Evaluating the Role of Digital Financial Services in Enhancing Efficiency and Accessibility of Social Safety Net Programs in Bangladesh
Keywords:
Digital financial services, social safety net, distribution channel, distribution challenges, Bangladesh
Abstract
This study examines traditional and existing distribution channels and scrutinizes the effects of Digital Financial Services (DFSs) on delivering Social Safety Net (SSN) benefits. Researchers conducted a field study in the Sylhet Division, which is one of the largest digital areas in Bangladesh; however, there has been a large digitalization drive in the Sylhet Division, especially with the Sylhet City Corporation at the forefront of a mission towards a digital Sylhet. The researchers collected data from 100 respondents, including students, entrepreneurs, government officials, teachers, SSN beneficiaries, and local representatives, using a simple random sampling technique. To improve the theoretical foundation, this study reviewed secondary published materials such as journal articles, books, book chapters, and conference papers. The survey data were analysed using SPSS software, with illustrations of the variables and characteristics. The study findings revealed that traditional banking channels for distributing SSN benefits were ineffective owing to higher costs, mismanagement, corruption, and complexity. Hence, the digital means of financial benefits to the beneficiaries of SSNs function well with the complement of faster service, cost-effectiveness, and efficiency. However, privacy threats, lack of technical knowledge, and risk management issues are prime concerns for the effective operation of DFS to accelerate the benefits of SSNs. The study findings will help researchers, policymakers, and beneficiaries, as well as overcome the existing challenges of DFS in effectively providing SSN benefits.
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References
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48. Saifur, R., (2020). Social Safety net programs and their impact on livelihood: A case study of Bangladesh. Журнал исследований социальной политики, 18(1), 129-142.
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51. Tran, H.T.T. and Corner, J., (2016). The impact of communication channels on mobile banking adoption. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 34(1), 78-109.
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53. Yasmin, M.T., Shahabuddin, M., Alam, M.A., Khan, M.J.U., (2018). Socioeconomic Impacts of Social Safety Net Programs in Bangladesh: Old Age Allowance and Allowances for the Widow, Deserted and Destitute Women. Prime University Journal, Vol.
54. Zuur, A. F., & Ieno, E. N. (2016). Protocol for conducting and presenting results of regression-type analyses. Methods in Ecology and Evolution 7(6), 636–645. https://doi.org/10.1111/2041-210x.12577.
2. Ahmed, A. U., Hoddinott, J. F., Roy, S., Sraboni, E., Quabili, W. R. & Margolies, A., (2016). What kinds of social safety net transfers work best for the ultra-poor in Bangladesh? Operation and impact of the Transfer Modality Research Initiative.
3. Akand, M.A.H., (2022). The Role of Social Safety Nets in Poverty Alleviation of Rural Poor in Bangladesh: A Social Survey (Doctoral dissertation, University of Dhaka).
4. Ali, I., Azman, A., Singh, P.S.J. & Drani, S., (2023). Challenges of Social Safety Nets for Poverty Reduction: Bangladesh. In The Routledge Handbook of Poverty in the Global South (634-653). Routledge India.
5. Andrews, C., Hsiao, A. & Ralston, L., (2018). Social safety nets promote poverty reduction, increase resilience, and expand opportunities. Realising the Full Potential of Social Safety Nets in Africa, Washington, DC: World Bank, 87-138.
6. Arner, D.W., Buckley, R.P., Zetzsche, D.A. &vVeidt, R., (2020). Sustainability, FinTech, and financial inclusion. European Business Organization Law Review, 21, 7-35.
7. Asma, K.M., Misu, F., Islam, M.A., (2023). The impact of social safety net programs on poverty, food security, and standards of living in Bangladesh. The International Journal of Community and Social Development, 5(1), 71-96.
8. Atukunda, P., Eide, W.B., Kardel, K.R., Iversen, P.O. & Westerberg, A.C., (2021). Unlocking the potential for achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goal 2–“Zero Hunger”-in Africa: Targets, strategies, synergies and challenges. Food and Nutrition Research 65.
9. Banerjee, A., Duflo, E., Glennerster, R., & Kinnan, C. (2015). The miracle of microfinance? Evidence from a randomised evaluation. American economic journal: Applied economics, 7(1), 22-53.
10. Barca, V. & Hebbar, M., (2021). Delivering social transfers. Handbook on Social Protection Systems, 426.
11. Begum, I. A., and Talukder, R. K., Kazal, M. M. H. & Alam, M.J., (2021). Landscape of Enhanced Access to Social Protection, Safety Nets and Increased Resilience in Bangladesh. In Agricultural Economics. Intech Open.
12. Bird, N. & Hanedar, E., (2023). Expanding and Improving Social Safety Nets through Digitalisation. International Monetary Fund.
13. Bossuroy, T., & Coudouel, A. (2018). Recognising and leveraging politics to expand and sustain social safety nets. Realising the Full Potential of Social Safety Nets in Africa.
14. Brooks, S.M. (2015). Social protection for the poorest: The adoption of anti-poverty cash transfer programs in the Global South. Politics & Society, 43(4), 551-582.
15. Danladi, S., Prasad, M.S.V., Modibbo, U.M., & Ahmadi, S.A. & Ghasemi, P., (2023). Attaining sustainable development goals through financial inclusion: Exploring collaborative approaches to fintech adoption in developing economies. Sustainability, 15(17), 13-39.
16. Din, B. H., Habibullah, M. S., Abdullah, H., Safuan, S., and Osman, A. A. (2023). Developing a model for integrated social safety net programs towards better financial well-being. Russian Law Journal 11(4S), 1-13.
17. Drèze, J. & Khera, R. (2017). Recent social security initiatives in India. World Development, 98, 555-572.
18. Eyisi, D. (2016). The usefulness of qualitative and quantitative approaches and methods in researching problem-solving abilities in the science education curriculum. Journal of education and practice, 7(15), 91-100.
19. Ferdous, J. & Ullah, A.A., (2023). Social safety nets and poverty reduction in developing countries. Taylor & Francis.
20. Fishback, P.V., (2022). Safety Nets and Social Welfare Expenditures in World Economic History (No. w30067). National Bureau of Economic Research.
21. Gololo, I.A., (2018). Challenges of Nigerian banking sector and the way forward. American Finance & Banking Review, 3(1), pp.26-34.
22. Haider, M. Z. and Mahamud, A. (2017). Beneficiary selection and allowance utilisation of social safety net programmes in Bangladesh. Journal of Human Rights and Social Work, 2, 45-51.
23. Haque, A.K., (2023). Socio-ecological Vulnerability, Migration and Social Protection: An Examination of Fisheries-Based Livelihoods in Coastal Bangladesh (doctoral dissertation, Université d’ Ottawa/University of Ottawa).
24. Hasal, M., Nowaková, J., Ahmed Saghair, K., Abdulla, H., Snášel, V. & Ogiela, L., (2021). Chatbots: Security, privacy, data protection, and social aspects. Concurrency and Computation: Practice and Experience, 33(19), 64-26.
25. Hasan, M.K., (2020). Mobile Financial Services (MFS) in Bangladesh as a part of financial inclusion: A study on their usage and impacts. MFS Global Journal of Management and Entrepreneurship 29.
26. Hossain, I., (2023). Financial Inclusion in Bangladesh Through Mobile Financial Services: A case study on marginal agricultural people in Bangladesh.
27. Hossain, M.Z. and Sarker, B. (2020). Evaluation of the performance efficiency of stipend programs in primary and secondary education in Bangladesh through the application of stochastic frontier models.
28. Hoynes, H., Schanzenbach, D.W., Almond, D., (2016). Long-term impact of childhood access to the safety net. American Economic Review, 106(4), 903-934.
29. Iazzolino, G., (2018). Digitising social protection payments: progress and prospects for financial inclusion.
30. Irwani, M., (2015). Clientelism and implementing social security programs in the post-conflict Iraqi Kurdistan Region. Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
31. Isukul, A. and Tantua, B., (2021). Financial inclusion in developing countries: Applying financial technology as a panacea. Economic Growth and Financial Development: Effects of Capital Flight in Emerging Economies, pp.1-21.
32. Kalumeze, H., (2015). Opportunities and Challenges of Financial Inclusion: The Case of Mobile banking in Kin (Ondoni District, Tanzania)
33. Kedron, P., Frazier, A. E., Trgovac, A. B., Nelson, T., Fotheringham, A. S. (2019). Reproducibility and Replicability in Geographical Analysis. Geographical Analysis, 53(1), 135–147. https://doi.org/10.1111/gean.12221.
34. Kelly, L.M. & Cordeiro, M., (2020). Three principles of pragmatism for research on organizational processes. Methodological innovations, 13(2), 2059799120937242.
35. Mahmuda, I., (2015). Social safety nets for development: poverty reduction programs for the provision of food security in Bangladesh.
36. Mamtaz, S., (2024). Leveraging FinTech to Enhance Access to Finance for Small Enterprises in Bangladesh (Doctoral dissertation, University of Dhaka).
37. Muhammed, A., (2021). An Assessment of the Socio-Economic Impact of Productive Safety Net Program (Psnp) On Beneficiaries:(The Case of Habru Woreda, Amhara Region) (Doctoral dissertation, St. Mary’s University).
38. Mustafa, S., Ali, A.M.M., Islam, K.N., Dorosh, P.A., Rashid, S., Shaima, N.A., (2024). Diagnostic study of DG Food: An assessment of DG Food’s current mandates, performance, and capacity gaps, and a remedial program to strengthen the agency. Intl Food Policy Res. Inst.
39. Otekunrin, O.A., Otekunrin, O.A., Momoh, S., Ayinde, I.A., (2019). How far has Africa achieved a zero-hunger target? Evidence from Nigeria. Global Food Security, 22,1-12
40. Owoeye, O.A., (2023). Towards a framework for improving unstructured supplementary data service (ussd) technology adoption for digital financial services (Doctoral dissertation, University of the Western Cape).
41. Paul, B.V., Dutta, P.V., Chaudhary, S., (2021). Assessment of the Impact and Cost of Economic Inclusion Programs. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 9536.
42. Pazarbasioglu, C., Mora, A.G., Uttamchandani, M., Natarajan, H., Feyen, E., Saal, M., (2020). Digital financial services. World Bank, 54,1-54
43. Pradhan, M.A.H. and Afrin, S., (2015). A Review of Social Safety Net Programs for Women in Bangladesh: Issues and Challenges. Advances in Economics and Business, 3(4), pp.149-156.
44. Rashid, M.H., (2020). Prospects of Digital Financial Services in Bangladesh in the Context of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Asian Journal of Social Science, 2(5), 88-95.
45. Rayhan, J. and Uddin, J., (2021). Role of Digital Financial Services in Confronting Covid-19 Crisis in Bangladesh. Journal of Applied Finance and Banking, 11(5), 45-67.
46. Saeed, M.A.I., (2023). Impact of Social Safety Nets on Development Efforts.
47. Saeidnia, H. R., Abdoli, S., Ausloos, M., & Hosseini, E. (2024). Unleashing the power of AI: a systematic review of cutting-edge techniques in AI-enhanced scientometrics, webometrics, and bibliometrics. Library Hi Tech. https://doi.org/10.1108/lht-10-2023-0514.
48. Saifur, R., (2020). Social Safety net programs and their impact on livelihood: A case study of Bangladesh. Журнал исследований социальной политики, 18(1), 129-142.
49. Sarker, M.A.A. and Ony, F.T. (2019). Security Policy for Mobile Money transfers in Bangladesh.
50. Social Safety Net: 2019-20 & 2020-21 Financial Year, 2022. Available at: https://mof.portal.gov.bd/sites/default/files/files/mof.portal.gov.bd/page/672e3d4d_09bb_4205_9afd_843de55481d1/Safety%20Net%2020-21_English_2020-11-16.pdf
51. Tran, H.T.T. and Corner, J., (2016). The impact of communication channels on mobile banking adoption. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 34(1), 78-109.
52. Watong, A. S. S. and Okwuagwu, D., (2021). Digital financial services in the developing world.
53. Yasmin, M.T., Shahabuddin, M., Alam, M.A., Khan, M.J.U., (2018). Socioeconomic Impacts of Social Safety Net Programs in Bangladesh: Old Age Allowance and Allowances for the Widow, Deserted and Destitute Women. Prime University Journal, Vol.
54. Zuur, A. F., & Ieno, E. N. (2016). Protocol for conducting and presenting results of regression-type analyses. Methods in Ecology and Evolution 7(6), 636–645. https://doi.org/10.1111/2041-210x.12577.
Published
2025-07-10
How to Cite
Uddin, M. J., Seddiky, M. A., Rayhan, M. J., & Balaly, M. H. (2025). Evaluating the Role of Digital Financial Services in Enhancing Efficiency and Accessibility of Social Safety Net Programs in Bangladesh. European Scientific Journal, ESJ, 43, 63. Retrieved from https://eujournal.org/index.php/esj/article/view/19747
Section
ESI Preprints
Copyright (c) 2025 Md. Jahir Uddin, Md. Assraf Seddiky, Md. Johir Rayhan, Md. Habibullah Balaly
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
