140 Officials Seek Foreign Trips to Learn Population Report Writing
Graphics: Agamir Somoy
At a time when the government has adopted various austerity measures, 140 officials want to travel abroad to learn how to write population reports at a cost of Tk 30 million. The proposal has drawn questions from officials within the Planning Commission itself. Facing strong objections from them, the Health Education and Family Welfare Division’s proposal is being sent back.
Foreign travel in the name of training under development projects is nothing new. Bureaucrats often travel abroad whenever they get the opportunity, with or without valid reasons—something that has seemingly become a permanent culture. Sometimes such proposals are halted during the scrutiny process at the commission. Most of the time, however, they get approved. As a result, government funds have been wasted for years without interruption. Those who make such proposals face no meaningful consequences. At most, they are asked to revise and resubmit the proposal. As a result, such incidents continue to recur.
The war in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have triggered an economic downturn across the world. Bangladesh has also been affected. To deal with the situation, the government has adopted various austerity measures. It has already suspended special interest-free advance loans for government employees to purchase vehicles. At the same time, government officials are not allowed to participate in foreign training, workshops and seminars funded by the government.
In addition, the purchase of vehicles and construction of new buildings under development projects have also been suspended. The government has also instructed all agencies to ensure ‘value for money’ in every expenditure so that limited public resources can be used in the most effective and efficient manner.
Experts believe that proposing training for officials under this population-related project despite such government restrictions amounts to a form of misconduct.
When asked, former Planning Division Secretary Mamun-Al-Rashid told Agamir Somoy, “Those who make such proposals should definitely be brought under accountability. At the same time, the commission should recommend strict punishment. If the ministries take such recommendations into consideration, unnecessary foreign trips and other excessive expenditure proposals will stop in the future.”
According to Planning Commission sources, 135 officials want to go abroad to learn how to prepare population and nutrition reports. Another five officials want to pursue higher degrees overseas. For this, nearly Tk 30 million has been sought. The initiative has been taken by the Health Education and Family Welfare Division. If approved, the project titled ‘Population, Research and Training Development’ will be implemented by the National Institute of Population Research and Training (NIPORT).
The proposal also includes the purchase of 200 air conditioners and an allocation of Tk 300 million for research activities. At a meeting of the Project Evaluation Committee (PEC) on June 22, project officials were asked to explain the proposal. Ultimately, the Development Project Proposal (DPP) is being returned for revision so that allocations in these sectors can be adjusted to reasonable levels in line with government directives.
According to relevant sources, the project’s estimated cost is Tk 1.1757 billion. If approved after processing, it is scheduled to begin this year and be implemented by June 2028. The stated objective of the project is to strengthen the capacity of institutions under NIPORT to improve the quality of public health research and training.
It has been learned that Nasrin Jahan, member (secretary) of the Socio-Economic Infrastructure Division of the Planning Commission, asked about the proposed foreign trips during the PEC meeting. In response, a representative of the Health Ministry said that NIPORT officials would go abroad to pursue these degrees in order to enhance their capacity.
Agamir Somoy spoke with Narayan Kumar Roy, curriculum specialist at NIPORT and one of the officials responsible for preparing the project. He said, “Around 130 new officials have joined us. Since this is a training institute, how can it function if the officials themselves are not trained? That is why such a proposal was included. Besides, when the project was prepared, there were no government restrictions. Now, whatever decision the Planning Commission makes, that will be final.”
In response to another question, he said that no specific country had been selected yet. If the proposal is approved, the destination will be determined later.
According to sources, during the PEC meeting, Dr. Shah Mohammad Helal Uddin, head (additional secretary) of the Socio-Economic Infrastructure Division, questioned the necessity of purchasing jeeps and minibuses under the project. In response, NIPORT representatives said the vehicles were needed to transport trainees to training centers in Dhaka and outside the capital. At that time, Helal Uddin said that the opinion of the Finance Division’s manpower committee must be obtained and that the vehicle-related proposal should be incorporated into the revised DPP accordingly.
Planning Commission member (secretary) Nasrin Jahan also questioned the justification for purchasing 200 air conditioners. She said that since training centers outside Dhaka are not all of the same size, they may not require an equal number of air conditioners.
In response, NIPORT representatives said that 35 training centers across the country do not have adequate air conditioning. They said training rooms currently have four to five fans, which create excessive noise. The sound of the fans and extreme heat disrupt the learning environment for trainees. In such cases, they said, air conditioners would allow training activities to be conducted properly. The meeting concluded that the number of air conditioners should be determined on a rational basis.
Dr. Iftekharuzzaman, executive director of the Bangladesh chapter of Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), told Agamir Somoy, “Such a proposal cannot be broadly labeled as corruption. However, it must be considered whether foreign training is genuinely necessary. The question is that corruption, irregularities and waste occur during implementation. In many cases, the right people are not sent. Again, those who receive the training often do not apply that knowledge. Such incidents are happening. Similar concerns remain in the case of this project. Therefore, the Planning Commission should approve it only after proper assessment and analysis.”
