Multiple Mobile Wallets to Manage Primary Stipends
The government has withdrawn the previous exclusive agreement and now expanded the disbursement of primary school stipends beyond Nagad, allowing guardians to receive funds through bKash, Rocket, Upay, and mCash as well. Parents of beneficiary students can now choose any of these five mobile financial service (MFS) wallets to receive the stipend.
Recently, the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education instructed that guardians of stipend-recipient students must ensure their mobile SIMs and MFS accounts are registered with their National Identity Cards (NID). The Directorate of Primary Education (DPE) has also been directed to take all necessary measures to inform students and parents about this new decision.
According to sources, on September 29, the DPE officially canceled its tripartite agreement with the Post Office and Nagad Limited, a digital financial service provider under the Postal Department. The contract was annulled on grounds of non-compliance with the terms and inconsistency with the directives of the Finance Division.
Subsequently, on October 12, the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education held a meeting with representatives from 13 MFS providers to determine the next course of action for smooth stipend disbursement. Officials from the ministry and the DPE were also present at the meeting.
Based on the meeting’s resolution, the DPE, effective from October 26, instructed that primary education stipends be distributed through all mobile financial service platforms in the country. This decision enables guardians of stipend-recipient students to receive payments through their preferred MFS accounts.
Earlier, the previous government had made it mandatory to distribute stipends exclusively through Nagad accounts, in an effort to prevent student dropouts and encourage education. However, a Bangladesh Bank inspection later revealed major irregularities in the process, prompting the inclusion of other MFS providers under the stipend disbursement system.
