The government is working to bring the Covid-19 induced poor under the social safety net, Planning Minister MA Mannan said Sunday.
Bangladesh's economy has been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic and the country's dream of eradicating poverty has been disrupted by the outbreak.
South Asian Network on Economic Modeling last year said the country's poverty rate may rise to 40.9 percent due to COVID-19. Bangladesh Economic Association said nearly 36 million people have lost jobs between March 26 and May 30 during the general holidays.
Around 61 million people are currently working in the country's job market. Nearly 59.5 million people moved into different class structures during this period, of which 25.5 million people became extremely poor, it said.
A survey of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies last year estimated that in 2020, Bangladesh would have 16.4 million new poor as the income of the working-class in urban and rural areas fell sharply. About 13 percent of people have become unemployed due to the pandemic.
In September, a new UNICEF and Save the Children analysis showed that the number of children living in multidimensional poverty has soared to approximately 1.2 billion due to the pandemic.
The government announced a string of stimulus packages to offset the impact of the pandemic and keep the economy vibrant.
Addressing a programme in Sunamganj Sadar Upazila, Minister Mannan said the government is firmly tackling coronavirus.
"Coronavirus vaccines are being sent to the districts and a mass vaccination programme will be launched soon," he said, according to a PID handout.
