As Bangladesh prepares its FY2025–26 national budget, a coalition of experts and civil society voices is urging the government to move beyond symbolic allocations and undertake structural reforms to make gender budgeting truly transformative.
At a pre-budget dialogue titled “Advancing Gender-Responsive Budgeting and FfD4 Outcome,” organized by the Citizen's Platform for SDGs, Bangladesh and UN Women Bangladesh in collaboration with the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), data revealed that women are suffering disproportionately from economic setbacks, job losses, and declining access to opportunities—despite a notable rise in gender-focused allocations.
The event, held on Monday in Dhaka, brought together 36 speakers, including policymakers, development partners, civil society representatives, and gender advocates.
The dialogue focused on promoting gender-responsive budgeting (GRB) and integrating outcomes from the upcoming Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4).
Alarming trends
Analyses presented during the dialogue painted a concerning picture. Despite gender-sensitive budget allocations increasing from 24.7% to 34.4% of the total national budget over the past decade, over 1.8 million women lost their jobs in just the first half of FY2025-26.
In the event, three trigger presentations were delivered by Towfiqul Islam Khan, senior research fellow at CPD, who spoke on “State of the Economy through a Gender Lens”; Nubayra Jeheen, programme analyst – gender statistics at UN Women, who presented on “Gender Responsive Budgeting in Bangladesh: Current Issues”; and representatives from Bangladesh Mahila Parishad and Bonhishikha, who jointly presented on the “Charter of Demand and Financing for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment.”
The presentations revealed that women remain concentrated in informal employment and lack access to social protection, while the government’s gender budget reports still remain aggregated and insufficiently disaggregated—limiting their ability to influence inclusive, evidence-based policymaking.
The Charter of Demand calls for public financing that directly invests in care work, violence prevention, education, health, and employment—especially for marginalized women. It also urges transparency through gender-disaggregated data and inclusive planning.
GRB: A political and structural imperative
Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya, convenor of the Citizen’s Platform for SDGs and distinguished fellow at CPD, emphasized that gender equality must go beyond budgetary allocations. “Gender-responsive budgeting is not just a technical issue—it is fundamentally a political one. It’s about who gets what, and how fairly,” he said.
He added that gender budgeting should not be reduced to an accounting framework or limited to international obligations. “It should address core societal issues like gender-based violence, discrimination, and stereotypes. Without changing the underlying power dynamics, budget allocations will have limited impact.”
Gitanjali Singh, country representative of UN Women Bangladesh, stressed that Bangladesh must increase gender-equality-focused Official Development Assistance (ODA) and invest more in social infrastructure. She noted that Bangladesh lags behind its LDC peers in tax-to-GDP ratio, revenue mobilization, and public spending.
She also linked the discussion to the upcoming FfD4 in Spain, warning that “84% of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are currently off track, while inequalities and debt burdens are growing, and ODA is being cut.” This global context calls for serious reforms at the national level.
Government and institutional reflections
Tasnim Zeben Bintea Sheikh, deputy secretary of the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs, said: “Our ministry insists on our full allocation being used under gender-responsive budgeting. This year, 32% of the operating budget and 38% of the development budget is gender-specific, averaging 34% of the total budget.”
She announced a new initiative to identify district- and upazila-level needs so that services can be tailored and delivered effectively.
Abul Kalam Azad, joint secretary (development effectiveness), Economic Relations Division, called GRB a “big idea” that must be made practical and measurable.
“Mindsets, social stigma, and religious taboos are major barriers. Today’s discussion will help inform our authorities to shape more inclusive decisions,” he added.
Salma Ali, advocate and leader at the Bangladesh National Women Lawyers’ Association (BNWLA), said: “Budget allocation doesn’t cover areas like victim witness protection. Laws exist, but implementation remains weak. Ministries must ensure support mechanisms follow legal reforms.”
Ferdousi Sultana Begum, from the Women's Affairs Reform Commission, urged ministries to institutionalize gender audits. “We are facing political and economic transitions with rising unemployment, violence, and skills gaps. Market analysis is missing in our planning.”
Maria Stridsman, head of development cooperation and deputy head of mission, Embassy of Sweden, Bangladesh, added that without gender budgeting, national budgets will default to male bias. “Budgets reflect societal values. Countries like Australia, South Africa, and Canada have pioneered GRB, and Bangladesh, with 44 ministries involved, is making commendable progress.”
She emphasized that gender budgeting requires financial, analytical, and operational expertise, stressing the need for cross-sector collaboration.
She also warned that without focused investment in these areas, development progress could be reversed. The dialogue also aimed to align national budgeting priorities with outcomes from the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4).
