Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has directed the authorities to significantly reduce consultancy costs in Development Project Proposals (DPPs) and ensure strict accountability for delays in project implementation without logical justification.

State Minister for Planning Zonayed Abdur Rahim Saki disclosed this while briefing journalists at the NEC conference room in the city after the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) meeting held at the Bangladesh Secretariat with ECNEC Chairman and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman in the chair.

The Prime Minister directed that consultancy expenses included in DPPs should be scrutinised and reduced significantly across development projects, said the State Minister.

“The Prime Minister also stressed that project timelines should not be extended without valid and logical grounds. If a project deadline is extended without proper justification, the officials and executing agencies responsible for the delay will be held accountable,” Saki said.

The state minister said executing agencies would now have to provide clear explanations for seeking extensions, which would be subject to rigorous scrutiny.

The government is giving the highest priority to ensuring that ongoing and new development projects are implemented within their approved timeframes and budgets, he added.

The State Minister said the Prime Minister also emphasised the need to rethink the existing practice of conducting feasibility studies merely as an administrative formality.

“Feasibility studies have to be conducted with adequate depth and technical accuracy so that design changes, cost escalation and implementation complications can be avoided later,” he said.

Regarding procedural anomalies in the development project for Jashore, Saidpur and Shah Makhdum airports, the Prime Minister ordered a formal investigation.

Saki said budget adjustments made by the Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) in 2023 were not reflected in the Development Project Proposal in a timely manner, prompting the Prime Minister to order an investigation into the matter.

The Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) has already submitted investigation reports on eight projects to the Prime Minister, while reports on four more projects will be submitted shortly, he said.

The reports are being forwarded to the respective ministries and divisions for taking necessary corrective measures, according to the State Minister.

Highlighting the government's efforts to reduce regional disparities, Saki said a Tk 1,600-crore rural infrastructure project is being implemented in Rangpur Division to construct roads, culverts and bridges in rural areas.

He said the project is aimed at improving rural connectivity and addressing regional economic disparities.

The government is also working to integrate eight major automation initiatives under a high-level committee to strengthen digital governance and financial oversight, said the State Minister.

The initiatives include automation systems involving the National Board of Revenue (NBR), Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), Integrated Budget and Accounting System (iBAS++), Bangladesh Bank and the “One Citizen, One Number, One Wallet” initiative.

He said the integration would help ensure interoperability among digital systems, reduce human intervention in the distribution of social safety-net benefits and strengthen digital monitoring of the banking sector.

The initiative is also expected to help strengthen oversight to prevent non-performing loans (NPLs) and financial irregularities, he added.