A few projects claim hefty sums in Bangladesh's new development budget, with the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant project set to receive the highest allocation of Tk 154.99 billion.
The RNPP's allocation in the next fiscal year's Annual Development Programme (ADP) marks a 54.81-percent increase from the revised allocation for the current fiscal year.
Next to it is Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Development Project Line-5 Northern Route that is expected to receive the second-highest allocation at Tk 73.50 billion, while the Matarbari Port Development Project is set to get Tk 48.387 billion.
A total of Tk 536.22 billion has been allocated for the 15 large projects under the proposed ADP worth Tk 3.0 trillion for the next fiscal year.
The ADP is being placed today before the meeting of the National Economic Council (NEC) for final approval.
The meeting, scheduled to be held at the NEC Auditorium in the capital with Prime Minister Tarique Rahman presiding, will also review a five-year reform and development strategy titled 'Five-Year Reform and Development Strategy (2026-2030)', drafted by the General Economics Division (GED) of the Planning Commission.
Officials say the proposed ADP with Tk 1.9 trillion from government's own fund and Tk 1.1 trillion from external sources is 50-percent higher than the Revised ADP (RADP) of the outgoing fiscal year.
The draft of the ADP book ready for the meeting reveals that "the highest-ever infrastructure project" Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant, scheduled to be completed by June 2028, is to receive 154.99 billion: Tk 146.88 billion from project aid and Tk 8.11 billion from government fund.
The Tk 1.39-trillion project achieved 68.28-percent progress up to June last year with a cumulative disbursement of Tk 946.89 billion.
The Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Development Project Line-5 Northern Route, a Tk 412.39-billion project that has achieved only 7.70-percent progress over the past seven years, is set to receive Tk 73.50 billion in the next fiscal year.
The allocation for the project is increasing by Tk 58.59 billion, nearly fourfold from the revised allocation of Tk 14.91 billion in the current fiscal year.
The Matarbari Port Development Project, involving an estimated cost of Tk 243.81 billion, is set to receive Tk 48.39 billion in the fiscal year 2026-27 - more than four times higher than the current allocation of Tk 10.78 billion.
A review of the proposed ADP shows that although a few major projects, including the Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Development Project Line-5 Northern Route and the Matarbari Port Development Project, are receiving large sums of money, overall funding for megaprojects is not being significantly expanded this year.
Instead, midsize projects in power transmission and distribution, health, education, and water-management sectors are getting priority in the ADP allocation.
The Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Development Project Line-1 is set to receive Tk 39.10 billion in the next fiscal year, marking a 388.10-percent increase from the revised allocation, despite having only 9.29 per cent progress against its total estimated cost of Tk 539.77 billion.
Significant allocation increases are also proposed to increase for the Expansion and Strengthening of Power System Network under DPDC Area at Tk 33.93 billion and the Government Secondary Schools Development Project at Tk 23.93 billion.
The Government Primary School Feeding Programme is set to receive Tk 21.99 billion despite having no recorded progress, while the Learning Acceleration in Secondary Education Project would see a sharp 217.64-percent rise in allocation to Tk 15.59 billion.
In the transport sector, the revised Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Development Project Line-6 will receive Tk 18.99 billion, as it nears completion with 78.26-percent progress. The SASEC Dhaka-Sylhet Corridor Road Development Project and the Chattogram-Dohazari Dual Gauge Railway Conversion Project are also allocated significant funds.
However, allocations for some ongoing megaprojects are being reduced, including the Dhaka-Ashulia Elevated Expressway Project and the SASEC Road Connectivity Project Elenga-Hatikamrul-Rangpur Highway Four-Laning.
The WECare Phase-1 Jhenidah-Jashore Highway Development Project records one of the highest increases, with allocation rising 6.79 times to Tk 11.45 billion.
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