BNP promises jobs, social security, and reform in election push

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has conveyed its eight-point priority social policies, including a sweeping reform agenda, pledging to rebuild the country’s economy and social fabric after what they describe as years of mismanagement under the previous authoritarian regime of the Awami League.

Speaking at a policy dissemination event in a city hotel on Tuesday, the BNP leaders outlined a vision of inclusive growth, democratic accountability, and citizen-centred development before the diplomatic and development partner communities ahead of the national polls scheduled for February 2026.

BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir was the chief guest at the event, where adviser to the BNP chairman Dr Ziauddin Hyder presented a keynote paper on “BNP’s eight priority social policies.

BNP’s joint secretary general on International Affairs Humaiun Kabir delivered the welcome speech at the programme moderated by Barrister Gias Uddin Rimon.

In his keynote paper, Mr Haider unveiled BNP’s eight‑point development plan pledging sweeping reforms across agriculture, employment, education, healthcare, environment, sports, and welfare.

The plan’s centrepiece is the ‘Krishok Card’ (Farmer Card), a digital instrument designed to provide subsidised fertiliser, seeds, pesticides, machinery, crop insurance, and fair‑price procurement mechanisms and markets of their agro-output, he said.

Farmers would also gain mobile access to weather information and training, extending support to fish and livestock producers to ensure sustainable food security.

BNP’s ‘Family Card’ will resemble a social protection to put women at the centre of household resilience, said the adviser to the BNP chairman.

This card would deliver either a monthly allowance of Tk 2,000 to 2,500 or basic food commodities.

Distributed via adult women in households, the scheme aims to reduce poverty, hunger, and empower women as decision makers, he said.

BNP’s healthcare plan will put an end to the out-of-pocket suffering as it plans to recruit some 100,000 healthcare workers, 80 per cent of them women, and establish primary care units in every city and village.

Preventive care, maternal and newborn services, affordable treatment for critical diseases, and domestic vaccine production are central to the plan.

Free primary medicines, low‑cost cancer drugs, and year‑round mosquito eradication campaigns are also promised.

The BNP’s education reforms include the ‘One Teacher, One Tab’ initiative, compulsory technical education at the secondary level, mid‑day meals, multimedia classrooms, and a third language instruction.

Moral and social education would begin from Class VI, while sports and cultural activities would be integrated into curricula.

Technical and vocational education would be modernised with hands‑on training and international certification.

The BNP will create jobs in the IT sector, expand cottage industries and SMEs, and provide low-interest loans.

Skill development and career centres would be established in educational institutions, while overseas workers would receive training and financial support.

Nationwide employment opportunities will be created to ensure that marginalised groups are not left behind, said Mr Hyder.

Under its plan on developing sports, the BNP will ensure mandatory physical education from Class IV, supported by subject-specific sports teachers, provide scholarships to talented youths, construct sports villages in all 64 districts, and expand playgrounds.

Branches of Bangladesh Kria Shikkha Protishthan (BKSP) will be expanded nationwide to identify and nurture local talents, he said.

BNP will plant some 250 million fruit and medical trees over five years to ensure a better ecosystem and empower rural women. The party will excavate some 20,000 kilometres of rivers and canals to restore natural water flow.

It will upgrade the Teesta Barrage, establish a Padma Barrage project, and a nationwide waste management system will be there to convert waste into fuel and fertiliser.

BNP will provide monthly honorariums, festival allowances, skill development training to religious leaders like khatibs, imams, muazzins, and leaders of other faiths under its plan of welfare for religious leaders, said the BNP leader.

Speaking as the chief guest, Mirza Fakhrul accused the Awami League of transforming the nation into a “Mafia Economy” since 2009.

He alleged that banks had been systematically looted, billions siphoned abroad, and ordinary citizens left behind in a system designed to enrich a small elite.

 “The last 15 years of so‑called development were characterised by corruption, lack of accountability, and election rigging,” he said, adding, “The country was pushed into despair, with no meaningful employment or investment.”

He argued that the July uprising of students and citizens reflected a growing demand for change.

BNP’s role since independence has been to champion reforms that place people at the centre of governance, he said.

The BNP secretary general emphasised that the BNP’s framework would democratise the economy, empower lower-income groups, and ensure that development is participatory.

BNP Standing Committee Member Dr. Abdul Moyeen Khan, Advisor to the BNP Chairman and spokesperson for the BNP’s election steering committee Dr. Mahdi Amin and BNP’s international affairs secretary, Rashedul Haque, were among others who participated in the event.

azizjst@yahoo.com