Experts suggest effective beneficiary selection process for govt relief

The beneficiary selection process for the government's relief supports should be based on the vulnerable proportion of the population, not the entire population, experts told a virtual dialogue yesterday.

Titled "Relief supports and agricultural incentives in response to Covid-19 and flood: the effectiveness of public service delivery", the event was jointly organised by the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), Oxfam in Bangladesh, Manab Mukti Sangstha (MMS) and Citizen's Platform for SDGs, Bangladesh.

It stemmed from a project titled "Enhancing the participation of community-based organisations (CBOs) and civil society organisations (CSOs) in democratic governance in Bangladesh", being implemented by the CPD and the Oxfam with European Union's support.

The project aims to contribute to the implementation of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) by the government.

Delivering a keynote presentation, CPD Senior Research Associate Muntaseer Kamal highlighted a flood loss scenario in Sirajganj and an assessment of the associated relief delivery process, underlining an insufficiency of government relief supports.

There is a lack of awareness among the locals regarding government hotline services and the beneficiary selection process oftentimes was not participatory for a lack of promotion, he said.

The government has provided a number of supports and incentives to recover from agricultural losses due to the recent floods and to avail it, people have to travel to the upazila level, which adds to the pre-existing list of challenges, he said.

The CPD recommended creating a detailed database of beneficiaries so that a clear picture of the requirement of the relief support and agricultural incentives can be found.

Joining as special guests, lawmakers Md Habibe Millat and Tanvir Shakil Joy highlighted that though Sirajganj's topography made it highly vulnerable but the government relief support allocations were insufficient compared to needs at local levels.

Joy said the focus should be on creating employment opportunities for the vulnerable people rather than solely on relief measures. The lawmakers should be involved more actively in the relief distribution process, said Millat.

Around 120 community leaders, representatives from the Chauhali upazila and Sirajganj sadar upazila shared their observations at the dialogue.

The participants from Sirajganj also shed light on timely distribution of the relief packages.

The participants with direct grassroots experience shared that many people were yet to receive the Tk 2,500 cash support despite being enlisted.

It was also mentioned that the people of Sirajganj, particularly those in remote char areas, were unable to access various government hotline services due to poor telecommunication facilities.

Moderating the session, CPD Distinguished Fellow Mustafizur Rahman suggested that the telecommunication such char areas could be improved by providing government incentives to telecommunication companies to broaden their network.

Mohammad Soeb Iftekhar, head of economic inclusion and justice at Oxfam in Bangladesh, gave the introductory remarks and Md Habibullah Bahar, executive director of MMS, vote of thanks.

Citizens and representatives from community-based organisations from Sirajganj, government officials, academicians, development workers and NGO representatives were also present.