In its manifesto for the 13th National Parliament elections, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) pledged to introduce a “Family Card” programme. Now, after winning a more than two-thirds majority and forming a single-party government, the party is moving quickly to fulfil that promise. The government plans to pilot the distribution of the Family Card in several regions ahead of the upcoming Eid-ul-Fitr.
Under the programme, the government aims to provide direct financial assistance to low-income and vulnerable families nationwide. According to the initial proposal, providing Tk 2,000 per month to 5 million families would require approximately Tk 12,072 crore annually, including cash-out charges. However, by integrating beneficiaries from existing social safety net programmes, the government expects to save a significant amount.
Priority will be given to the rural poor, landless people, agricultural labourers, day labourers, individuals unable to earn, and female-headed households such as widows and abandoned women. Multiple members from the same family will not be eligible, and beneficiaries of certain existing programmes will not receive simultaneous benefits.
Currently, around 6.5 million families receive subsidised products through the Family Card issued by the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB). The government also plans to consolidate data from the Food-Friendly Programme under the Ministry of Food and the Vulnerable Women Development (VWD) Programme under the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs into the new card system.
A meeting chaired by Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury was held at the Ministry of Finance on Sunday (22 February) to determine the implementation strategy, according to sources.
The government’s preliminary plan proposes providing Tk 2,000 per month to 5 million families. The estimated annual cost is Tk 12,072 crore, including cash-out charges. Coordination with existing social safety net programmes could save about Tk 5,619 crore, reducing the net additional requirement to around Tk 6,453 crore.
Eligibility Criteria
Applicants must possess a National Identity Card (NID) and receive recommendations from local ward councillors or union parishads. Priority groups include the poorest rural households, low-income families, families with income-ineligible members, female-headed and vulnerable households, widows, divorced or abandoned women, families with unmarried girls aged 15–18, returning migrants—particularly women—and families with children, persons with disabilities, or autistic members.
Households with mud, bamboo, or jute-stick walls, landless agricultural labourers, and day labourer families will also receive priority. “Landless” refers to families without homestead or agricultural land but dependent on agriculture. Families with up to 10 decimals of homestead land but no cultivable land will also be considered landless.
The government plans to bring current TCB cardholders, beneficiaries of the Vulnerable Women Development Programme, and families under the Food-Friendly Programme into the Family Card scheme through coordination.
Who Will Not Be Eligible
Multiple members from the same family cannot be listed. Families already receiving specific social safety net benefits and not included in the coordination mechanism will be excluded. Beneficiaries whose data show duplication in the Single Registry System may also be left out.
Verification and Use of Technology
The Ministry of Finance’s Social Safety Net Management Information System (MIS) will be used for the pilot. Registration will require four data points: NID, date of birth, mobile number, and union name. The Single Registry System already contains data on over 40 million beneficiaries, enabling verification through NID, mobile numbers, or bank accounts to prevent duplication.
Data will also be cross-checked with the National ID database, birth and death registration records, TIN database, BTRC’s IMEI database, national savings certificates, government employee and pensioner databases, and MPO-listed teacher databases. Integration with mobile financial service providers, including bKash, Rocket, and Nagad, will allow direct Government-to-Public (G2P) transfers and real-time monitoring.
Funding Arrangement
Incorporating 1.04 million beneficiaries of the Vulnerable Women Development Programme could save about Tk 2,223 crore. Including 2.5 million rural women from old-age allowance, widow and destitute women allowance, and mother and child support programmes could save about Tk 2,121 crore. Integrating 1.406 million beneficiaries of the Food-Friendly Programme could save around Tk 1,203 crore. In total, about Tk 5,547 crore could be mobilised through coordination, with the remaining amount allocated separately by the government.
Fast-Track Implementation Plan
The initial proposal suggests piloting the programme in eight upazilas. The target timeline includes preliminary field verification within seven days, policy approval and budget allocation within 7–10 days, and preparation of the payroll within four days for disbursement.
Officials say that using the existing NID-linked database of beneficiaries could enable card distribution before Eid. A senior official at the Ministry of Finance told Jago News that the Social Safety Net MIS could be used during the pilot phase. The system was previously used to transfer funds directly via electronic fund transfer (EFT) during the COVID-19 pandemic and other natural disasters. Only four pieces of information—NID, date of birth, mobile number, and union name—will be required.
A tentative list of eligible and ineligible beneficiaries is being prepared. Discussions are ongoing regarding the potential expenditure for 5 million families and ways to reduce costs.
“Plans are being made to integrate beneficiaries from various social safety net programmes into the Family Card scheme to ensure savings. However, the final decision will be taken by the Prime Minister,” the official added.