The finance ministry's move to finalise the revised annual development programme (RADP) for the current fiscal by trimming the original ADP faces a hurdle --one that, by any count, is very unusual.
Usually, the RADP is finalised by the end of February. But this fiscal, the finalisation is unlikely before the first or second week of next month.
The planning commission has prepared the RADP of Tk. 540 billion as against the original ADP of Tk 658.72 billion in line with the advice of the finance ministry which has done the ritualistic job of annual downsizing of the ADP in view of poor rate of implementation of development projects by different ministries and agencies and fall in revenue collection.
But the planning ministry is not agreeable to the ADP downsizing. It is against the cut in ADP allocation to help the agencies concerned carry on with the execution of ongoing projects. The planning ministry also favours implementation of a few new unapproved projects.
The planning ministry reportedly is pressing the finance ministry to make available a fund of Tk 70 billion to meet the additional demands coming from different ministries and divisions.
But the demand for additional funds seems unusual if seen in the context of the rate of ADP implementation by different ministries and government agencies. Traditionally, the rate of development project implementation has been unsatisfactory during the first six to eight months of any fiscal. But the performance this year has been even worse.
Only 38 per cent of the ADP funds could be utilised during the first eight months of the current fiscal compared to an implementation rate of 44 per cent during the same period of last fiscal.
Against the backdrop of such a dismal performance in project implementation, a good number of ministries and public sector agencies have sought fresh funds. Such requests must have caused enough of irritation to the finance ministry honchos since meeting of such requests would widen the budget deficit further amidst a not-so-happy revenue mobilisation situation.
Yet the planning ministry is pursuing its case for higher ADP allocations. It has already brought the issue before the notice of the Prime Minister and it is hopeful of getting a positive outcome.
However, the delay in finalisation of the revised ADP is taking a toll on the implementation of development projects. Usually, the rate of development project execution picks up in the final months. There are lots of questions about the unusual efficiency demonstrated by the project executing agencies in the last quarter of every financial year and the questions generally relate to quality of work and wastage of public money. None in authority has ever bothered to explain how 60 to 65 per cent of allocation against projects could be spent in the last three to four months of a fiscal year.
Officials concerned suspect that the delay in giving the RADP a final shape might even affect this time the display of unusual efficiency on the part of the different ministries and public sector agencies in project implementation.
It is alleged that the planning ministry has come under intense pressure from a good number of lawmakers of the current parliament to include and finance projects in their respective constituencies. The lawmakers are apparently in a hurry. The demand for an additional allocation to the tune of Tk 70 billion is the outcome of such pressures, it is believed.
There is no denying that low investment in both private and public sectors would surely hurt economic growth and employment generation. But the government can hardly afford a greater fiscal deficit under the prevailing circumstances and fuel inflation which is still well above the target set for the current fiscal by the government.
The government, according to a report published in the Financial Express last Sunday, is likely to set the inflation target at 6.0 per cent for the next fiscal (2014-15). However, the price trend of essentials in the domestic market does not suggest any improvement in the inflation situation in the coming months.
The country does not have enough resources to employ for the development of infrastructure and implement the required number of social sector projects. It is still largely dependent on external assistance to implement many projects. Under the circumstances, a prudent and meaningful use of meagre resources is of vital necessity. The men in power do know about it. Yet they are yet to put in place the right kind of policy measures to ensure the best use of resources spent on development projects every year.
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