Poverty Reduction and Social Safety Nets in Bangladesh

Summary
Poverty is considered as the great barrier for the development of a country. It
has the worst effects on peoples life. There is about 25.6% population of
Bangladesh living below the poverty line. Reducing poverty is the central theme
of development dialogue in Bangladesh. World Bank, UN organization and Govt.
of Bangladesh have launched so many initiatives to reduce poverty but poverty
reduction remains a major challenge still now.

Social Safety Net Programmes regarded as such initiatives of government which

give assistance to that unsecured segments including unemployed, old age,
widowhood, people with physical and mental disability. Social safety nets gained
prominence in development discourse following the 1990 World Development
Report on poverty, which included social safety nets defined as some form of
income insurance to help people through short-term stress and calamities.

Safety net programs serve two important roles:

(1) Redistribution for situations such as (e.g.,income transfers, food
supplement programs)
(2) Insurance for situations (e.g., public works programs, drought relief).

A wide spectrum of social safety nets in operation in developing countries.

These vary in their objectives, design specifics, mode of operation and methods
in transferring the intended relief or benefit to the target groups. There are three
major categories of social safety net programs

Transfer Programmes in cash and Kind: These type of programmes aim at

helping and protecting the poor by providing them with resources they need to
maintain a minimum level of consumption
Workfare Programmes: The main objective of these types of programmes is
to provide low-skill jobs for the poor on public works programmes for building,
repairing and improvement of local infrastructure.
CCTs: Programmes to Improve Human Capital and Provide Access to Basic
Services for Poor Households: These are conditional transfers to encourage the
use of education and health facilities so that they can play an important role in
promoting investment in human capital.

Social Safety Net Programme in Bangladesh:

The low level of income and omnipresent poverty make it indispensable for the
government of Bangladesh to focus on poverty alleviation as the major concern
of public policy. The major social safety net programmes (SSNPs) in
Bangladesh can be divided under four broad categories:
(i) Employment generation programmes;
(ii) Programmes to cope with natural disasters and other shocks;
(iii) Incentives provided to parents for their childrens education; and
(iv) Incentives provided to families to improve their health status.

Various forms of Social Safety Net Programmes in

Bangladesh:
1. Cash Transfers:
Old-Age Allowance programmes
Allowance programme for widowed, Deserted and Destitute women
Honorarium programme for insolvent Freedom fighters
Training and self-employment programme for insolvent Freedom Fighters and
their wards:
Fund for Rehabilitation of the Acid Burnt and the physically Handicapped
Allowance for the Fully Retarded
Primary Education stipend project
Female Secondary School Assistance programme
Food for Work programme (Cash)

2. Food/in-kind Transfers
Food for works programme
Vulnerable Group Development (VGD) programme;
Vulnerable Group Feeding (VGD) programme;
Test Relief (TR) programme; and
Gratuitous Relief (GR) programme.
3. Price Subsidy
4. Public Works
Employment generations programme.

Programmes to cope with natural disasters and other shocks.

Incentives provided to parents for their children s education; and

Incentives provided to families to improve their health status.

5. Special Poverty Alleviation Programmes
 Poverty Alleviation and Goat Development Project
Providing incentives and financial assistance to poultry and livestock
sector;
Poverty Alleviation and Micro-credit Programmes undertaken by
Department of Fisheries;
Fund for Housing the Homeless;
Programme for generating employment for the unemployed youth
by the karmasangsthan Bank;
Abashan (poverty Alleviation and Rehabilitation) Project.
Fund for mitigating Risks due to Natural Disaster;
Programme for mitigating Economic shocks; and
Fund to meet sudden natural disaster

Impact of Social Safety Net Programmes:

o Social Impact

o Economic Impact

o Ensure livelihoods
o Increase Purchasing Power

o Relieve Deprivation

Gaps and irregularities of SSNPs:

SSNPs facilitate culture of dependency

Lack of coordination

Lack of integrated national policy

Transparency and Accountability

Favoritism and Nepotism

Impact on Savings and Borrowing

 Delayed and Uncertain Disbursement

Social Safety Net Programme has appeared before the door of the poor to take
them out from the strong grasp of utmost poverty playing a role of a true
safeguard. It dreams of making the lives provided and covering the underdog
with the sheet of safety through ensuring their basic needs.

The Government of Bangladesh committed to reduce poverty into 15 percent

by 2021. In this regard, Social Safety Net Programmes have been pursued by
successive governments as an effective tool to reduce poverty and bring the
distressed people into social inclusion.The challenge of reducing poverty of
Bangladesh is the primary requirement. Government initiatives including Food
for Education, Test Relief, Vulnerable Group Development and Rural
Maintenance are well targeted.