Dhaka: Finance and Planning Adviser Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir on Thursday called for a paradigm shift towards a universal social security system, stating that Bangladesh requires a stronger and more accountable framework to tackle poverty, exclusion, and fiscal challenges through reforms to the government’s Family Card Programme. Titumir made these remarks as the chief guest at a high-level roundtable on the future of social protection, jointly organised by the International Growth Centre (IGC) and the BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD) at a city hotel in Shahbag.
According to United News of Bangladesh, the discussion focused on strengthening the government’s flagship Family Card Programme to create a more effective and inclusive social protection system. This comes amid plans to increase social protection spending to approximately 3 percent of GDP by 2030 and eventually expand the programme to as many as 20 million families. Titumir emphasized the need for a universal social security system and urged think tanks and development partners to collaborate with the government to design an accountable and sustainable system.
Titumir highlighted that Bangladesh now has more poor people than when the national poverty strategy was formulated. He acknowledged ongoing challenges, such as inadequate budget allocations, exclusion and inclusion errors, fragmented institutions, and fiscal stress. He stressed the importance of building an institutional process capable of reaching all eligible households while maintaining citizen accountability. He added that political economy questions should be addressed by engaging citizens through a vibrant, deliberative process rather than manufacturing consent.
State Minister for Planning Zonayed Abdur Rahim Saki, attending as guest of honour, stated that institutional reform and depoliticisation would take time but reaffirmed the government’s commitment to strengthening institutional capacity and improving governance. During the keynote presentation, BIGD Executive Director Imran Matin described the Family Card Programme as Bangladesh’s first poverty-targeted social safety net initiative and underscored the opportunity to develop a more robust and efficient social protection platform.
Matin also stressed the need for clarity on whether the programme is intended as a poverty graduation initiative, a shock-responsive safety net, or a mechanism to reduce the exclusion of poor households. Executive Director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) Fahmida Khatun noted that implementation is as crucial as policy design, highlighting that the increased monthly benefit of Tk 2,500 could significantly improve support for beneficiaries if delivered efficiently. She also raised questions about whether the allocation should remain fixed amid persistent inflation.
Executive Director of SANEM Selim Raihan stressed the need for cross-party political ownership to ensure that social protection programmes continue regardless of changes in government. Meanwhile, Robin Burgess, Professor of Economics at the London School of Economics and co-founder of IGC, highlighted the importance of evidence-based policymaking, citing the global success of BRAC’s Ultra Poor Graduation Programme. IGC Bangladesh Country Manager Shahid Vaziralli, joining virtually, shared international experiences from countries including Brazil and Indonesia, emphasising the importance of strong delivery systems, credible targeting, institutional coordination, and digital governance.