As the clock ticks down on fiscal year, Bangladesh spends only 41% of development budget

With just two months remaining in the current fiscal year, Bangladesh has managed to implement only 41.31 percent of its Annual Development Plan (ADP), marking the lowest 10-month implementation rate in the past 15 years.

As of April, the slow pace of project execution raises concerns about the government’s ability to meet development targets before the fiscal year closes in June.

The implementation rate is significantly lower than last year’s 49.26 percent during the same period, according to the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED).

In fact, the figure appears deceptively higher due to a mid-year downsizing of the ADP.

Earlier in February, implementation stood at just 24.27 percent, and the 10-month figure was expected to hover around 33 percent before the revision.

Political unrest during the first half of the fiscal year severely disrupted development activities. While some momentum was regained in December, progress stalled again in the subsequent months.

In April alone, over Tk 105.3 billion was spent—equivalent to just 4.66 percent of the revised ADP. By comparison, Tk 177.03 billion or 6.96 percent was spent in the same month last year.

Cumulatively, Tk 934.24 billion has been spent on ADP projects in the first 10 months of FY24, compared to Tk 1,253.15 billion during the same period in the previous fiscal year.

Following Sunday’s National Economic Council (NEC) meeting that approved the proposed ADP for FY2024–25, Planning Advisor Wahiduddin Mahmud acknowledged the weak performance during a media briefing.

“I’ve said it before—actual implementation would fall well short of this year’s allocation,” he remarked.

“We had to rigorously scrutinise projects and make cuts. On top of that, many contractors and project directors have left, further slowing progress.”