Unrest slows ADP pace

Political unrest has slowed the government's ADP implementation pace by 5 percentage points in the first five months of the current fiscal year compared to the same period a year ago.
Of the Tk 65,872 crore earmarked for the annual development programme (ADP) for the current fiscal year, only Tk 13,156 crore or 20 percent was spent during July-November.
But, Tk 13,574 crore or 25 percent of the original ADP at Tk 55,000 crore was spent in the same period last fiscal year.
Not only in percentage, the ADP spending declined in terms of amount also, according to the Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED).
Though ADP implementation traditionally slows down in the election years, officials of the planning ministry said the implementation rate was negative in recent months due to prolonged political crisis.
And the implementation of ADP for both government funds and foreign aid has dropped this time.
During July-November, Tk 8,985 crore or 22 percent of the ADP's local component or government fund was spent, though the amount was Tk 9,101 crore or 27 percent in the same period last fiscal year.
Of the foreign component, Tk 4,171 crore or 17 percent was spent during the period, down from Tk 4,473 crore or 21 percent during July-November last year.
The implementation of the development projects was hampered due to political instability, said Zahid Hussain, lead economist at the World Bank's Dhaka office.
He said shutdowns and blockades disrupted transportation of construction materials such as rods and cements.
Giving an example, an official of the IMED said the entire work of the Dhaka-Chittagong four-lane highway depends on smooth transportation of construction materials.
But the contractors were unable to carry the materials to the project sites due to political violence, he added.
Risk aversion also increased delays in project implementation, Hussain said, adding that proper supervision was not possible due to the political turmoil.
An official at the Economic Relations Division said development partners usually monitor the projects, but officials of many of the development partners did not come to Bangladesh of late.
The IMED official said many projects were awarded on political consideration and such contractors have taken a wait-and-see approach, keeping an eye on the political developments.
ADP implementation will speed up again once the political crisis is over, the official said.
WB's Hussain said it would not be possible for the government to implement this year's ADP and it would have to be revised.
Many ministries have started refunding their allocations, a planning ministry official said.
Of the 10 large ministries, performance of only four ministries or departments was above the average, according to IMED statistics. Those are local government (31 percent), primary and mass education (30 percent), and education and railways 25 percent each.
The Energy and Mineral Resources Division spent only 17 percent of its ADP allocation, while Power Division 13 percent, housing and public works 10 percent, health and family welfare 17 percent, Roads Division 20 percent, and Bridges Division 2 percent.