneficiaries in 112 upazilas through mobile financial services (cash and development), he added.
According to DSS, initiatives have been taken to provide allowances to a total of 8.85m beneficiaries through the G2P system directly in Mujib Borsho.
It said the DSS has already included the information of 8.3 million beneficiaries in the MIS (Management Information System) software out of the total 8.85 million beneficiaries.
“Now, the process of opening an account against each beneficiary is ongoing all over the country to receive allowances through the G2P system. The government is sending allowance under social safety net (SSN) programs directly to beneficiaries’ mobile accounts to remove hassle and middlemen interference,” the DSS official said.
The DSS provides allowance in four categories, including old age, widow, husband-abandoned women and physically challenged insolvent people as well as education stipends to physically challenged students via mobile financial service (MFS) operators, such as Nagad and bKash.
It further said Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman started rural social welfare activities to change the fate and livelihood of the people, and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had taken up the scheme in 1997 and 1998 for rural people welfare again.
“To attain the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, the government is working sincerely to eradicate poverty, to make the country “Sonar Bangla” as dreamt by Bangabandhu,” the official said.
Apart from this, honorarium allowances for two hundred thousand heroic freedom fighters are being provided through the Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) system. At present, 100% of disabled people have been brought under allowances and education stipends.
In the financial year 2020-21, 100% of elderly people, widows and repressed women by husbands have been brought under the allowance in 112 upazilas of the country. The government has a plan to gradually bring all the elderly people of the country and widows and women repressed by husbands under the allowances.
Farid Ahmed Mollah said: “We are celebrating the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman this year. We hope to be able to provide 100% allowance for the four programs in the G2P system this year.”‘
Meanwhile, on February 15, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the process of providing honorariums to the heroic freedom fighters electronically.
At present, the government is paying honorarium of Tk12,000 per month to each valiant freedom fighter. The Department of Social Services also implements the activities of providing honorarium to the heroic freedom fighters.
According to official data, Bangladesh’s poverty rate as per the poverty line came down to 20% in 2020, which had been 40% in 2005. The poverty rate in 2020 as per the extreme poverty line or people living in extreme poverty came down to 10%, which had been 25.1% in 2005.