The government has formed a high-level committee to conduct a sweeping review of ongoing development projects, aiming to curb wasteful spending and ensure alignment with national priorities, Finance and Planning Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury said.
The move comes under the directive of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, as part of broader efforts to improve fiscal discipline and strengthen accountability in public spending.
“The committee, convened by the Prime Minister’s Adviser on Finance and Planning Dr Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir, will examine projects that have faced prolonged delays or repeated cost escalations,” Khosru told reporters. “This clean-up is essential to deliver on our commitments to the people.”
He was speaking after the first meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) under the newly formed BNP government, chaired by the Prime Minister, at the Secretariat.
According to the minister, the committee will assess which projects should be discontinued, extended, or redesigned, while also identifying priority areas for new initiatives.
“This is about removing non-performing projects to create space for those that deliver real value to the public,” he said.
At the ECNEC meeting, 19 projects were placed for consideration, though only seven were reviewed during the session. Of those, several received approval, while others were sent back for further scrutiny.
“We must be cautious—every taka spent is taxpayers’ money,” Khosru said, noting that many existing projects have raised questions over their necessity and economic rationale.
He added that the government aims to quickly clear a backlog of questionable projects and redirect resources toward initiatives that reflect its manifesto and address immediate public needs.
Speaking separately, Adviser Dr Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir said many projects in the past had been undertaken on political grounds rather than economic merit, often lacking clear returns on investment.
“The committee will rigorously evaluate these projects to determine whether they should continue,” he said.
Titumir also underscored the need to move away from politically driven spending practices toward a system where public funds are used strictly for public welfare.
He noted that development spending in Bangladesh has long suffered from weak oversight, with costs frequently inflated. At the same time, operating expenditures have risen faster than allocations for the Annual Development Programme (ADP), which represents capital investment critical to growth.
“If the quality and implementation rate of ADP projects do not improve, economic growth will remain under pressure,” he warned.
Responding to questions on political bias, Titumir acknowledged that development projects had often been used in the past for partisan purposes. He said the current government is seeking to align all projects with national priorities and the public mandate.
“The goal is to ensure every project serves the national interest,” he added.