The Bangladesh Bank (BB) has received a total of 18,444 applications from 64 upazilas across eight districts under the primary activation phase of its nationwide youth entrepreneurship program, titled "UDYOG" (Upazila-based Youth Entrepreneur Identification, Selection, and Financing Program).
Following the initial response, the central bank announced that the program will expand to all upazilas across the remaining 56 districts starting November 1, 2026.
The initiative aims to identify, select, and fund potential young entrepreneurs at the upazila level to foster innovation and drive employment generation throughout the country.
During the activation phase—which ran from September 16 to October 15, 2026—aspiring entrepreneurs submitted their applications to designated scheduled bank branches in eight selected districts representing eight divisions: Manikganj, Feni, Naogaon, Jhenaidah, Bhola, Habiganj, Rangpur, and Netrokona.
According to initial data released by the central bank, Netrokona received the highest number of applications at 5,351, followed by Rangpur with 2,745, 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.
Under the next phase, interested young entrepreneurs from all upazilas of the remaining 56 districts can submit their completed application forms to any scheduled bank branch located within their respective upazilas from November 1 to November 30, 2026.
Application forms can be downloaded from the official website of Bangladesh Bank, its SME portal, or the respective websites of scheduled commercial banks.
The guidelines for the "UDYOG" program were issued on September 13, 2026, through SMESPD Circular No. 05, and remain available on the Bangladesh Bank website (www.bb.org.bd) and SME portal (www.bb.org.bd/smespd_portal).
Bangladesh Bank has sought active cooperation from all stakeholders to ensure the successful execution of the program, highlighting its potential to accelerate economic growth and foster a vibrant entrepreneurship ecosystem.