A policy roundtable titled, “Digitalisation of Social Safety Net Programmes: Revisiting Design of Public Services” was held today (28 October) at Bangladesh Institute of Management (BIM) in Dhaka to examine the impact of digitalisation on Bangladesh’s social protection system, particularly the Old Age Allowance.

The discussion was jointly organised by DataSense, the research unit of iSocial, and the University of Edinburgh, bringing together representatives from the government, international organisations, NGOs, think tanks, civil society, media, and academia, reads a press release.

The roundtable began with keynote remarks by Dr Juli Qermezi Huang, Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Social Anthropology at the Edinburgh Futures Institute, University of Edinburgh, and the principal investigator of the project. Dr Huang provided an overview of the collaborative research between the University of Edinburgh and DataSense, which assessed the digitalisation of the Old Age Allowance.

Following her remarks, Ainan Tajrian, Research Manager for the project, presented a digital storyboard illustrating a beneficiary’s experience in accessing the allowance. The presentation highlighted both the benefits, such as improved efficiency, transparency, and reduced transaction time and the challenges faced by beneficiaries, including data mismatches, low digital literacy, and procedural complexities.

Read more: https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/digitalisation-social-safety-net-programmes-experts-call-balance-between-technology-and