United News of Bangladesh

The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on Wednesday approved 10 projects but put two others on hold to review possible duplication and overlapping activities with similar projects. State Minister for Planning Zonayed Abdur Rahim Saki said this while briefing reporters after the ECNEC meeting chaired by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. One of the projects kept on hold is the acquisition of two product oil tankers with a capacity ranging from 4,000 to 55,000 deadweight tonnes, estimated to cost Tk 1,457.80 crore from government funds. Saki said the project was deferred as the government is reviewing its possible overlap with another initiative involving the purchase of four similar vessels, for which a memorandum of understanding was signed during the Prime Minister’s recent visit to China. He said the Planning Ministry has been working with different ministries to identify similar projects, eliminate duplication and, where possible, merge them into coordinated initiatives. “The review process is now at an advanced stage. The tanker project will be considered again after examining it alongside the similar project so that duplication can be avoided,” he said. The other project put on hold is the “Metro Dhaka Project: Goran Chatbari Retention Pond and Turag River Protection and Conservation Project”, under the Ministry of Water Resources and to be implemented by the Bangladesh Water Development Board. The project has an estimated cost of Tk 567.04 crore, including a World Bank loan of Tk 424.73 crore and government funding of Tk 142.31 crore. The state minister said the project was deferred in view of an ongoing initiative to prepare an integrated plan covering the rivers and water bodies from the Turag to the Buriganga in Dhaka.  “We have a preliminary understanding that around 11 projects are currently operating in different ways in this area. We need to coordinate these projects and avoid duplication,” the state minister said. He added that the government wants to bring Dhaka’s overall water management and water bodies under a comprehensive plan before taking a final decision on the project. The state minister said the two projects would be reviewed through further meetings before being placed for approval again. The state minister also said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman unveiled two volumes of a five-year strategic framework prepared by the General Economics Division (GED) of the Planning Ministry. The GED initiated preparation of the strategic framework after the government assumed office. Its draft was approved on May 18 and subsequently endorsed by the Prime Minister at a meeting of the National Economic Council. The framework has now been finalised and formally unveiled, Saki said.