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EDITORIAL
 
Doubts over PRSP implementation
10/18/2005
 

          Country's highest economic policy-making body -- the National Economic Council (NEC) -- approved Sunday the much-talked-about Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP). The preparation and subsequent adoption of this important national document was no doubt an arduous task when considered in the context of its objectives and the means to achieve the same. Prime Khaleda Zia who presided over the NEC meeting described the PRSP a "Magna Carta" for people's emancipation from the curse of poverty. But sceptics have expressed serious doubts about its ultimate success for a lot of reasons, including unavailability of adequate resources essential for its implementation. They have been all along critical of the PRSP for it being, what they claim, a donor-driven one -- an allegation that the donors and government leaders have always dismissed. However, it is not the origin of the document but the objectives and the ways to attain the same that should be everybody's concern. Since the PRSP has been finalised after extensive interactions between the people involved in its preparation and other stakeholders, critics got enough time and scope for giving their opinions and suggestions for its betterment.
The PRSP has been formulated on the basis of the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that include the pious target of halving the global poverty level by the year 2015. With view to achieving the MDGs, the PRSP focuses on eight priority areas -- employment, nutrition, quality education, maternal health, sanitation, law and order, good governance and monitoring. With or without MDGs, a government worth its name in a poor country like Bangladesh is required to work hard to improve the situation in the afore-mentioned areas. Except for the last three areas, Bangladesh's scorecard on other issues has been rather impressive, even better than many other developing countries.
Achieving the MDGs within the targeted time would require employment of huge resources that a poor country like Bangladesh can ill-afford. For instance, at least $11 billion would be required to reach the education goal alone by 2015 and another half a billion dollar for ensuring sanitation coverage. Without substantial assistance from the rich nations and other multilateral lending agencies, it would not be possible on its part to achieve the MDGs. The UN Summit that adopted the MDGs had also expected that such assistance would be forthcoming to the poor developing countries to help pull a large part of the global population out of poverty. But there exist strong doubts about the ability of the government to implement the strategy devised in the PRSP and the availability of external assistance to supplement the national efforts for achieving the MDGs.
Besides necessary resources, good governance remains the key to achieving all the welfare-oriented programmes. An efficient and honest government can do miracle even with limited resources. Unfortunately, poor governance has been the hallmark of governments that have so far ruled Bangladesh -- a country that desperately needs to generate enough employment opportunities in rural areas and educate a huge population. Much of the country's problems such as child and maternal mortality, sanitation etc., would be gradually solved if people get employment and education. But to make that happen, the government will have to mobilise sufficient resources from internal as well as external sources. The prospect of getting enough external financial support, however, remains clouded. These days, donors are found to be too demanding but least generous. The donors often tag disbursement of funds with irrelevant issues, causing delays in the implementation of projects in the recipient countries. Despite all the odds, implementation of the PRSP would certainly go on. But monitoring of the PRSP implementation remains an important task for the government. The government reportedly would form a high-powered committee by next month to monitor progress in the implementation of the strategy. All concerned would express the hope that the committee would be serious enough about its job.

 

 
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