Every successive government recognizes the importance of prioritizing women and children, and makes lofty promises about doing more for them.
Yet, it is unfortunate that the numbers often tell a very different story.
We can see this on display with the latest budget; despite a record Tk9.38 lakh crore outlay, allocations for women and children have not kept pace, proposing Tk5,196 crore for the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs in the upcoming fiscal year, down from the revised allocation of Tk5,371 crore in FY 2025-26.
While we can hope that this reduction is a sign of better efficiency, we can’t help but equate this to a reflection of our priorities -- and a message that appears troubling, to say the least.
Women remain disproportionately affected by poverty, lack of access to healthcare, and unsafe working conditions. Children face malnutrition, inadequate schooling, and exposure to climate‑related risks in addition to the growing issue of child labour as demonstrated in our second editorial today.
These issues are central to our development trajectory. A budget that sidelines them potentially undermines the very foundation of equitable growth.
The government has rightly emphasized social protection and human capital in its strategic pillars, yet without adequate allocations, these pillars risk collapsing under the weight of unmet needs.
Women’s empowerment and children’s development require more than token programs but instead need structural investment and adequate resources, be they in healthcare, education, protection from exploitation.
We cannot afford to treat women and children as afterthoughts in fiscal planning. Fiscal discipline must not come at the expense of those who need support most.
If women and children continue to receive less despite bigger promises, we risk building on a fragile foundation and creating a nation that has abandoned its primary objective of becoming not just developed, but simultaneously equitable.