Under Bangladesh Bank's "Uddyog" initiative aimed at encouraging youth entrepreneurship, applications are set to open across 56 districts in the country.

Under this program, young entrepreneurs will receive financial assistance of up to Tk 20 lakh, consisting of a Tk 10 lakh bank loan and a Tk 10 lakh grant.

Applications will be accepted across all upazilas in the 56 districts starting November 1.

Earlier, during the initial pilot phase, 18,444 applications were submitted across eight districts.

Bangladesh Bank disclosed the details in a press release issued on Saturday (October 17).

The "Uddyog" program aims to identify promising young entrepreneurs at the upazila level and facilitate funding for them.

The initiative is designed to create new employment opportunities and foster innovative business ventures across Bangladesh.

In the initial phase, applications were invited from eight districts spanning eight divisions: Manikganj, Feni, Naogaon, Jhenaidah, Bhola, Habiganj, Rangpur, and Netrokona. Young entrepreneurs submitted their applications at scheduled bank branches across 64 upazilas in these districts between September 16 and October 15.

According to Bangladesh Bank statistics, Netrokona received the highest number of applications among the eight districts, standing at 5,351.

Meanwhile, Rangpur received 2,745 applications, followed by Naogaon with 2,456; Jhenaidah with 2,191; Habiganj with 1,552; Bhola with 1,545; Manikganj with 1,343; and Feni with 1,261 applications.

Interested young entrepreneurs from all upazilas in the remaining 56 districts—excluding the initial eight—can submit their applications from November 1 to November 30.

Duly completed application forms must be submitted to any scheduled bank branch in the applicant's respective upazila.

Application forms are available for download on the Bangladesh Bank official website, its SME Portal, and the respective websites of scheduled banks.

The policy guidelines for the initiative were officially issued on September 13 via SMESPD Circular No. 05.

The policy document is accessible on the central bank's main website (www.bb.org.bd) and the SME Portal (www.bb.org.bd/smespd_portal).

Bangladesh Bank stated that the scheme is being implemented to accelerate national economic development, boost job creation, and drive innovative enterprise by increasing youth participation.

Previously, the central bank announced this new flagship initiative to scout young local entrepreneurs at the upazila level and provide seed capital to start their businesses.

Under "Uddyog," an eligible entrepreneur can receive total financing of up to Tk 20 lakh—comprising up to Tk 10 lakh as a bank loan and up to Tk 10 lakh as a non-repayable grant.

To be eligible, applicants must be 28 years of age or younger and must be permanent residents of the upazila for which they are applying.

Anyone with a concrete business plan or a promising business idea can apply; prior business experience or an existing operational business is not required.

However, individuals who have previously taken commercial business loans from any bank or financial institution, loan defaulters, and employees of government, semi-government, or autonomous organizations are ineligible to apply.