46% of Bangladeshis use feature phones, miss government benefits: official

He says they cannot access government initiatives without the internet

Information and Communication Technology Division Secretary Shish Haider Chowdhury has said 46 percent of Bangladesh’s population still use feature or button phones, leaving them “deprived” of the benefits of various government initiatives due to their lack of internet connectivity.

He made the comment at a ceremony to present the proposed “e-Participation Policy Framework for Bangladesh” and formally hand it over to the ICT Division.

The event was organised by Media Resources Development Initiative (MRDI) in Agargaon.

He said, “[e-Participation Policy Framework] is a huge task. After much effort from many, we were able to accomplish this.

“I regret that it was not the grand event it deserved to be, given its importance.”

Mahmudul Hossain Khan, secretary (joint) of the Chief Advisor’s Office (CAO), highlighted the digital divide, saying: “Forty-six percent of people still use button phones, meaning they cannot access the internet.

“Without internet access, they cannot benefit from government initiatives. The government spends billions of taka on 95 social safety net programmes, including old age and widow allowances.

“If people are unaware of these programmes, how will they take advantage of them?”