ADP implementation hits 20-year low at 17.54pc

Bangladesh's Annual Development Programme (ADP) implementation has hit a 20-year low, with government agencies spending only 17.54 per cent of the total allocation in the first half (Jul-Dec) of the current fiscal year, officials said.
Even during the same period last FY2025, the ADP implementation rate was slightly higher at 17.97 per cent, though it had reached 22-24 per cent in the three years prior, the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) data showed on Wednesday.
IMED officials highlighted a concerning trend of slow development spending, attributing it to ongoing political uncertainty, slow procurement processes, and administrative disruptions.
According to IMED, government ministries and agencies spent Tk 418.76 billion during the July-December period of the current fiscal year, representing 17.54 per cent of the total ADP allocation of Tk 2.387 trillion.
The interim government had already trimmed the ADP by Tk 300 billion to Tk 2.089 trillion earlier this week to reflect resource constraints and slow implementation.
Ministries that typically receive high allocations, such as the Health Services Division and the Secondary and Higher Education Division, faced significant cuts in the revised plan.
Officials and economists note that the persistently low implementation rate hinders economic growth, job creation, and service delivery, particularly when private investment remains subdued.
Without structural changes to address these long-standing issues, the cycle of delays is expected to continue, they said.
Out of the Tk 418.77 billion expenditure, Tk 235.99 billion (16.35 per cent) came from the government's internal resources, Tk 159.18 billion (18.58 per cent) from project aid, and Tk 22.97 billion (26.42 per cent) from the implementing agencies' own funds, IMED statistics showed.
The worst performance by some ministries and divisions has significantly hampered ADP implementation during the first half of FY2025-26, an IMED official said.
Despite being the third-largest budget holder, the health ministry again performed poorly in implementing projects, affecting overall development work and potentially slowing Bangladesh's economic growth further, officials said on Monday.
The health ministry alone received Tk 122.94 billion, 5.16 per cent of the total Tk 2.38 trillion ADP outlay, but it utilised only 6.11 per cent during July-December this fiscal, IMED officials said.
Moreover, the massive fall in project execution by the railways ministry, Roads and Highways Division, and Secondary and Higher Education Division contributed to the poor ADP performance, they added.
According to IMED data, the railways ministry, the 8th largest development budget holder, utilised only 9.79 per cent of its allocation; the Roads and Highways Division 12.06 per cent; the Secondary and Higher Education Division 13.22 per cent; and the Power Division 16.96 per cent during July-December this fiscal.
However, the science and technology ministry, water resources ministry, energy and mineral resources division, local government division, and the agriculture ministry performed better during the July-November period this fiscal.
The government had allocated Tk 2.38 trillion under the ADP for the current fiscal year to implement more than 1,198 projects.