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No allocation for new roads in next budget: Muhith

Star Business Report
The government may not allocate funds for building new roads in the upcoming budget as the country has already one of the highest concentrations of roads in the world, Finance Minister AMA Muhith said yesterday.
"There is no need for new roads as the country has enough roads per capita. But it is true, we need more quality roads, so we will have to allocate more funds for road maintenance," Muhith said at a press briefing following a meeting with secretaries from all ministries at the National Economic Council.
Muhith plans to free up the roster of nonfunctional offices and employ them in offices where there is serious work pressure.
"There are many government offices which are heavily over-worked. At the same time, there are offices where there is not so much work. We should find some ways to use the idle excess capacity, instead of creating new capacity."
The issue of public-private partnership was discussed at the meeting.
"The system is not working. Responsibility has already been given to one to reform the system in order to make it more practical. We will act according to the recommendations."
All ministries will be instructed to issue e-tender for at least 10 percent of their procurement budget, Muhith said. "The defects of the e-tendering were raised - we have to address them."
Muhith went on to term the current planning process of the budget as impractical.
"The pro-forma we follow is absolutely archaic—we have to change them."
He also said he asked the ministries to follow the example of the ICT ministry and make the floors more open, where all officials will work in the same room. "The ICT ministry is functioning well. If the ICT ministry can do so, we should all be able to do it. The ministries housed in the old buildings might not be able to do so, but the floors in the new buildings can all be open. This can increase efficiency."
The government plans to overhaul the Monthly Payment Order (MPO) system as it has become a failed system.
The government's allocation to the system, particularly in the secondary education, would continue, according to the minister.
"It is now tied to the teachers and staff. It should be tied to the overall school system, its infrastructure, system of teaching and qualification of teachers and the number of teachers."
Muhith however said the government would not be able to do anything in the upcoming budget about the MPO.
"But we will do something about the current MPO system in the next budget," he said, adding that he asked the education ministry' to come with a plan for the major reform.
About his long-cherished plan for introducing district budget in the country, Muhith said: "At the end of our term, I think we will be able to give quite a few district budgets."