Strengthening Public Investment Management System Project in Bangladesh (November 2013–February 2018)

Bangladesh had seen strong economic growth since 2007. In 2009 the Government of Bangladesh (GOB) published the “Perspective Plan of Bangladesh 2010-2021,” whereby the GOB outlined its ambitious goal to become a middle-income country by 2021, increase annual GDP rate to 10%, and reduce the poverty rate to 13.5%. The realization of these goals required significant investments in public services by the government. However, an average of only 73% of the development programs budgeted under the Annual Development Programme (ADP) had been implemented over the 5 years since 2008, the average delay in the commencement of these projects was 2.9 years, and as a result, the average cost of the projects rose by 42%.

The objective of IC Net was twofold. One was to reexamine the government’s public investment strategy to determine how it contributed to the goals set forth in the mid-to long-term national development plan. Second was to clarify how public investment initiatives fit into the national fiscal framework. To meet these objectives, IC Net institutionalized the unit in charge of the public investment project to increase coordination among the agencies involved in the implementation of the project. IC Net worked to improve program design while creating a system for monitoring and evaluation. The ADP, which details the financing mechanism of government projects, was also revisited to devise a more strategic model consistent with the annual budget.