The proposed budget focuses on works in adopting and implementing bold, strong, people-centric and inclusive policies in poverty reduction.
The Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal, in his speech, said “Our success in poverty reduction through the pursuit of appropriate poverty reduction strategies, such as expanding social safety nets for vulnerable people”
The programs are directed towards people vulnerable to poverty, financial incentives, encouraging micro-savings, training of women and youth, promoting gender equality, use of ICT and digital solutions, effective disaster risk reduction programmes and building resilience against the effects of climate change.
He added that the government has plans to reduce the poverty rate to 12.3 pc and the extreme poverty rate to 4.5 percent by 2023-2024.
The minister proposed that in the current fiscal year, following the existing policy, 100 pc poor elderly people in the most poverty-stricken upazilas have been brought under the coverage of ‘old age allowance’.
In the current fiscal year, considering the existing policy, 100 pc of the widows and deserted women in the most poverty-stricken upazilas have been brought under the ‘allowance for widows, deserted and destitute women program’.
As per the latest disability identification survey, the number of beneficiaries of the Insolvent Disable Person Allowance Programme will increase by 2 lakh 2 thousand for which the allocation of this program will increase by Tk 200 crore in FY 2021-2022.
Last February, the PM announced to increase the monthly honorarium of the freedom fighters to Tk. 20,000. Accordingly, the honorarium of the valiant freedom fighters will be increased from Tk. 12,000 to Tk. 20,000 in the next fiscal year and will be handed out from the month of July.
The ‘Cash Financial Assistance’ program was launched in 2020 to support the low-income people who became financially destitute and jobless due to the corona pandemic.
Furthermore, by creating funds in every village of the country, effective steps have been taken to protect the marginal farmers, day laborers, etc. from harassment and exploitation by stopping the activities of rural middle men and usurers.
