The government has initially selected 22,065 farmers to receive ‘Farmers Cards’ as part of a new distribution programme set to launch on Pohela Baishakh, Fisheries, Livestock and Agriculture Minister Mohammad Aminur Rashid said on Sunday.
The programme will be formally inaugurated at Shaheed Maruf Stadium in Tangail, he said while addressing a press conference at the Information Department conference room at the Secretariat.
He said the initiative will begin on a pre-piloting basis across 11 blocks under 11 upazilas in 10 districts, covering all eight divisions.
Card distribution will start simultaneously in most selected blocks on the launch day. However, the programme in Aranyapur block of Adarsha Sadar upazila in Cumilla will begin on 17 April 2026.
At the start of the programme, organisers paid tribute to former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and martyred President Ziaur Rahman.
The minister said data of 22,065 farmers had been collected as of 11 April.
Among them, 2,246 are landless farmers, 9,458 marginal farmers, 8,967 small farmers, 1,303 medium farmers and 91 large farmers.
He said around 93.7 per cent of the selected beneficiaries belong to landless, marginal and small farmer categories.
Under the pre-piloting phase, each farmer will receive Tk2,500 in annual cash assistance through the card.
The card will operate as a banking debit card. Accounts have already been opened in farmers’ names through Sonali Bank, he added.
Through the card, farmers will be able to purchase fertiliser, seeds, fish feed and livestock feed. They will also access agricultural loans, subsidies, weather forecasts, market prices, training, pest control advice and agricultural insurance services.
The minister said that if the pre-pilot phase proves successful, a pilot programme will begin in 15 upazilas by August 2026. He added that the government plans to expand the scheme nationwide and develop an integrated farmer database within four years.
