Family Card prog to get WB support
Published: 29 March 2026, 7:43:53
A World Bank delegation has assured its support for the implementation of the government’s Family Card programme during a courtesy meeting with Social Welfare and Women and Children Affairs Minister Prof Dr AZM Zahid Hossain and State Minister for Social Welfare Farzana Sharmin.
The three-member delegation, led by World Bank Division Director Jean Pesme, met the minister on Sunday at his office in the Bangladesh Secretariat in Dhaka.
Social Welfare Secretary Dr Mohammad Abu Yousuf, Additional Secretary Nargis Khanam, and Joint Secretary Mohammad Nazmul Ahsan were also present at the meeting.
The information was disclosed in a press release signed by Tahmina Akter, public relations officer of the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs.
During the meeting, Zahid presented details about the Family Card programme, one of the current government’s key election pledges. He said that so far, 37,567 Family Cards have been issued in the names of female heads of households, each receiving a monthly financial assistance of Tk2,500.
The minister also announced that a universal Family Card system would be introduced within the next four years. The card will be issued in the name of the female head of each family as a form of dignified civic recognition.
Jean Pesme congratulated Zahid and Farzana on behalf of the World Bank. He described the initiative to issue Family Cards in the names of female heads of families as a positive step toward strengthening social protection.
He also expressed the World Bank’s willingness to support the programme and its interest in working jointly with the Ministry of Social Welfare and the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs to promote social security and good governance.
Both sides agreed to work together to ensure the sustainable implementation of the Family Card programme, which is one of the major election commitments of the current government.
