The planning ministry on Sunday asked the project directors under the annual development programme to surrender the allocated funds which are likely to remain unspent by the current financial year 2014-15, officials said. The portion of total allocation which may remain unused in the FY15 will have to be surrendered to the planning ministry by March so that the ministry can reallocate the funds to better performing projects with possibility of completion in the stipulated time, they said.
In two meetings with the project directors, planning minister AHM Mustafa Kamal also instructed them for ensuring full utilisation of foreign funds under the ADP.
Kamal met around 700 PDs in the meetings held at the ministry to expedite the implementation of the ADP amid dismal performance of the ministries in execution of funds in July-January period of the current financial year.
In the FY15, there are 1,287 development projects under the ADP and the ministry will sit with the remaining PDs on Wednesday.
In the first seven months of the FY15, ministries and divisions could spend only 32 per cent of total allocation of Tk 80,315 crore in the ADP for the financial year.
At the meetings, planning minister expressed dissatisfaction over poor performance of the ADP implementing agencies in utilisation of the foreign resources.
The general tendency shows that PDs feel more comfort in utilising the government funds than foreign funds which is not acceptable at all, he said.
The planning ministry and Economic Resources Division of the finance ministry will find out ways soon to solve the problem, the minister said.
Kamal also instructed the PDs to adopt a procurement plan at the very beginning of the next financial year and complete the procurement of goods and services by the first three months to expedite the overall ADP implementation process.
Planning ministry from now will appoint the PDs after evaluating their previous performance in execution of development projects, the meeting decided.
Better performing PDs will be appointed for important projects.
At the meetings, state minister for finance and planning MA Mannan, Planning Division secretary Shafiqul Azam, Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division secretary Shahid Ullah Khandaker, among others, attended the meeting.
-With New Age input
