Govt raises safety net allowances for FY27

The government has increased monthly allowances and expanded beneficiary coverage for 15 social safety net programmes (SSNPs) for the upcoming fiscal year 2026-27 (FY27), which begins in July.

The Finance Division announced the decisions in a press statement yesterday following the 32nd meeting of the Advisory Council Committee on SSNPs, chaired by the finance adviser.

However, the move has drawn criticism from policy experts, who questioned the timing as the interim government has less than a month remaining in office. They also noted that implementation will fall to the next elected government, which is likely to follow its own manifesto commitments.

WHO GETS HOW MUCH

Under the Ministry of Social Welfare’s old age allowance programme, the number of beneficiaries has been increased by 1 lakh to 62 lakh. Of them, 59.95 lakh elderly citizens will receive Tk 700 per month, up from Tk 650, while 2.05 lakh people aged over 90 will receive Tk 1,000.

Allowances for “widows and husband-deserted women” have also been raised. Of the 29 lakh beneficiaries, 28.75 lakh will receive Tk 700 per month, while 25,000 women aged over 90 will receive Tk 1,000.

For persons with disabilities, the total number of beneficiaries under the disability allowance and education stipend programme has been increased to 36 lakh from 34.5 lakh. Most will receive Tk 900 per month from FY27, while 18,100 beneficiaries will receive Tk 1,000.

Education stipends for students with disabilities have been increased by Tk 50 at all levels. The revised rates are Tk 950 for primary, Tk 1,000 for secondary and Tk 1,350 for higher education.

Under the programme for “improving living standards of backward communities”, the number of beneficiaries has increased by 7,000 to over 2.28 lakh, while the monthly allowance has been raised from Tk 650 to Tk 700.

The number of student beneficiaries from backward communities has also been increased by 3,198 to 45,338. For FY27, monthly stipends have been set at Tk 700 for primary, Tk 800 for secondary, Tk 1,000 for higher secondary and Tk 1,200 for higher education levels.

In addition, 5,490 beneficiaries will receive skills development training under the programme.

Beneficiaries under the financial assistance programme for patients suffering from serious illnesses, including cancer, kidney disease, liver cirrhosis, stroke, related paralysis, congenital heart disease and thalassemia, have increased by 5,000 to 65,000. The one-time medical assistance has been doubled from Tk 50,000 to Tk 100,000.

The “mother and child benefit” programme under the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs will cover more than 18.95 lakh mothers, an increase of 1.24 lakh, with a monthly allowance of Tk 850.

The “food-friendly programme” of the Ministry of Food will support 60 lakh families starting FY27, up 5 lakh, providing 30 kg of subsidised rice for six months at Tk 15 per kg.

The Advisory Council committee meeting also raised the monthly allowances for Gallantry Awards-winning freedom fighters and families of martyred freedom fighters by Tk 5,000.

At the meeting, it was recommended that the monthly honorarium allowances for the families of martyrs and the injured from the July Mass Uprising, which fall under the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs, and the Vulnerable Group Feeding (VGF) programme under the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock, be brought within the purview of the committee on SSNPs.

The meeting further recommended that in FY27, an additional 273,514 fishermen be newly included, bringing the total number of fishermen under the VGF programme to 15 lakh.

Officials said these revisions aim to enhance social protection and address the needs of vulnerable populations ahead of the next fiscal year.

However, policy experts say otherwise.

Mustafa K Mujeri, executive director of the Institute for Inclusive Finance and Development (InM), said the interim government has less than one month. A new government will come, and they will implement their own programmes in line with their manifestos.

“At this stage, there is no justification for taking any such decision,” he said.

The interim government could hike allowances and the number of beneficiaries in this fiscal year to give a better cushion to low-income people struggling amid persistent inflation, he added.

Selim Raihan, executive director at the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (Sanem), said the interim administration could have increased the social safety nets allocation at the beginning of this fiscal year when it had time, and the pressure of inflation was high.