ADP implementation progress record low in first eight months of FY23

Infographic: TBS

The Annual Development Programme (ADP) implementation registered a record low of 32.10% progress in the first eight months of the current Fiscal Year 2023, with the implementation rate of some of the ministries and divisions with the highest allocations being among the lowest, available data shows.

The rate of ADP implementation in the July-February period was 35.80% in FY22.

In the current economic situation, work on many projects has been halted due to the increase in the cost of construction materials.

Besides, government austerity in project spending in view of the present economic situation restricted fund spending in some projects causing slow implementation of the ADP, said officials of the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) of the planning ministry.

IMED officials said that although the government has devised various strategies to implement the ADP, the ministries and divisions are yet to develop their implementation capacity.

Complexities in tendering, land acquisition, and foreign fund sourcing, delays in administrative approval and appointment of project directors, lack of proper feasibility studies, and lack of coordination among the implementing agencies in the field also got in the way of ADP implementation, said IMED officials.

The Planning Commission has already reduced the revised Annual Development Program (ADP) size allocation by 7.51% or Tk 18,500 crore as the money could not be spent.

Among the 15 ministries and divisions that have got some 83% of the total ADP allocation for this fiscal year, four ministers and divisions – Health Service Division, the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education, the Secondary and Higher Education Division and the Ministry of Shipping spent below 20% in the July-February of FY23.

However, among the ministries and divisions that received the highest allocation, the power department spent 47.78% and the bridge department 47.19% in the first eight months.

According to the IMED data, 35 ministries and divisions could not spend even 30% of the allocated government funds in the first eight months of the fiscal year.

Notable among these agencies are the Rural Development and Co-operatives Division, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Health Service Division, the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education, the Secondary and Higher Education Division, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources and the Ministry of Food, Ministry of Shipping, Ministry of Industry, and Land Ministry.

The government has divided various projects into A, B, and C categories considering their importance to tackle the economic crises.

The less important projects have been put into the C category, and fund release for those has been halted temporarily, said Planning Ministry officials.

There is a provision to release 75% of the fund for the B-category projects while for the A-category ones, 100% of the allocated fund can be released.

Considering the current economic situation, the government has attached importance to the utilisation of foreign aid. All foreign aid-funded projects are kept in the A category. Even then, 21 ministries and divisions saw a 30% drop in foreign aid spending in the first eight months of the fiscal year.

Notable among them are the Health Service Division, Ministry of shipping, Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment, Secondary and Higher Education Division, Ministry of Water Resources, the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism, the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education, the Ministry of Housing and the Ministry of Food.