PM launches Family Card for women-led households

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman today (10 March) formally launched the government's Family Card programme for women-led households, fulfilling his election pledge to support women's empowerment, economic inclusion and social justice.

The prime minister launched the Family Card scheme at the T&T playground in Banani, adjacent to the Korail slum, in his constituency, just three weeks after the formation of government following a massive election victory.

Tarique first handed over a family card to Pervin Begum at around 11:19am. Later, several other women also received such cards from the prime minister.

He formally launched the programme by pressing a button on a laptop at 11:30am, after which the selected recipients automatically received money in their accounts.

The programme began with the recitation of verses from the Holy Quran and readings from other religious scriptures at around 10:44am.

The BNP's theme song, "Prothom Bangladesh Amar, Shesh Bangladesh," was also played.

State Minister for Women and Children Affairs Farzana Sharmin, Dhaka North City Corporation Administrator Shafiqul Islam Milton and Social Welfare Ministry Secretary Mohammad Abu Yusuf spoke at the programme, with Social Welfare and Women and Children Affairs Minister Dr AZM Zahid Hossain in the chair.

Cabinet members, members of parliament, diplomats, senior civil and military officials, and other dignitaries were present at the function.

The prime minister, along with his wife Dr Zubaida Rahman, arrived at the venue earlier at 10:32am and spoke with several women who had come to get family cards.

The program reflects the government's pledge to advance national progress and fairness in society by strengthening women's roles and formally acknowledging them as primary family representatives within social welfare initiatives.

In its pilot stage, the programme is being rolled out in 15 wards across 13 city corporations and unions spanning 13 districts across the country, according to the social welfare ministry.

Ward-level committees carried out household visits to gather detailed information on families' socio-economic situations. The survey recorded data such as the number of family members, education levels, housing status, ownership of assets like televisions, refrigerators, computers and mobile phones, as well as the flow of remittances.

Following thorough verification and assessment, 37,567 women-headed households were ultimately selected to receive assistance.

Under the pilot programme, each selected household will receive a monthly allowance of Tk2,500 through the Government-to-Person (G2P) digital payment system directly to the women's mobile wallets or bank accounts.

For the pilot implementation until June, the government has allocated Tk38.07 crore. Of the amount, Tk25.15 crore will be distributed as direct cash support, while Tk12.92 crore will cover programme implementation, including data collection, system development and card production.

According to the Ministry of Social Welfare, the programme will be provided free of cost and beneficiaries will not need to collect cards from offices, as officials will deliver them directly to their homes.

The government will review the pilot programme every month, with a three-month "lesson learning" period continuing until 30 June before considering further expansion.