In an effort to guarantee the correct and timely execution of the programs, the government has taken the initiative to periodically assess the status of the projects supported by foreign sources

A committee led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Principal Secretary has been established to assess the status of projects funded by foreign grants every two months. 

After a nine-year break, she chaired the Bangladesh Planning Commission's third meeting on Wednesday at the NEC conference room in the capital, where she also formed the committee.

In 2015, the Planning Commission convened for its second meeting.

Following the meeting, Planning Division Senior Secretary Satyajit Karmakar briefed media, stating that the premier had instructed the relevant authorities to appropriately use the supported project funds to guarantee their seamless distribution.

He stated, "She (the PM) established a committee, led by the PM's principal secretary, to assess the foreign-funded projects' progress every two months and identify the issues and obstacles of such projects in order to ensure smooth implementation and prompt disbursement of foreign funds."

According to the planning secretary, the prime minister recommended taking on significant projects that would provide a high rate of return rather than smaller, less significant ones.

Major General (retd) Abdus Salam, the minister of planning, reported that a proposal to establish a project review committee made up of all Planning Commission members was brought up during the meeting in order to carry out appropriate and significant projects.

After learning that this technique will speed up the project selection and review procedure, the prime minister approved the idea.

Speaking about the PM's instructions from the meeting, the Minister of Planning stated that she placed a high value on carrying out the feasibility assessment correctly before to starting a project. If not, he warned, there will be a delay in the project and an increase in costs and time.

Salam stated that in order to guarantee the projects are implemented on time, the meeting focused on educating the project directors and discussing the creation of an expert panel or pool of project directors.

According to the Minister, the Prime Minister issued instructions for carrying out foreign-funded projects in accordance with the relevant agreements.

In response to a query, the Planning Secretary stated that the government's overall public investment scenario as it has accelerated growth was covered in the meeting. In FY23, the public investment to GDP ratio was 7.6%, up from 5.5 percent in 2011. He pointed out that the government has gradually raised this kind of public investment.

The Planning Minister denied the prospect of stopping development partners' financing of the assisted projects when questioned about it.

 "We won't remain inactive if someone does something like that. The nation now has an elected administration, therefore nobody could have any influence over us. The development partners are not providing us with interest-free loans; instead, they will receive interest in addition to the principle. The government and the development partners both want the initiatives to be carried out properly," he stated.

According to Salam, the discussion at the meeting also included whether the development projects and the eighth five-year plan are in line. In addition, efforts are being made to draft the ninth five-year plan, he added.