Adapting Digital Payment to Initiate Rapid Response During Pandemic

UNDP South-South|Galaxy Knowledge Hub

Adapting Digital Payment to Initiate Rapid Response During Pandemic

Bangladesh government disbursed cash aid to 5 million most vulnerable families through mobile financial service in order to minimize the financial impact during COVID 19 within the shortest period of time.

Challenges

The coronavirus pandemic has caused untold suffering to countless people. The impact of this pandemic has affected those who have been infected and extended far beyond due to the emergency lockdown and shutdown of economic activities to prevent further spread of the disease. Millions of families who are engaged in informal sectors have been affected by COVID-19 economically. To combat the outbreak and its economic impact, the government came up with a set of stimulus packages, including cash aid for the most vulnerable families.

Disbursing a hefty amount of cash aid manually is costly and vulnerable to fraud and theft. The manual process takes significant time to deliver, whereas these are emergency aids intended to be transferred promptly and securely during the lockdown. Besides, transferring in person might breach the health protocol or safety measure and increase the disease’s risk. The government faced formidable challenges to transfer cash aid to 5 million low-income families instantly. As a result, a combined effort was needed across government, industries, private sectors, and individuals to deliver the emergency aid securely.

Toward a Solution

Adapting digital payment through MFS allowed the government to disburse cash aid directly to the beneficiaries within a stipulated time frame to the citizens during difficult times. The government transferred USD 142m cash aid to 5 million families through 4 mobile financial service providers. National Identity Card and the involvement of local administration played a crucial role in identifying the most vulnerable beneficiaries. The whole effort was successful due to some other enabling factors.

Private-Public Partnership

Public-private partnerships have enabled rapid digital transformation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the private sectors extended their support and collaboration with the government, especially the mobile financial service (MFS) providers who helped the government disburses money to vulnerable people.

Policy Adaptation

All the concerned government agencies adapted policy to facilitate digital payments in order to respond and disburse funds promptly. Successful policy adaptation helps to drive further adoption of digital payments.

Digital KYC

Mobile financial service providers in Bangladesh have adopted digital KYC for registration. This process enables customers to open their mobile account digitally without filling up any paper-based documents. The new e-KYC guideline issued by Bangladesh Bank enabled speedy account opening. The guideline was instrumental in responding to the crisis moment caused by the pandemic.

Enabled Infrastructure

The wave of rapid digital transformation was possible because of four enabling factors. The coverage of National Identity card among citizens, telecom infrastructure, and high-speed connectivity rolled out throughout the country; the existing digital payment architecture, and strong MFS operators with a widespread agent network covering the last mile. Citizens of Bangladesh are well-acquainted with the usage of digital payment.

Adapting digital payment is already replicated in other countries. We have seen similar initiatives in many African countries during the Ebola outbreak. Digital payments also promote the adoption of other digital financial services. Digital financial services are a key enabler to achieve sustainable developments.

CONTACT INFORMATION
Md. Tohurul Hasan Program Manager-Digital Access & Digital Financial Service, Aspire to Innovate (a2i) Programme

SDG
01 - No Poverty

SUPPORTED BY
Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief, the Government of Bangladesh, and a2i Programme-Government of Bangladesh; UNDP Bangladesh

ABOUT

Disclosures

RESOURCES

Disclosures

ENGAGE

Disclosures

Alliance Application Form

Submit an Expression of Interest and/or Demand Signal. UNOSSC reviews submissions on a rolling basis.

1. Official name of organization / institution / government entity (exclusions to apply) *

2. Country *

3. Region *

4. SDG *

Secondary SDG *

5. Partner category *

6. Website *

7. Brief description of your institution (max. 150 words) *

Name for the Lead *

Title for the Lead *

Email address for the Lead *

Name for the co-lead

Title for the co-lead

Email address for the co-lead

Section 3. Expression of Interest in the Alliance *

Offer expertise, resources, partnership, or collaboration

Demand Signal (Request for cooperation, support, or partnership)

Both (Offering capabilities and expressing demand for collaboration)

Additional information on proposed areas of engagement may be requested through the platform following initial review by the Alliance Secretariat.

Section 4. Due Diligence and Integrity Declaration *

Our organization complies with United Nations values, principles, and ethical standards.

We are not subject to UN sanctions or listed on applicable UN exclusion or ineligibility lists.

We understand that participation in Alliance activities may be subject to due diligence conducted by the Alliance Secretariat, consistent with applicable UN policies.

We acknowledge that engagement under the Alliance does not imply formal membership.

Submission Note:

Submission of this Expression of Interest form does not automatically confer participation in the Alliance.

All submissions will be reviewed by the Alliance Secretariat, including basic eligibility screening and proportionate due diligence, as appropriate.

Participation in Alliance activities is determined based on relevance to articulated cooperation needs, alignment with Alliance principles, and integrity considerations.

Engagement under the Alliance is voluntary, non-binding, and facilitative in nature, and does not constitute funding approval, contractual commitment, or institutional membership.

The Alliance Secretariat may contact submitting entities for additional information or clarification during the review process.

Organization Registration

Authentication & Due Diligence This prototype simulates identity verification, due diligence confirmation, and an authentication step before submission. *

Due diligence declarationWe confirm compliance with UN values, ethical standards, and we are not subject to sanctions/exclusion lists.

First Name *

Last Name *

Email address *

Password *

Confirm Password *

Name of institution / organization *

Country / Region *

Organization Type *

Organization other *

Function / role *

Organization logo *

Maximum file size: 1 GB

I confirm this information is accurate and I agree to be contacted about network participation. *