Tk 1500cr social safety funds spent on ineligible beneficiaries: CPD

Staff Reporter :
Allowance aspirants compelled to bribe ranging from Tk500 to Tk6000 to be registered in the old age allowance programme. The major recipients of the bribe are local union council office and government officials related with social safety net programme.

To avail an old age allowance card, new applicants of the old age allowance have to pay Tk 2653 on an average as hush money. Even there have been a significant number of cases where the allowance cards were not issued due to the inability to pay the bribe.

Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) disclosed the findings after conducting a survey to assess the shortcomings of social security programs in Bangladesh and way out to improve its effectiveness.

The results of the survey were presented in a dialogue organized at the BRAC Center in Mahakhali of the capital on Sunday.

The inclusion error also drains out around Tk 1500 crore per year where ineligible beneficiaries of the social safety net programme receiving the monetary support and the eligible get nothing.

The leakage amount could cover 25 lakh more elderly people and widows who could qualify for the support, as per the survey report.
CPD pointed out that the major cause of this wastage of fund is the lack of administrative accountability.

Considering the present rate inflation, surge of commodity prices, CPD urged to the concern authority to increase the allowance amount to Tk 2,500 for elderly people and Tk 500 for the widows.

Earlier, in the fiscal year of 2016-17, monthly allocation of the old age allowance and widow allowance were increased from Tk 400 to Tk 500 per person. Since then, in last six financial years the amounts were remaining unchanged.

The private think tank also recommended increasing the allowance from Tk 150 to Tk 2,000 per person for primary education stipend programme. Speaking at the programme, Rashed Khan Menon, Chairman of the Social Welfare Ministry-Related Parliamentary Standing Committee said, “Even though we have reduced our poverty, the inequality has increased to such an extent that it has gone to unprecedented levels.”

“Unfortunately, our state has now been captured in the hands of a few rich people, and military-civilian bureaucrats. Due to this, discrimination has increased significantly. “

Suggesting the further expansion of the scope of social safety net in urban areas Rasheda K Chowdhury , an academic and Advisor of Caretaker Government said ” in 2015, a monthly stipend of Tk 150 was given, still the amount unchanged.

The salaries and benefits of those who are in the bureaucracy have increased a lot .But what about the increase of the monthly allowance for students?”

Why the rate of inflation not taken into the account in last several years during setting the monthly allocation for a programme beneficiary, she questioned.

The program was presided by CPD Executive Director Fahmida Khatun. CPD research director Khandkar Golam Moazzem and research associate ASM Shamim Alam Shibli presented the research results.