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Published : 09 Oct 2013, 10:01 PM
But these banks will be for the poor, she stressed.
The Prime Minister was speaking at a function to hand out prizes to successful participants of the One House, One Farm project. A digital transaction facility for the project beneficiaries was also inaugurated.
A previous Awami League government had started the ‘One House, One Farm’ project, but it was promptly shelved by the BNP-Jamaat coalition government that came to power in 2001.
The Awami League returned to power and revived the project, creating a fund of Tk 13.32 billion for more than 1 million families from 17,300 villages across Bangladesh.
Two beneficiaries, Khulna’s Begum Donika Mistri and Abdul Goni Matbor, proposed the formation of a special bank for the project.
The Prime Minister mentioned their proposal at the end of her speech, drawing a loud applause from the gathering.
“I have not announced anything yet. Just listen to what I am about to say…,” said Hasina.
“We believe, the ‘One House, One Farm’ project is paving the way out of poverty, there needs to be a Pollishonchoi Bank there.”
The bank will be for the poor, said the Prime Minister. “It has to be made sure that no one can play around with it. The matter has to be discussed with the Finance Ministry, because it a new concept.”
“We have created an Employment Bank and the NRB Bank. We will eradicate poverty and give people better lives.”
The Prime Minister, in an indirect reference to the Grameen Bank’s microfinance scheme, said, “People are taking loan from someplace and taking another loan to pay the interest. They are stuck in a cycle of debt and interest.”
“We want the people to produce on their own so that they can come out of poverty,” said the Prime Minister.
The government had plans to set up Pallishonchoi Banks in every Upazila, a source in the Prime Minister’s office said. The poor people of the village would be owners of this bank. Its profits would be divided entirely among the members.
