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Digital promise unmade

Habibullah N Karim
On Thursday, the third budget of the Awami League-led government was placed at parliament. In continuation of the upswing in budgetary outlays of recent years, the latest budget marks an increase of Tk 33,578 crore which is 26 percent more than the revised budget for 2010-11.
The budget speech highlighted the "Digital Bangladesh” vision of the present government both at the beginning and at the end, while a specific section was devoted to Digital Bangladesh initiatives.
The Digital Bangladesh section of the budget speech even mentioned the ICT Policy adopted by the government in 2009 and the government's commitment to fulfil the306 actions embodied in the ICT policy. However, when it came to budgetary allocations the budgetary documents gave no sectional tallies on Digital Bangladesh.
The budget documents have added the allocations for the science and ICT ministry together with education while primary and mass education has a separate section. Allocations for the ministry of post and telecommunications have been added together with transport and communications.
Digital Bangladesh seems to be the only major theme of the budget speech without a sectional tally. In the absence of a sectional tally, it is very difficult to tell the extent of total budgetary allocations earmarked for ICT development.
However, it is clear from the development allocations to the ministries of science and ICT and post and telecoms that no significant changes are afoot even compared to the budgets prior to 2009. The development allocations of Tk 215 crore for the science and ICT ministry is 26 percent higher than last year's which would put it at par with the overall increase in budgetary outlays but utilisation in the last one year is at least 31 percent below allocations as is evident from the revised budget for 2010-11. The allocation of Tk 222 crore for the post and telecom ministry is 39 percent higher than last year but is below the allocations in 2009-10.
The finance minister highlighted many achievements under the Digital Bangladesh agenda such as increasing internet and telecom penetration rates, gradually enveloping the country with fibre-optic cables, setting up computer laboratories in schools, introducing e-procurements and others, all of which are in continuation of incremental developments in these areas for many years now.
We are yet to see a clear thrust on Digital Bangladesh beyond policy guidelines and directives. In fact the quantum leap in thrust on digital workplans as set forth in the national ICT policy 2009 never came. While acute deficiencies and longterm investment needs in power generation, food security and climate change rightly merited continued special allocations but even in the third budget of the "Digital Bangladesh era”, I am disappointed not to see allocation for the modest $100 million ICT development fund, as postulatedin thelCT policy2009.
In fact the last three budgets have a long way to go to meet the ICT policy stipulation of 2 percent
of revenue budget and 5 percent of development budget to be allocated for ICT development across all government agencies and activities. The ICT policy made this provision so that the state can harness its resources optimally; increase accountability, transparency and productivity; and recoup many times more than the ICT allocations through lowering wastes and increasing efficiency.
The long-term return-on-invest from ICT development activities are just as important as ensuring adequate power, food and climate adaptation. The incremental developments in ICT will go on as the natural endowment factors are in our
favour (large Anglophone population, low wages, low establishment costs, etc.).
However, to leapfrog into the ranks of digital nations by2021, the government needs to provide adequate push through setting up ICT skills development centres, software parks, business-focused research and development projects and fostering an active import-substitute ICT procurement agenda by granting contracts to local firms only. Without that the “Digital Bangladesh” will remain a feel-good slogan only.
The author is the immediate past president of Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services.