The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) has approved 13 development projects with a total estimated cost of Tk 1,988.07 crore. The approval came during a meeting held on Tuesday (October 21) at the NEC Conference Room in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, Dhaka, chaired by Chief Adviser and ECNEC Chairperson Dr. Muhammad Yunus. Due to illness, the Planning Adviser did not attend the post-meeting press briefing.

According to the Planning Commission, out of the total cost, Tk 53.02 crore will be sourced as project loans, Tk 50 crore will come from the implementing agencies’ own funds, while the remaining amount will be financed from the government treasury. Among the 13 approved projects, three are new, seven are revised, and three have had their implementation period extended without any increase in cost.

The approved projects include: “PRO-ACT Bangladesh: Resilience Strengthening through Agri-Food Systems Transformation in Cox’s Bazar” under the Ministry of Agriculture; “Herring Bone Bond (HBB) Roads for Sustainable Rural Earthen Roads Phase 2 (3rd Revised)” by the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief; and three projects under the Ministry of Rural Development and Cooperatives “Rural Infrastructure Development in Khulna Division (3rd Revised),” “Urban Design Restoration and Cultural Center Development in Jamalpur (3rd Revised),” and “Construction of Internal Roads, Drains, and Footpaths in Zones 01–05 of Gazipur City Corporation (3rd Revised).” Other projects include “Uttara Lake Development (1st Revised)” by the Ministry of Housing and Public Works, and “Construction of Bangladesh Chancery Building in Canberra, Australia” under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges will implement the “Upgrading of the Kishoreganj (Binnati)–Pakundia–Mirzapur Tok District Highway (1st Revised),” while the Ministry of Industries will expand and modernize BSTI’s Physical and Chemical Testing Laboratories. The Ministry of Power, Energy, and Mineral Resources will execute the “Re-powering of Ghorashal 3rd Unit (2nd Revised)” project.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare will work on transforming the Pabna Mental Hospital into an international standard mental health institute and hospital. The Ministry of Railways will implement two projects focused on rehabilitating and upgrading level crossing gates in the western and eastern regions of the Bangladesh Railway.

Several advisers and officials participated in the meeting, including Planning Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud; Law, Justice and Expatriates’ Welfare Adviser Dr. Asif Nazrul; Agriculture and Home Adviser Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Md. Jahangir Alam Chowdhury; Industry and Housing Adviser Adilur Rahman Khan; Power, Transport, and Railways Adviser Muhammad Faozul Kabir Khan; Environment and Water Resources Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan; Local Government and Youth Adviser Asif Mahmud Sajib Bhuiyan; Health Adviser Nurjahan Begum; Disaster and Liberation War Affairs Adviser Faruk E Azam, Bir Pratik; and Foreign Affairs Adviser Md. Touhid Hossain.