Government-funded legal aid benefits 16,63,620 people

A total of 16,63,620 people across the country have received free, government-funded legal assistance. The programme is meant for those who cannot afford to hire a lawyer or access legal services because of financial hardship. Services have been delivered through courts, district offices, labour support centres and various digital channels.

The figures come from statistics published on the website of the National Legal Aid Services Organization (NLASO). Its report also sets out the different channels of legal assistance and the number of people served through each.

According to the report, the largest number of people received legal aid through the legal aid offices in the country’s 64 districts, totalling 1,383,617. Meanwhile, 31,409 people received assistance through the Supreme Court Legal Aid Office.

Services are also provided through the Labour Legal Aid Cells in Dhaka and Chattogram to protect the legal rights of working people. A total of 30,658 people received legal assistance through these two centres.

Legal advice is also available without visiting an office, through a government helpline. A total of 274,079 people used the call centre of the toll-free national helpline, 16699. Another 457 people received legal advice through online channels such as Facebook and Messenger.

The programme operates under the Legal Aid Services Act, which aims to ensure the legal rights of people who are financially insolvent, helpless or seeking justice. It provides for eligible people to receive necessary legal assistance at government expense.

NLASO runs the programme under the Law and Justice Division of the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs. The main goal of the government initiative is to ensure that no one seeking justice is deprived of necessary legal assistance because of financial hardship.