Planning commission balks at environment ministry's draft
Saturday, 26 December 2009
FHM Humayan Kabir
A bitter row has been sparked between the ministry of environment and the planning commission on framing a strategy paper as the latter accused that preparation of such a document by the ministry contravenes the government's business rules.
The commission officials said the ministry's US$175,000 spending for preparing the National Sustainable Development Strategy has been a wastage as the government's highest authorities later assigned the commission to recast the whole document making it a consistent and updated one.
Experts and policymakers have termed the draft strategy paper of the environment ministry 'inconsistent' and 'weak' as it has failed to reflect the development strategies and policies of the government.
Department of Environment (DoE) under the environment ministry has framed the draft strategy paper early this year spending most of the $175,000 fund meant for consultants.
Since the strategy paper was termed 'inconsistent, the cabinet headed by the Prime Minister has recently asked the General Economics Division (GED) of the planning commission to restructure and improve the document to be followed up to 2020.
The government also formed a 17-member committee, headed by the planning minister and comprising finance, agriculture, local government & rural development, water resources and communications ministers, along with economic and energy advisers, to revise the document.
"As per the business rule of the government, we are entitled to prepare any national policy document. But the DoE neither informed us nor did incorporate our representation during drafting of the paper," GED member Prof Shamsul Alam told the FE.
At the first meeting, members of the government formed high-power committee said the draft strategy paper, farmed by DoE, must be revised ensuring consistency with the government's poverty reduction strategy paper (PRSP), the upcoming perspective plan 2021 and the sixth five-year plan.
Economic affairs adviser Dr Mashiur Rahman said: "There is possibility of inconsistencies in farming such policy papers by different ministries and divisions. The GED should assign the key agency to prepare such a document."
Criticising the draft strategy paper, he said the document should incorporate the definition of 'sustainable development', which is absent here, and then finalise it ensuring consistency with other national policy documents.
Agriculture minister Matia Chowdhury expressed concern over the weak sides of the draft paper as she said it did not consider the 'higher population growth' as a major reason for throwing the country into poverty trap.
LGRD minister Syed Ashraful Islam said: "Higher population is more formidable a barrier to the country's development than the climate change impact. Given this fact, such a strategy paper should highlight the negative impacts of population growth."
Energy adviser Towfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury suggested merging of the environment ministry's strategy paper with the upcoming sixth five-year development plan, to be introduced from next 2010-11 fiscal.
State minister for environment Dr Hasan Mahmud said: "GED under the planning commission should frame the sustainable development strategy paper."
He suggested restructuring and improving the DoE-framed policy paper synchronizing it with the government's perspective plan 2021, and the 6th five-year plan under preparation.
After review of the draft paper, GED member Prof Shamsul Alam said it would be difficult to work out consistency with the perspective plan 2021 of the government as it will take a couple of month to finalise the vision paper.
"The data and information utilised in the draft paper are not updated. In addition, a lot of wrong information have been incorporated in the document," the GED member said.
Environment ministry officials said since Bangladesh has been the worst victim of the impact of the global warming, it needs to undertake development programmes which would be able to adapt to any future environmental shocks.
They said the country was far behind in the context of including environmental issues in its development strategy in the past, but it has now emerged as the top agenda before building any development plan and programmes.
Kazi Sarwar Imtiaz Hashmi, a director of the DoE, told the FE that they had framed the paper due to Bangladesh's commitment to the World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2007.
"The United Nations Environment Programme provided us financial support in preparing the strategy paper," he said adding, "now the cabinet has asked GED to revise our draft paper for finalisation."
A bitter row has been sparked between the ministry of environment and the planning commission on framing a strategy paper as the latter accused that preparation of such a document by the ministry contravenes the government's business rules.
The commission officials said the ministry's US$175,000 spending for preparing the National Sustainable Development Strategy has been a wastage as the government's highest authorities later assigned the commission to recast the whole document making it a consistent and updated one.
Experts and policymakers have termed the draft strategy paper of the environment ministry 'inconsistent' and 'weak' as it has failed to reflect the development strategies and policies of the government.
Department of Environment (DoE) under the environment ministry has framed the draft strategy paper early this year spending most of the $175,000 fund meant for consultants.
Since the strategy paper was termed 'inconsistent, the cabinet headed by the Prime Minister has recently asked the General Economics Division (GED) of the planning commission to restructure and improve the document to be followed up to 2020.
The government also formed a 17-member committee, headed by the planning minister and comprising finance, agriculture, local government & rural development, water resources and communications ministers, along with economic and energy advisers, to revise the document.
"As per the business rule of the government, we are entitled to prepare any national policy document. But the DoE neither informed us nor did incorporate our representation during drafting of the paper," GED member Prof Shamsul Alam told the FE.
At the first meeting, members of the government formed high-power committee said the draft strategy paper, farmed by DoE, must be revised ensuring consistency with the government's poverty reduction strategy paper (PRSP), the upcoming perspective plan 2021 and the sixth five-year plan.
Economic affairs adviser Dr Mashiur Rahman said: "There is possibility of inconsistencies in farming such policy papers by different ministries and divisions. The GED should assign the key agency to prepare such a document."
Criticising the draft strategy paper, he said the document should incorporate the definition of 'sustainable development', which is absent here, and then finalise it ensuring consistency with other national policy documents.
Agriculture minister Matia Chowdhury expressed concern over the weak sides of the draft paper as she said it did not consider the 'higher population growth' as a major reason for throwing the country into poverty trap.
LGRD minister Syed Ashraful Islam said: "Higher population is more formidable a barrier to the country's development than the climate change impact. Given this fact, such a strategy paper should highlight the negative impacts of population growth."
Energy adviser Towfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury suggested merging of the environment ministry's strategy paper with the upcoming sixth five-year development plan, to be introduced from next 2010-11 fiscal.
State minister for environment Dr Hasan Mahmud said: "GED under the planning commission should frame the sustainable development strategy paper."
He suggested restructuring and improving the DoE-framed policy paper synchronizing it with the government's perspective plan 2021, and the 6th five-year plan under preparation.
After review of the draft paper, GED member Prof Shamsul Alam said it would be difficult to work out consistency with the perspective plan 2021 of the government as it will take a couple of month to finalise the vision paper.
"The data and information utilised in the draft paper are not updated. In addition, a lot of wrong information have been incorporated in the document," the GED member said.
Environment ministry officials said since Bangladesh has been the worst victim of the impact of the global warming, it needs to undertake development programmes which would be able to adapt to any future environmental shocks.
They said the country was far behind in the context of including environmental issues in its development strategy in the past, but it has now emerged as the top agenda before building any development plan and programmes.
Kazi Sarwar Imtiaz Hashmi, a director of the DoE, told the FE that they had framed the paper due to Bangladesh's commitment to the World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2007.
"The United Nations Environment Programme provided us financial support in preparing the strategy paper," he said adding, "now the cabinet has asked GED to revise our draft paper for finalisation."