The government has no information on how and for what purposes the United Nations Development Programme spends funds in Chittagong Hill Tracts and it does not even know what the organisation was doing actually there, a parliamentary panel observed on Sunday.
The parliamentary standing committee on the planning ministry recommended monitoring of all the projects funded by the UNDP in the hill districts to ensure 'transparency.'
The panel also asked the ministry to ensure that the prime minister, the finance minister, the foreign minister and other ministers concerned are informed of the development of the projects.
The recommendations followed the recent row between the Bangladesh government and UN bodies over giving 'indigenous' status to national minorities in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and the Bangladesh government's reservation about a report prepared by a UN rapporteur which, according to Bangladesh government, was prepared going beyond the jurisdiction of UN bodies.
'The government does not know what the UNDP is actually doing in the hills. It also has no information on how and for what purposes the UN body is spending money there,' said Oli Ahmad, the chairman of parliamentary standing committee on the planning ministry.
'A number of UNDP-funded projects are on in the hill tracts but there is no mechanism to ensure their transparency. Everyone should know how much funds are coming and where they are being spent,' he said.
'We are not certain whether the money is used for the wellbeing of the hill people or for anything else. The secretary to CHT affairs ministry told us that he had called in the UNDP officials and sought a clarification but they failed to give a clear picture. If this is the situation with him, we can imagine the rest… So we have recommended that the prime minister, the finance minster and other ministers concerned should be informed of the development of the projects,' he said.
Under the circumstances, the committee asked the planning secretary to inform the prime minister and other ministers concerned of the 'real situation' of UNDP-funded projects in the hills.
The committee at its meeting stressed the need for the development of backward small groups in the hills and recommended initiation of separate programmes for them.
'Population of the rest of the communities - but the three to four major communities such as the Chakmas, the Marmas and the Tripuras - are so small. So we recommended initiating separate programmes for them as they have little bargain power,' Oli said.
The 37th meeting of the committee made the recommendations as it discussed the development of the projects being implemented under the CHT affairs ministry.
The meeting also discussed projects under the agriculture and the LGRD and cooperatives ministry.
Oli said that the committee had asked the agriculture ministry to work out a well-coordinated plan on the use of toxics in food items including formalin in fruit, vegetables and fish.
He said that the committee had also discussed the 'one household, one farm' project of the LGRD and cooperatives ministry and called for incrased oversight of the project.
'The project left a positive impact on the country's economy. A large chunk of public fund is involved in it. It needs to be monitored whether the beneficiaries are spending the fund properly,' he said.
He said that it could not be acceptable that the beneficiaries would withdraw funds and not spend it on the purpose it was given for. 'We have suggested keeping a provision of taking back the funds if it is misused,' he added.
The committee also suggested monitoring of the construction of roads in rural areas and recommended repairs of the potholed and cratered roads immediately.
Committee members Enamul Huq of the Awami League and ANM Shamshul Islam of the Jamaat-e-Islami attended the meeting. Senior officials of the ministries concerned were present.
Source : New Age
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