The interim government is expanding the food friendly programme even further. Currently, five million families are sold rice at a discounted price under this programme. In the upcoming 2025-26 fiscal year, it will be sold to 5.5 million families. Not only that, the rice is sold only for five months a year at present. This duration is being increased to six months.
Right now, 30 kilograms of rice is sold monthly to every family at a rate of Tk 15 per kg. The quantity and the price of the rice is remaining the same though, sources from the finance division of the finance ministry and from the food ministry said this.
The food friendly programme was launched in 2016-17 fiscal year with the poor people living in rural areas of the country in mind. The then prime minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the programme in Chilmari upazila of Kurigram on 7 September 2016.
The programme was launched with the purpose of providing 5 million families with 30 kg of rice for five months. The responsibility of implementing the programme was given to the Directorate General of Food.
The government’s observation is that the poor people suffer from a lack of financial activities in March, April, September, October and November every year. So, the families are given the scope to buy rice at a nominal price during these five months. Now the duration is being increased to six months.
To implement the programme, a list was prepared then prioritising widows, elderly people, female heads of families, and heads of low-income destitute families at the union level to provide them rice at Tk 10 per kg. Later in the 2022-23 fiscal year, the price of the rice was hiked by Tk 5 to make it Tk 15 per kg.
Meanwhile, the number of beneficiaries was increased to 6.25 million in the 2019-2020 fiscal year after the Covid-19 pandemic hit. At the same time, the programme was also run for seven months instead of the usual five months then.
As the pandemic declined, the number of beneficiaries was reduced to 5 million again and the programme ran for five months.
While the beneficiaries buy rice for Tk 15 per kg, the government actually sells it to the dealers on the plain at Tk 13.5 and to the dealers of the hill tracts at Tk 13 per kg.
There are total 495 upazilas in the country at present. But, the food friendly programme is run only in 256 upazilas of the eight divisions. This list is prepared by marking poverty-prone regions of the country according to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) surveys.
Speaking about this, Food Adviser Ali Imam Majumder told Prothom Alo on Monday, “We want to expand the food friendly programme. Due to limitations in resources we are increasing the number of beneficiary families to 5.5 million for now. They will be given rice for six months instead of five months. If possible the facility will be increased even more afterwards.”
More in Rangpur, less in Sylhet
There is a database of the 5 million beneficiaries covered under the food friendly programme at the Directorate General of Food. According to the database, there are more beneficiaries in Rangpur division. There are a total of 853,195 beneficiaries listed in eight districts of this division. Out of them, highest 144,510 are listed in Rangpur district and lowest 50,954 are listed in Panchagarh district.
Division-wise, there are lowest 238,230 beneficiaries listed in Sylhet. In this division, highest 89,503 are listed in Sunamganj district and lowest 27,510 are listed in Sylhet district.
In Dhaka division, there are highest 144,566 beneficiaries listed in Tangail district and lowest 33,636 beneficiaries listed in Munshiganj district.
Apart from them, there are total 592,893 beneficiaries listed in the 11 districts of Chattogram division, 574,777 in the four districts of Mymensingh division, 631,588 in 10 districts of Khulna division, 483,205 in the six districts of Barishal division, and 772,832 in the eight districts of the Rajshahi division.
Fortified rice coverage not expanding
There is a programme named vulnerable women benefit (VWB) running since 2013 to meet the nutritional needs of the poor population in the country. While the Directorate General of Food is supplying the rice the programme is being implemented by the ministry of women and children affairs.
The government has decided that the VWD programme will be running as well. Under the coverage of this programme, a total of 1.04 million families in 170 upazilas will be provided 30 kg of vitamin A, B1, B12, folic acid, iron and zinc-fortified rice throughout the year for free.
A total of 375,000 tonnes of rice has been allocated under this programme in the current 2024-25 fiscal year. Though the coverage of this programme was supposed to be expanded by 10 per cent every year it is not being implemented yet.
Secretary for the ministry of women and children affairs Momtaz Ahmed told Prothom Alo that the programme will continue. However the expansion of its coverage will depend on the overall reality.
The list of beneficiaries is updated every two years, stated this secretary.