Timely implementation of development projects and relevant issues
Monday, 18 June 2007
Shamsul Huq Zahid
THE present caretaker government, it seems, is serious about addressing the problems that have been affecting the implementation of the annual development programme (ADP) for decades.
It has taken a number of initiatives that are intended to expedite the implementation of development projects and ensure transparency and accountability.
The government has, reportedly, decided to chart out a roadmap for implementation of the annual development programme (ADP) for the next financial year (2007-08) avoiding the usual time lag.
The chief adviser (CA) will be holding a meeting with the top bureaucrats in the third week of next month to discuss the proposed roadmap. The CA had earlier asked the ministries and executing agencies of the government to frame a time-bound work plan for the implementation of the projects under the ADP for the next fiscal. The ministries and agencies are to submit their respective plans to the Planning Commission by June 30 next.
What is more important here is that the CA has also instructed the secretaries of different ministries to prepare bar-charts indicating implementation progress for a joint review of major projects on a monthly basis in key sectors, including power and energy.
The CA's directive coincided with an aide memoir issued by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) asking the government to expedite implementation of four projects for which the Bank lent out $347.7 million to avoid them falling into ' at risk' category.
An ADB review mission identified delay in awarding contracts and reformulation, slow rate of implementation etc., as major causes behind the said projects facing the threat of falling into 'at risk' category. The Bank, according to a newspaper report, has already asked the government to refund $11.39 million from the Sundarbans Biodiversity Conservation project that has fallen into the 'at risk' category.
The slow implementation of development projects by the line ministries and various government agencies has been a perennial problem in this country. The delay in the release of fund by the finance ministry coupled with low implementation capacity has always contributed to the poor progress in ADP implementation until first three quarters of a financial year.
However, for mysterious reasons, the implementing agencies are found to be unusually efficient in the last quarter so far as implementation of development projects is concerned. The average rate of fund utilisation under the ADP during the first three quarters hardly exceeds 40 to 45 per cent. But at the end of the fiscal, the rate of implementation is projected at 90 to 95 per cent.
This hurried pace of project implementation creates scopes for misappropriation and misuse of funds allocated against different development projects.
However, this is for the first time, the government will be placing on the website of one of its agencies-the Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED)-the progress in the implementation of some major development projects for the sake of 'transparency'.
It has selected 100 ongoing and new projects that will be on display in the IMED website from July 15 next. The IMED, according to the government decision, will update regularly the details of these projects, including their financial positions. At the same time, the ministry of finance has been asked to provide updated monthly financial report on resource distribution and utilisation on its website.
All these measures, according to government sources, are aimed at maintaining transparency in development project implementation and facilitating the members of the public to express their individual views.
However, there are reasons to be sceptical about the success of the government move if it is really intended to reduce corruption and misuse of resources in the implementation of development projects.
Putting up a few figures on development projects and their updating from time to time on the website do not necessarily fulfil the objective of becoming transparent. It would be difficult for the public to make head and tail of the figures. Nor will they be interested to see the project details on the website.
For instance, if the IMED website carries the details of a power plant project being implemented by the power development board, will it be possible for a common man to question the veracity of the figures on display since he or she does not know anything about the situation on the ground.
All these measures can at best meet the demand for the people's right to information about the government's development expenditure, nothing more than that. If the government really means business so far as timely implementation of development projects is concerned, it will have to have an expanded and efficient IMED that will not remain dependent on the feedback from the development project executing agencies to prepare its report.
The IMED should have adequate and qualified officials who would make visits to project sites to determine the actual progress in project implementation and detect misappropriation of project funds, if there is any. The Division should also be given the authority to recommend actions against officials, contractors and suppliers found involved in any wrongdoing.
Besides, the implementation capacity of the line ministries and government agencies needs to be improved sufficiently with the recruitment of adequately qualified manpower for the purpose.
Finally, the government needs to give up the habit of presenting a bloated ADP before the start of a financial year and ending up with a downsized one due to resource constraints. This practice has been a major irritant to the task of ADP implementation. If seen in the context of budgetary resources, the ADP that has been proposed for the next financial year is also a bloated one and the government might have to go for downsizing in the middle or fag end of the next fiscal.
THE present caretaker government, it seems, is serious about addressing the problems that have been affecting the implementation of the annual development programme (ADP) for decades.
It has taken a number of initiatives that are intended to expedite the implementation of development projects and ensure transparency and accountability.
The government has, reportedly, decided to chart out a roadmap for implementation of the annual development programme (ADP) for the next financial year (2007-08) avoiding the usual time lag.
The chief adviser (CA) will be holding a meeting with the top bureaucrats in the third week of next month to discuss the proposed roadmap. The CA had earlier asked the ministries and executing agencies of the government to frame a time-bound work plan for the implementation of the projects under the ADP for the next fiscal. The ministries and agencies are to submit their respective plans to the Planning Commission by June 30 next.
What is more important here is that the CA has also instructed the secretaries of different ministries to prepare bar-charts indicating implementation progress for a joint review of major projects on a monthly basis in key sectors, including power and energy.
The CA's directive coincided with an aide memoir issued by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) asking the government to expedite implementation of four projects for which the Bank lent out $347.7 million to avoid them falling into ' at risk' category.
An ADB review mission identified delay in awarding contracts and reformulation, slow rate of implementation etc., as major causes behind the said projects facing the threat of falling into 'at risk' category. The Bank, according to a newspaper report, has already asked the government to refund $11.39 million from the Sundarbans Biodiversity Conservation project that has fallen into the 'at risk' category.
The slow implementation of development projects by the line ministries and various government agencies has been a perennial problem in this country. The delay in the release of fund by the finance ministry coupled with low implementation capacity has always contributed to the poor progress in ADP implementation until first three quarters of a financial year.
However, for mysterious reasons, the implementing agencies are found to be unusually efficient in the last quarter so far as implementation of development projects is concerned. The average rate of fund utilisation under the ADP during the first three quarters hardly exceeds 40 to 45 per cent. But at the end of the fiscal, the rate of implementation is projected at 90 to 95 per cent.
This hurried pace of project implementation creates scopes for misappropriation and misuse of funds allocated against different development projects.
However, this is for the first time, the government will be placing on the website of one of its agencies-the Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED)-the progress in the implementation of some major development projects for the sake of 'transparency'.
It has selected 100 ongoing and new projects that will be on display in the IMED website from July 15 next. The IMED, according to the government decision, will update regularly the details of these projects, including their financial positions. At the same time, the ministry of finance has been asked to provide updated monthly financial report on resource distribution and utilisation on its website.
All these measures, according to government sources, are aimed at maintaining transparency in development project implementation and facilitating the members of the public to express their individual views.
However, there are reasons to be sceptical about the success of the government move if it is really intended to reduce corruption and misuse of resources in the implementation of development projects.
Putting up a few figures on development projects and their updating from time to time on the website do not necessarily fulfil the objective of becoming transparent. It would be difficult for the public to make head and tail of the figures. Nor will they be interested to see the project details on the website.
For instance, if the IMED website carries the details of a power plant project being implemented by the power development board, will it be possible for a common man to question the veracity of the figures on display since he or she does not know anything about the situation on the ground.
All these measures can at best meet the demand for the people's right to information about the government's development expenditure, nothing more than that. If the government really means business so far as timely implementation of development projects is concerned, it will have to have an expanded and efficient IMED that will not remain dependent on the feedback from the development project executing agencies to prepare its report.
The IMED should have adequate and qualified officials who would make visits to project sites to determine the actual progress in project implementation and detect misappropriation of project funds, if there is any. The Division should also be given the authority to recommend actions against officials, contractors and suppliers found involved in any wrongdoing.
Besides, the implementation capacity of the line ministries and government agencies needs to be improved sufficiently with the recruitment of adequately qualified manpower for the purpose.
Finally, the government needs to give up the habit of presenting a bloated ADP before the start of a financial year and ending up with a downsized one due to resource constraints. This practice has been a major irritant to the task of ADP implementation. If seen in the context of budgetary resources, the ADP that has been proposed for the next financial year is also a bloated one and the government might have to go for downsizing in the middle or fag end of the next fiscal.