Govt launches Farmer's Card on Pahela Baishakh, landless, small farmers to get Tk2,500 yearly
Farmers to get subsidies, loans and key agricultural services
The government is set to introduce a Farmer's Card to bring the agriculture sector under a digital framework, with landless, marginal and small farmers to receive Tk2,500 in annual cash support, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.
Cardholders will receive 10 types of services, including access to agricultural inputs at fair prices, irrigation facilities and loans on easy terms. The programme will be implemented in three phases to gradually bring all farmers in the country under its coverage.
According to the ministry, the pre-pilot phase of the Farmer's Card distribution programme will be launched on Pahela Baishakh, the first day of the Bangla New Year.
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In the first phase, 22,065 farmers in 10 districts will receive the card. Of them, 20,671 landless, marginal and small farmers will receive Tk2,500 annually in direct cash assistance. The programme will be inaugurated at Shaheed Maruf Stadium in Tangail by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.
Who will get the support?
The programme will be implemented in three stages – pre-pilot, pilot and nationwide expansion. In the pre-pilot phase, farmers engaged in crop production, fisheries and livestock, including dairy farmers, will be included across 11 blocks in 11 upazilas of 10 districts. Salt farmers will also be included where applicable.
Farmers have been classified into five categories based on land size: landless (less than 5 decimals), marginal (5-49 decimals), small (50-249 decimals), medium (250-749 decimals), and large (above 750 decimals). Initially, only landless, marginal and small farmers will be brought under the incentive scheme.
As of 11 April 2026, data of 22,065 farmers have been collected. Of them, 20,671 are landless, marginal and small farmers, accounting for about 93.7% of the total. These three categories will receive direct financial support in the first phase.
The cost of the pre-pilot phase has been estimated at around Tk8.34 crore.
Expansion plan
After the pre-pilot phase, a pilot programme will be launched in 15 upazilas by August. Based on the pilot experience, there are plans to expand the programme nationwide in phases and develop an integrated database within the next four years.
The Farmer's Card is being implemented under the Department of Agricultural Extension's project titled "Programme on Agricultural and Rural Transformation for Nutrition, Entrepreneurship and Resilience in Bangladesh". After the pre-pilot phase, the remaining activities will be financed under the project.
Project Coordinator Abul Kalam Azad told TBS that the card would help reduce mismanagement in distributing fertiliser, seeds, compensation and subsidies and make it easier to identify genuine farmers.
"Farmers will be able to purchase agricultural inputs from designated dealers using the card," he said, adding that all farmers would gradually be brought under the scheme.
How the Farmer's Card works
The card will function as a banking debit card, which is being distributed through state-owned Sonali Bank. Bank accounts have already been opened in the names of selected farmers.
Using the card, farmers will be able to purchase fertiliser, seeds, fish feed and livestock feed, and access agricultural loans on easy terms.
Services farmers will get
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, cardholders will receive 10 types of benefits. These include access to agricultural inputs and irrigation at fair prices, loans on easy terms, low-cost agricultural machinery, government subsidies and incentives, mobile-based weather and market information, agricultural training, pest control advice, agricultural insurance and opportunities to sell produce at fair prices.
Expected impact and challenges
Stakeholders in the agriculture sector said the initiative is expected to improve transparency in subsidy and incentive distribution, reduce the role of intermediaries and ease access to services for farmers.
They also said increased digital connectivity could help make the agriculture sector more organised and planned.
However, challenges remain in implementation, including identifying genuine farmers, updating the database, adapting to banking systems and improving technological capacity at the field level.
Expert opinion
Experts said coordinated efforts among local administration, the Department of Agricultural Extension and financial institutions would be necessary to ensure the programme's success.
Dr Jahangir Alam Khan, former president of the Bangladesh Agricultural Economists Association and former vice-chancellor of the University of Global Village (UGV), told TBS that the farmers card is a positive initiative that would help identify genuine farmers.
"The four-year implementation timeline is long and should be shortened. The Department of Agricultural Extension must also work with local administration and public representatives to ensure transparency in farmer selection," he said.
Speaking to reporters at the Secretariat yesterday, Agriculture Minister Mohammed Aminur Rashid said the Farmer's Card is aimed at improving farmers' socio-economic status, ensuring financial inclusion and developing a technology-based modern agricultural system.
"This card will provide farmers with a universal digital identity, enabling them to come under the banking system directly and access incentives and services more easily," he said.
