Staff Reporter:
The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) yesterday approved 17 develop-ment projects in different sectors like health, power and energy, agriculture, road communication,
infrastructures involving a total estimated cost of Taka 15,383.51 crore to infuse dynamism in the coun-try’s development initiatives.
Of this, Taka 9,451.84 crore will come from the government’s own funds, while Taka 5,609.70 crore from project loans, and Taka 379.31 crore from the concerned organization’s own resources.
The approval came at a meeting of the ECNEC held yesterday at the NEC Conference Room in the city’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area chaired by Chief Adviser and ECNEC Chairperson Professor Dr Muhammad Yunus.
Of the approved projects, 12 are new and five are revised projects.
Briefing reporters after the meeting, Planning Adviser Dr Wahiduddin Mahmud said although the gov-ernment’s ambitious reforms to the public procurement system are temporarily slowing down the imple-mentation of the Annual Development Program (ADP), but the overhaul is essential to dismantle long-
standing contractor monopolies and ensure greater transparency in project execution.
Dr Mahmud admitted that ADP implementation has not become dynamic despite continual efforts.
“The old problems are still there. The biggest challenge is that people are now reluctant to take up the role of project director, and contractors are no longer showing the same level of enthusiasm as before,” he said.
According to him, this hesitation stems mainly from the introduction of the new Public Procurement Policy 2025, which has brought in far stricter transparency standards.
“For years, a handful of powerful contractors controlled major national infrastructure works-highways, railways, everything. The evaluation system was shaped in a way that ensured that only those who previ-ously secured the contracts would get them again,” he continued.
He emphasised that the 2025 policy is a “major reform”, making it impossible for any party to secure contracts anonymously or through proxy arrangements.
“One can’t take a contract under someone else’s name. Anyone winning a contract must disclose full in-formation about their businesses, tax status, and any affiliated enterprises. Everything must be open,” he explained.
Dr Mahmud stated that this transparency requirement has made the contracting environment stricter and has somewhat discouraged habitual contractors.
At the same time, the government has incorporated provisions allowing new and young entrepreneurs-even those without previous contracting experience-to participate as minor partners in large tenders.
“We can’t let the same contractors dominate forever. Those who run their businesses honestly and pay taxes should have the opportunity to enter this sector. Particularly the younger generation must be given space,” he noted.
He added that the new digital and fully online evaluation system-from the upazila level to the highest purchase committees-is also taking time to adjust to, especially for large purchases. “They will have to learn. That’s why there is some delay,” he said.
The Planning Adviser also pointed to structural challenges at the local level. Upazila and district coun-cils, now run entirely by government officials until elected representatives return under a future politi-cal
government, are saddled with numerous projects but lack the time to supervise them adequately.
To address this, ECNEC has recently attached a set of mandatory conditions to all newly approved local-ly implemented projects, especially those under the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED).
One key requirement is institutionalized community monitoring, ensuring that beneficiaries and local residents are involved in project oversight. “This is logical. People living in the area know best whether the road, bridge, or construction work is being done with quality materials. They should be able to resist poor-quality work,” he said.
He added that although such conditions existed before, they were rarely enforced. ECNEC is now mak-ing these obligations binding.
In addition, project locations must display publicly accessible information-including total cost, progress, contractor identity, and details of materials used.
Dr Mahmud noted that similar disclosure rules had been introduced during the late 1990s when he previ-ously served in government, “but after some time everyone forgets”.
The adviser stressed that transparency, local involvement, and strict monitoring are essential as the coun-try seeks to boost employment through community-level development works.
The 17 projects approved yesterday are as follows: Sustainable Agricultural Development in Chattogram Agricultural Region with Taka 255.96 crore; Quality Seed Potato Production, Storage and Distribu-tion to Farmers (Second Revised) with an additional cost of Taka 411.31 crore;
Drilling of Three Exploration Wells (Shrikail Deep-1, Mobarakpur Deep-1, Fenchuganj South-1) with Taka 1,136.25 crore; Construction of Sonagazi 220 MW Solar Power Plant with Taka 1,888.10 crore; Construction of 1,560 Residential Flats for Families of July warriors Disabled During the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement 2024 at Mirpur Section 9 with Taka 1,344.41 crore; Construction of ’36 July’ Residential Flats for Families of Martyrs of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement 2024 on NHA-Owned Land with Taka 761.16 crore; Modernization of Existing Electrical, Mechanical and Fire Safety Equipment at Bangladesh Secretariat, Transport Pool, Ministers’ Apartments and Secretary Residences with Taka 112.87 crore; Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Development Project (Line 6) (Third Re-vised) with a reduced cost of Taka 754.26 crore; Upgrading of Sirajganj-Raiganj (Chandaikona) (Z-5042) District Highway to Standard Width with Taka 283.24 crore.
The other projects approved in the meeting are: Narayanganj Green and Resilient Urban Development Project (NGRUDP) with Taka 1,694.75 crore; Autism and NDD Service Center (2nd Revised) with an additional cost of Taka 50.45 crore; Japan Human Resources Development Scholarship Project (JDS) (Second Phase) with Taka 251.59 crore; Digital Entrepreneurship and Innovation Ecosystem Develop-ment (First Revised) with an additional cost of Taka 178.12 crore; Completion of Construction of 10-Storey Academic and Central Research Laboratory Building and Other Facilities at Noakhali Science and Technology University with Taka 334.46 crore; Climate Responsive Reproductive Health and Population Services Improvement and System Strengthening for Results with Taka 4,062.07 crore; Establishment of Essential Biotech and Research Center, Munshiganj (1st Revised) with an additional cost of Taka 385 crore; Implementation of Essential Activities of DGHS, DGDA and Community Clinic Health Support Trust with Taka 2,987.99 crore.
The meeting was also informed about 15 projects costing less than Taka 50 crore that were previously approved by the Planning Adviser.
The meeting was attended by Planning Adviser Dr Wahiduddin Mahmud; Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain; Food and Land Adviser Ali Imam Majumder; Social Welfare and Women and Children Affairs Adviser Sharmin S. Murshid; Home and Agriculture Adviser Lt Gen Md Jahangir Alam Chow-dhury (Retd); Industries and Housing and Public Works Adviser Adilur Rahman Khan; Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, Road Transport and Bridges and Railways Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan; Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Water Resources Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan; Health and Family Welfare Adviser Nurjahan Begum; Education Adviser Prof Dr Chowdhury Rafiqul Abrar, as well as senior government officials.
