PPRC and BIGD have estimated that the government needs to transfer about BDT 5,600 crore to poor households per month. This support, if provided, is expected to increase the demand for goods and services delivered/produced by the informal sectors. Recently, the government has announced to pay BDT 2,500 per household to 500,000 poor households. This is, of course, a good initiative but the coverage should be increased because as of 2018/19, 20.5% of country’s population live below the poverty line, as per the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) estimate. Furthermore, due to the coronavirus crisis many vulnerable non-poor households are likely to become poor, at least temporarily.
PPRC and BIGD have estimated that the government needs to transfer about BDT 5,600 crore to poor households per month. This support, if provided, is expected to increase the demand for goods and services delivered/produced by the informal sectors. Recently, the government has announced to pay BDT 2,500 per household to 500,000 poor households. This is, of course, a good initiative but the coverage should be increased because as of 2018/19, 20.5% of country’s population live below the poverty line, as per the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) estimate. Furthermore, due to the coronavirus crisis many vulnerable non-poor households are likely to become poor, at least temporarily.
