Financial and skill support for women entrepreneurs

This pledge was articulated in the election manifesto of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) for Bangladesh’s 13th national election. In its election manifesto, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) states that "To increase self-reliance, the government will provide interest-free loans to women in micro, cottage, and small industries, along with tax exemptions. Provision of necessary training, development, and marketing support.”

The FY2026–27 budget announced easier access to credit, reforms to women-entrepreneur loan schemes, collateral-free loans, skills and entrepreneurship programmes in 200 upazilas, a Tk 500 crore Startup Fund, and a comprehensive database to connect women entrepreneurs with training, finance and markets. It also proposed a higher tax-exempt turnover threshold for women entrepreneurs.

Following parliamentary approval, the FY2026–27 budget and related appropriation legislation provided the legally authorised expenditure framework for women’s training, entrepreneurship development, credit access and market-linkage activities. The Finance Act, 2026, enacted on 6 July 2026, gave legal effect to the approved taxation measures. It also includes tax exemption for income generated from business turnover of up to Tk 7 million by women entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs with disabilities, compared with Tk 5 million for other SME entrepreneurs; a reduction in import duty on biodegradable composite paper used by marginal women entrepreneurs and cottage and small industries; and a Tk 500 crore Startup Fund that may support women entrepreneurs. The Startup Fund is broader than the manifesto pledge and is not limited to women or to micro, cottage and small industries. Bangladesh Bank’s CMSME refinancing circulars and SME Foundation credit-wholesaling arrangements provide the administrative framework for lending through participating banks and financial institutions. These frameworks include preferential and collateral-free credit for eligible women entrepreneurs, but no circular, guideline or approved scheme providing loans at zero interest was identified.

On 14 July 2026, the government launched the National Startup and Entrepreneurship Platform and announced that eligible young startup entrepreneurs could receive grants ranging from Tk 5 lakh to Tk 5 crore from the Tk 500 crore Startup Fund. This represents initial operationalisation of the broader startup initiative. However, the programme is not restricted to women; no women-specific allocation or beneficiary target has been published, and it does not specifically provide interest-free loans to women in micro, cottage and small industries. Credit, training and marketing support is currently operational. Women entrepreneurs can access CMSME refinancing and SME Foundation-supported loans through participating financial institutions, although the identified facilities remain interest-bearing. Programmes are being implemented to develop women’s skills and create women entrepreneurs in 200 upazilas, while the second phase of the Income-Generating Activities Training Project for Women is operating at the upazila level. Marketing support continues through pre-existing mechanisms such as the SheTrades Bangladesh Hub and the SMEF Suppliers Platform for Women Entrepreneurs. These platforms were established before the current government and should not be counted as new implementation of the manifesto pledge. Although current training and platform activity can show continuity of support, no new marketing programme introduced by the BNP government or consolidated results on sales, buyer linkages or export contracts were identified. The central commitment to provide interest-free loans has not reached either the Legal and Policy Framework or Operationalisation stage.