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PHOTO: STAR/FILE

ADP spending in July-March
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Research Institute of Bangladesh, an independent think-tank, said the slow implementation was related to the government’s financial issues.
Although nine months have already passed, the government can reach an average rate if adequate money can be disbursed, he added.
The government usually spends around 80 per cent of the total ADP budget and more than 90 per cent of the revised budget every year.
This year, taking the overall ADP implementation to 80 per cent will solely depend on the government’s fund disbursement capacity.
“The remaining three months are very crucial for the government as the revenue collection won’t increase by that much of an extent this year,” Mansur said.
As a result, the government will either have to borrow or cut down overall costs.
“But there should have been more emphasis on accelerating the implementation of the projects backed by foreign aid,” he added.
Spending from foreign loans has increased in the nine months following the Covid-19 period to reach around 52 per cent of that set aside. In fiscal year 2018-19, meaning prior to the emergence of the pandemic, it was 57 per cent.
Spending by state-owned enterprises came down to Tk 3,647 crore in the nine months to March against Tk 5,251 crore in FY22, the IMED data showed.
Though there has been no directive on restricting expenses in the health and education sectors, development expenditure in the segments has remained the lowest.
Among the fifteen highest recipients of ADP, the shipping ministry was the worst-performing division in the July-March period. Its spending stood at Tk 1,265 crore, accounting for only 27.26 per cent of its total allocation.
Other low performers include the health services division, the Ministry of Water Resources, and the secondary and higher education division.
The bridges division was the top performer as it spent 63.46 per cent of the budget.
The energy and mineral resources division came second with its expenditure standing at 56.27 per cent followed by the power division (55.79 per cent).

Capital machinery imports keep falling
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The latest Labour Force Survey data produced by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics showed that the number of jobs in the industrial sector dropped nearly 3 per cent to 1.20 crore in 2022. It was 1.24 crore in 2016-17.
The share of industrial jobs in the overall employment slipped to 17.02 per cent last year from 20.4 per cent five years ago.
Mansur said the data shows that the economy is softening and the overall economic growth will slow down.
“The most of the effect is likely to be on the economy in the next fiscal year.”
Mustafizur Rahman, a distinguished fellow of the Centre for Policy Dialogue, said the dip in the import of capital machinery is the result of the conservative steps that the Bangladesh Bank has taken to protect the reserves from further declining.
“But it carries an economic cost and that is being evidenced from the data. This will put an adverse effect on employment, investment and economic growth. And we will have to accept this cost.”
The forex reserves stood at $31.17 billion on April 12, down nearly 30 per cent from $44.27 billion on the same day last year, data from the BB showed.
Rahman suggested the government prioritise the implementation of the projects that will encourage private investments, take measures to reduce the cost of doing business and take fiscal measures in the coming financial year to stimulate exports and investments.