Staff Report :
Bangladesh has made significant strides in the implementation of its social protection programmes, with a marked improvement in budget utilisation driven by a comprehensive social security framework and enhanced digital monitoring systems.
According to the recently released Social Security Budget Report 2025-26, the average budget utilisation rate across social protection schemes has stabilised at approximately 85 per cent. This progress reflects better planning and delivery, although some variability remains in demand-driven programmes.
Flagship initiatives such as the Old Age Allowance, Widow Allowance, and Disability Allowance have consistently achieved utilisation rates exceeding 99 per cent for the past three fiscal years.
The report attributes this high performance to the routine nature of these schemes and their streamlined payment mechanisms. Notably, the Widow Allowance Programme recorded full (100 per cent) budget execution in FY 2021-22, underscoring the accuracy of targeting and payment systems.
By contrast, programmes related to disaster response have shown more fluctuating utilisation levels, reflecting their dependence on external shocks and emergent needs.
The government’s efforts have been commended for delivering critical support to vulnerable groups with what the report terms “remarkable efficiency and reliability.”
One example is the Vulnerable Group Feeding (VGF) programme, which was strategically expanded in FY 2023-24 through supplementary allocations to address economic hardships exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Similarly, Open Market Sales (OMS) operations have consistently surpassed their distribution targets, with utilisation rates exceeding 100 per cent-highlighting the government’s capacity to respond to food price volatility.
Other key programmes, such as the Mother and Child Benefit schemes, also posted near-total budget utilisation, reflecting ongoing improvements in service delivery mechanisms and outreach.
These outcomes demonstrate the maturing of Bangladesh’s social protection system, which now effectively balances predictable safety nets with flexible, context-sensitive responses tailored to the country’s evolving development needs.
The report emphasises the role of digital tools in strengthening oversight and transparency. Two key platforms-Integrated Budget and Accounting System (iBAS++) and the Single Registry-have been instrumental in modernising social security delivery.
iBAS++ enables real-time tracking of fund flows across programmes, allowing swift identification of disbursement bottlenecks. The Single Registry, meanwhile, enhances the accuracy of beneficiary targeting and reduces duplication, thereby optimising resource allocation.
Together, these platforms have improved the government’s capacity to monitor performance, ensure timely disbursements, and generate reliable data for evidence-based policymaking. Embedded analytics dashboards provide actionable insights on budget execution, beneficiary coverage, and geographic distribution-supporting data-driven decision-making.
The report positions Bangladesh’s social protection strategy as a blend of immediate assistance and long-term investment in human capital. The government has aligned its fiscal planning with inclusive social development goals, prioritising gender-responsive poverty reduction, climate resilience, and the needs of at-risk communities.
Under the FY 2025-26 budget, the government plans to reinforce climate-adaptive programmes, particularly in vulnerable coastal areas, while expanding targeted support for women and developing robust, shock-responsive mechanisms to address economic and climate-related disruptions.
This integrated approach, combining legacy programmes such as VGF and Vulnerable Women’s Benefit (VWB) with new investments in human capital, reflects a commitment to building an adaptive and fiscally sustainable social protection system.
As highlighted in the report, these initiatives form a cohesive framework aimed at reducing poverty and vulnerability across all life stages, while maintaining strong fiscal discipline and improving the impact of public spending.
