One of the leading mobile financial service providers in the country — bKash Limited — on 16 April launched disbursement of stipend for the students of secondary schools through building a partnership with the state owned Agrani Bank Limited.

The Minister for Education, Nurul Islam Nahid MP, inaugurated the stipend disbursement via bKash as the chief guest at a programme held at the Bangladesh International Mother Language Institute Auditorium. The minister also spoke to the beneficiaries of the scheme in Lalmonirhat through video conferencing.

Md. Sohorab Hossain, Secretary to the Secondary and Higher Education Division under education ministry, was the special guest at the programme.  

Presided over by Professor Dr. SM Wahiduzzaman, Program Director, Secondary Education Sector Investment Program (SESIP) and Director General of Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE), the program was also attended by Kamal Quadir, Chief Executive Officer of bKash and Mohammed Ismail Hossain, Acting Managing Director of Agrani Bank, Chai Li, Acting Country Director, Asian Development Bank, Bangladesh Resident Mission and Professor Dr. Jinat Imtiaz Ali, Director General, International Mother Language Institute.

Around 300,000 students of 2916 secondary schools will receive the stipends under SESIP, initiated by the education ministry with the technical and financial assistance from the Asian Development Bank to improve secondary education sector as a whole.

The students will receive the stipends in their bKash accounts twice in a year. 

bKash CEO Kamal Quadir thanked the education ministry and Agrani Bank for selecting bKash as a disbursement partner in this scheme and hoped to provide students with expanded and affordable access to financial services in a faster, secured and transparent manner.

‘With over 165,00 bKash agent points across the country―within walking distance from every house— which are open late at night and also on weekends, thus beneficiaries,  can visit any nearby agent point and cash out the money instantly from their bKash accounts.

He noted that disbursement through bKash will be a convenient, hassle-free and cost savings solution to the beneficiaries as they do not need to go to any bank branches to receive the stipend money. It will also raise awareness on digital financial services among the students.

Launched in 2011, bKash is a joint venture of BRAC Bank, US based Money in Motion, World Bank Group’s private sector investment arm International Finance Corporation and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Apart from sending and receiving money, a bKash customer can also buy airtime, accounts make payment for shopping and pay bills for various services.