Govt to allocate Tk 1,07,614 crore for social safety net programmes

The government has proposed to allocate Tk 1,07,614 crore for the social safety net programmes for the 2021-22 fiscal year, as it aims to bring more of the country's marginalised and vulnerable population under protection.

The amount is 17.83 percent of the total budget and 3.11 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP).

For the first time, the budgetary allocation meant for the poor and vulnerable crossed Tk 1 lakh crore mark. It was Tk 95,574 crore in last year's revised budget.

The funds will be used to implement and expand the coverage of various social security programmes designed to reduce poverty in the country.

"To protect the country's poorest segment from unemployment and loss of income due to the pandemic, our government has taken steps to widen the coverage of the social safety net," Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal said while presenting the national budget this afternoon.

He presented a set of proposals to widen the remit of social safety net programmes.

From the next fiscal year, the coverage of the deserving poor elderly people will be extended to 150 most poverty-stricken upazilas from the existing 120 upazilas. This will add 8 lakh new beneficiaries, and an additional allocation of Tk 481 crore.

Similarly, the coverage is being increased for widows and destitute women, which will add 4.25 lakh new beneficiaries and an additional allocation of Tk 255 crore.

The government proposed to increase the number of beneficiaries of the Insolvent Disabled Person Allowance Programme by 2.02 lakh as per the latest disability identification survey. As a result, the allocation of this programme will increase by Tk 200 crore in FY 2021-22.