DHAKA, Aug 14, 2018 (BSS) – The Executive Committee of the National
Economic Council (ECNEC) today approved the ‘Improvement of Livelihood of
Marginal Communities Programme’ at an estimated cost of Taka 826.12 crore.
The programme is aimed at providing housing to some 20,000 ultra-poor
families in city corporations and municipal areas side by side with reducing
urban poverty.
The approval came at the 5th ECNEC meeting of the current fiscal year held
in the NEC Conference Room in the capital’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area with
ECNEC Chairperson and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair.
Briefing the reporters after the meeting, Planning Minister AHM Mustafa
Kamal said a total of 9 projects were approved today involving an overall
estimated cost of Taka 3,088.35 crore.
“Of the total project cost, Taka 2,339.88 crore will come from the GoB
portion, Taka 50.54 crore from the organization’s own fund while the rest of
Taka 697.93 crore from project assistance,” he said. All the approved nine
projects are new schemes.
The planning minister said the DFID and UNDP would provide about Tk 698
crore as grants, with the government providing the rest.
The project will be implemented by the Local Government Division by
February 2023.
According to the project proposal, each of some 5,000 ultra-poor families
will be given a two-room flat free of cost, while 15,000 ultra-poor families
will be given interest-free long term housing loans under community housing
development fund.
The 20,000 families will be provided with basic services like water
connections, sanitation, drainage and approach road facilities under the
project.
The flats and house building facilities will be given to residents of 11
city corporations and 25 municipalities, particularly those located along
coastal areas and at high risk of being affected by climate change.
The planning minister said the project was first placed before today’s
meeting with the title ‘National Urban Poverty Reduction Programme’. But,
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the meeting changed the title of the project
to ‘Improvement of Livelihood of Marginal Communities’.
The prime minister also directed the authorities concerned to make
separate arrangements of kitchen and toilet facilities for the project
beneficiaries side by side strictly maintaining the waste management in a
planned and disciplined way.
The project proposal said, due to institutional weakness and financial
limitations of the city corporations and municipalities in the poor slums in
the cities, providing civil facilities have become a big challenge.
For this, municipalities and city corporations in coastal areas where the
risk of climate change is more have been brought under the project at the
primary stage.
Based on primary success, other municipalities will also be brought under
the project.
The day’s ECNEC meeting also approved the installation of some 8.50 lakh
smart pre-payment meters under DPDC area with an estimated cost of Taka
657.95 crore.
Dhaka Power Distribution Company Limited under the Power Division will
implement the project by June 2021 at Ramna, Jigatola, Dhanmondi, Adabor,
Poribag, Kakrail, Banoshri, Moghbazar, Shyamoli, Kamrangirchar, Banglabazar,
Narinda, Postogola and Demra under Dhaka and Fatullah, Shitalakhya, and
Siddhirganj upazilas under Narayanganj district.
The project aims to improve the standard of clients’ services through
digitization as well as improving the load control and revenue realization
management, bringing down non-technical loss at zero level, load control
management and checking misuse of power.
The other projects approved in the meeting are Nabinagar-Ashuganj Road
Development Project with Taka 421.45 crore, Upgrading Bhaluka-Gafargaon-
Hossainpur road into due standard and width with Taka 218.58 crore, Upgrading
Tangail-Delduar district highway, Kortia-Basail district highway and Delduar-
Elasin portion of Pakulla-Delduar-Elasin highway into due standard and width
with Taka 140.98 crore, Upgrading Gaibandha-Gobindaganj via Nakaihat district
highway into due standard and width with Taka 99.73 crore, Establishment of
Integrated Educational Information Management System (IEIMS) with Taka 313.31
crore, Increasing the retention capacity of Data Centre of Bangladesh Police
with Taka 154.77 crore and Improving the connecting road of ‘Sheikh Hasina’
Bridge over River Mahananda under Chapainawabganj Pourashava with Taka 255.46
crore.
Ministers, State Ministers and Secretaries concerned were present.