The government has set the foreign assistance target for the next Annual Development Programme at Tk 188.85 billion, attaching top priority to infrastructure project development.
Economic Relations Division officials said the target was set last week based on the demands made by government ministries and agencies for implementing their ongoing projects as well as those in fiscal year 2011-12.
The foreign assistance target for the next ADP is Tk 69.55 billion more than the revised Tk 119.30 billion target for the current ADP.
According to ERD sources, government bodies in communication and power sectors sought more foreign fund allocations in the upcoming budget for implementing their development projects.
The government has allocated Tk 4.0 billion project aid for implementing the Padma bridge project in the next ADP.
The ERD officials said the total size of the next ADP would be finalised this month.
A planning ministry official said the size of the next ADP would probably hover around Tk 460 billion, up by Tk 3.51 billion from the current ADP.
Planning ministry officials said, 'Although the size of the ADP for the next fiscal year would be higher than that of the current one, foreign funds utilisation remains a challenge as the government agencies continue to fail to implement the development projects.'
In the wake of the failure to utilise foreign funds, the government reduced the foreign assistance target by Tk 3.7 billion to Tk 119.30 billion in the revised ADP for the current fiscal year.
ERD officials, however, are hopeful that foreign assistance disbursement will increase in the coming days.
The ERD also has set the foreign assistance target at Tk 210 billion in the upcoming national budget.
The target is $1.03 billion higher than that of $1.97 billion in the current fiscal year budget.
Source: New Age
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