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The government will begin collecting household-level data across Bangladesh on Monday (October 12) under its Family Card programme, urging people not to pay anyone promising to include their names on the beneficiary list.
Trained government workers carrying official identity cards will visit households to collect information on families’ socioeconomic conditions. The data will be used to identify households most in need of assistance.
The Ministry of Social Welfare has asked the Ministry of Religious Affairs to take necessary steps to raise public awareness through mosques, temples, pagodas and churches across the country.
In a letter sent on October 8, the Social Welfare Ministry said the nationwide data collection would begin simultaneously in all areas from October 12. A guideline titled “Family Card Thana Database Data Collection Guidelines, 2026” has been prepared for the process.
The awareness campaign will be coordinated through the Islamic Foundation and the Hindu, Buddhist and Christian Religious Welfare Trusts.
Messages to be delivered at religious institutions will urge people to provide accurate information about their families’ socioeconomic conditions. They will also warn against financial transactions related to the programme.
The campaign message for mosques, to be announced for three minutes before Friday prayers, will stress that no payment is required to provide information. Anyone demanding money in exchange for including a name on the Family Card beneficiary list should not be trusted.
Announcements at temples, churches and Buddhist monasteries will also encourage people to check on elderly and persons with disabilities in their neighbourhoods to ensure no one is left out during data collection.
The campaign message also advises people to report anyone demanding money by calling 1098.
Copies of the Social Welfare Ministry’s letter were sent to the relevant officials, including the director general of the Islamic Foundation and the secretary of the Hindu Religious Welfare Trust, for necessary action.