DHAKA, Nov 7, 2017 (BSS) – Over 1.50 crore people across the country are getting benefits through one of the Prime Minister’s 10 priority initiatives – “Ektee Bari, Ektee Khamar” or “One house, one farm” project.
“The project is playing a vital role to alleviate poverty and make the poor people self-reliant,” Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary Dr Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury told BSS here today.
Under the project, a total of 62,400 ‘Village Development Associations’ (VDAs) have been formed across the country from which about 30.61 lakh families are getting benefits and their yearly income has increased by about Taka 11,000 on the average.
The PM’s principal secretary said the goal of the project is poverty alleviation through e-financial inclusion, including fund mobilization, followed by family farming livelihood and income generation of the under privileged and smallholders of the country.
Talking to BSS, Project Director of the Ektee Bari Ketee Khamar Project Akber Hossain said the government has taken the project to alleviate poverty and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals through fund mobilizing and farming.
“Through the project, the government is assisting capital formation of the poor farm families, sharpening their skills through training and motivation, allowing them to sit together at courtyard meetings, enabling them to take decisions independently, enabling them to develop need based small family farms and ensuring marketing facilities for their products,” he added.
The project started in 2010-2011 with Taka 14,920 million and finally the project was revised in 2013 with Taka 31,630 million for 40,527 villages.
Hossain said, by now, members of the VDAs have become self-reliant and capable of running their businesses independently.
In the project areas, low income families reduced to 3 percent from 15 percent and comparatively solvent household increased to 31 percent from 23 percent, he added.
He said the VDA members have deposited Taka 1193.45 crore and the government has provided Taka 978.39 crore as grant under the project.