FROM PAGE 1

Some 44 cardholders had vehicles registered with the BRTA and 319 were found to be beneficiaries of other government social safety net programmes.

The finance ministry flagged the discrepancies to the social welfare ministry, which is implementing the programme.

The discrepancies and other issues were discussed at the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Social Safety Net Programmes yesterday.

At the meeting, which was chaired by Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, the social welfare ministry proposed a budget for 4.1 million Family Cards for the next fiscal year.

Of these, 100,000 cardholders from this fiscal year would be included, with Tk 13,000 crore requested solely for allowances. In addition, the ministry sought 4,000 additional staff to implement the programme.

However, the finance ministry raised doubts about whether such a large number of cards could be implemented in a single year given the irregularities and errors identified.

The meeting advised caution while implementing the programme and stricter vetting when selecting beneficiaries, The Daily Star has learnt from people involved with the proceedings.

The finance ministry’s observations are in line with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, which advised against rushing the implementation and duplication.

At the meetings held on the sidelines of the WB-IMF Spring Meetings in Washington DC earlier this month, the WB advised rolling out the Family Card programme first in districts identified by its poverty map as having the highest number of poor people, The Daily Star has learnt from people with direct knowledge of the discussions.

It also recommended creating a proper database and coordinating with other programmes to ensure that the truly poor benefit from the monthly Tk 2,500 cash support.

“During the pilot phase, there were some minor errors, but they are very few -- not even 1 percent,” Khosru told reporters yesterday after the meeting at his office in the Secretariat.

About 37,000 people had already been included in the pilot project, Khosru said.

“In such a large project, it is natural for some small problems or mistakes to occur. We are carefully reviewing whether anyone has been left out or mistakenly included.”

He emphasised that the errors would be quickly identified and corrected so that the project could move forward with a precise and effective process.

“This is the government’s flagship project -- an extremely important and humanitarian initiative. We want it to run smoothly and for its core objectives, philosophy and vision to be fully realised.”

The project is not just a social initiative; it is also a major programme for women’s empowerment and for delivering benefits to disadvantaged rural communities, he said.

At the same time, it is an important step toward creating initiatives in the economy and accelerating inclusive growth.

“We are clear -- whatever allocation is needed to implement this project will be provided,” Khosru added.

However, at the meeting, it was decided that the budget and the number of beneficiaries for the next fiscal year will be decided after a meeting with Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.