Bangladesh plans to issue 22M farmer IDs by 2028, pilot imminent

The Bangladeshi government has announced that it will soon launch a pilot to test a farmer ID system it intends to introduce known as Krishak Card.

Speaking at the end of a meeting Chaired by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on February 25, Information and Broadcasting Minister Zahir Uddin Swapan said the pilot is imminent, according to The Daily Star.

He explained that the idea of the farmer ID was on the table a long time ago, but the government needed to sort out all important details related to the identity management project.

The digital ID card, the government says, will facilitate how farmers get access to agricultural benefits, and will make sure those benefits get to the right beneficiaries. At the moment, production inputs intended for farmers are often siphoned by middlemen.

Apart from streamlining access to inputs, the farmer ID card system is also expected to help farmers easily get market information and link up with potential buyers of their produce, as well as facilitate transactions with government institutions.

The pilot will see 500,000 farmers issued the digital ID card in 180 days and will inform the government on what path to take in terms of a nationwide rollout of the card. The intention is to get every farmer in the country registered for the Krishak card once it has been made available. The government plans to issue 22 million farmer IDs by 2028.

Authorities say Krishak card will be modelled after the family card which the government plans to begin piloting next month. The card distribution will begin on March 10, The Business Standard reports, and the government says it is introducing it to streamline how it delivers social protection.

Bangladesh is moving in the digital agriculture direction which some countries are increasingly taking.

One major example in this respect is India where its AgriStack digital public infrastructure initiative has led to the issuance of more than 84 million farmer IDs, and the integration of AI systems into several agricultural process not only to boost yields and incomes, but also to make the agricultural system resilient to climate shocks.

Sri Lanka also recently launched the CROPIX platform to enhance digital agriculture by strengthening data exchange and collaboration between the farmers, government authorities and other stakeholders in the agriculture chain.

Other countries also implementing digital agriculture projects include Moldova, Nigeria and Zimbabwe.

Article Topics

Bangladesh  |  digital ID  |  digital public infrastructure  |  farmer ID  |  identity management  |  social protection