Slow reform pace irks top brass
The Chief Adviser's Office (CAO) said it was unhappy over poor progress in implementing the recommendations made by the Regulatory Reforms Commission and Bangladesh Better Business Forum.
The CAO has directed related ministries and divisions to form a six-member committee headed by an additional or joint secretary to speed up implementation, according to a letter issued on September 10 by CAO.
The caretaker government formed the Regulatory Reforms Commission (RRC) and Bangladesh Better Business Forum (BBBF) in October and November last year to promote business activities and accelerate economic growth.
“But progress in implementing most recommendations of RRC and BBBF was poor,” the letter said.
According to government officials, the BBBF held 40 meetings and submitted a total of 249 recommendations with 113 approved for implementation.
Of them, 52 recommendations have been implemented and another 61 are in the process of implementation, officials said.
The RRC held seven meetings and submitted 33 recommendations in 11 interim reports, but nearly all recommendations remained unimplemented.
“Only one recommendation by RRC -- posting gazette notifications on the Web -- has come through,” RRC Chairman Akbar Ali Khan told The Daily Star.
“No other recommendations are fully implemented yet," said the former caretaker government adviser.
Khan blamed slow implementation on the ministries and divisions that he said did not take necessary steps.
Professor MA Taslim, a BBBF member, said: "Things will change gradually."
“It's an ongoing process. Nothing will happen overnight,” Taslim said.
“If there is a strong political will, a lot of changes will take place, especially in ICT and skill-development areas."
Tangible implementation of BBBF recommendations was noticed in SME refinancing and reducing the spread between lending and deposit rates.
Taslim however blamed poor implementation of the BBBF recommendations on the government agencies' poor performance.
The BBBF had planned to achieve concrete results through ministerial actions. The forum had also made plans to brand a stronger Bangladesh to foreign investors and improve the overall business climate at home.
The BBBF was formed with 39 members, including 17 from the government and 22 from private and civil society groups.
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