As many as 23 Asian Development Bank (ADB)-funded ongoing projects in the country are facing hurdles mainly due to bureaucratic tangles resulting long delay in their implementation.
Delay in procurement, failure to disburse and spend money in time, lack of environmental monitoring reports, delay in handing over of sites to contractors and in consultant selection are the main issues that caused the hurdles.
The ADB and the Economic Relations Division (ERD) have jointly identified the 23 projects recently with a view to finding out ways to overcome the shortcomings.
Of the projects, seven are of energy sector, three on urban development, four on transport sector, five on public and finance, three on agriculture and natural resources, and one on education.
According to officials at the Ministry of Finance, until April of the just concluded fiscal year contracts of projects worth US$444 million were awarded to the executing agencies against the target of $1.021 billion.
During the period, the volume of fund disbursement was $618 million against the target of $771 million.   
Presently, some 51 ADB-funded projects are ongoing in Bangladesh.
The project performance is evaluated on five criteria -- contract awards, disbursement, technical soundness, safeguards compliance, and financial management.
The ADB allocates Ordinary Capital Resources (OCR) and the Asian Development Fund (ADF) resources on the basis of project performances.
Documents show that the Gas Transmission and Development Project is facing three problems. These are non-availability of gas in Khulna city gate station, $9.0 million remaining un-contracted and $20.15 million un-disbursed despite expiry of grace period and lack of environment monitoring report.
The Natural Gas Access Improvement Project is yet to make any headway in the southwestern region despite completion of procurement, $40.41 million remaining un-contracted and $54.59 million un-disbursed even six years after the loan approval.
In the Power System Efficiency Improvement Project, $109.3 million remained un-contracted and $153.33 million un-disbursed almost seven years after the loan approval.
The change order for piling remained pending for two years and the development project proposal for solar PV is yet to be approved.
The procurement for the Dhaka Environmentally Sustainable Water Supply Project was delayed while $174 million fund remained un-contracted and $208 million un-disbursed for three and a half years after the project approval.
The land acquisition and resettlement for the SASEC Rail Connectivity Project are yet to be completed alongside delay in reviewing the design.
The project's $145 million remained un-contracted and $434 million un-disbursed for two and a half years after the loan approval.
The establishment of an environmental safeguards unit in the Bangladesh Railway is yet to be completed, documents show.
Officials said even after one and a half years of loan approval, the government could not award contract for the Railway Rolling Stock Project.
Documents also show that work on the Second Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Development Project is yet to start even after one and a half years of its approval and the loan effectiveness is now delayed.
It was found that even some grant-funded projects also could not make any headway.
The submission of well-defined capacity development plan of 'Pilot Project on Weather Index Based Crop Insurance' remained pending for long. Some $127,000 of the project remained un-contracted and $784,000 un-disbursed even four years after grant approval.
When contacted, a senior official of the Ministry of Finance said it is very hard to avoid bureaucratic complicacies; efforts are there to find ways to improve capacity for quick implementation of the project.
"We will review performance of the projects soon and take steps to remove the shortcomings," he said.