Govt launches centralised digital platform for project approvals

The Planning Division under the Ministry of Planning has launched a centralised digital platform to streamline the public investment cycle, from preparing Development Project Proposals (DPPs) to appraisal and final approval.

The Project Processing, Appraisal and Management System (PPS) is designed to enhance efficiency, accountability and transparency by making the process paperless, while reducing time, cost and effort, officials said.

Integrated with existing systems across ministries and divisions, the platform will also facilitate component-wise, time-bound financing and enable real-time monitoring and evaluation of project implementation.

According to Planning Division sources, four major software systems, including the PPS, have been developed under the Tk 500-million Strengthening Digital Processing of Projects (SDPP) initiative.

Among them, the GIS-based Resource Management System (GRM) links project processing with graphical data, allowing decision-makers to visualise project locations on maps for better assessment.

The National Plan Management System (NPM) will build a database for short- and long-term development plans, while the Research Management System (RMS) uses AI and machine learning to generate insights from large research datasets.

"In addition to developing four major software systems, integration with existing platforms and e-services has also been completed," said Dr Nurun Nahar, project director of the SDPP and additional secretary of the Planning Division.

She noted that the entire process of formulating, appraising and securing ECNEC approval for a project has already been completed on a paperless basis through the platform, while several other projects are now in the pipeline under the same process.

Project officials say many government staff remain accustomed to manual practices, with limited technological skills and limited interest in adopting the new system.

"Training for all officials involved in project processing, appraisal and approval, along with handover of the project's overall output, is expected to be completed ahead of the SDPP's completion deadline in December next year," said another official.

Sources at the Programming Division of the Planning Commission say that 703 out of 1,009 unapproved development projects listed in this fiscal year's Annual Development Programme (ADP) have already been enlisted on the PPS platform to expedite approval.

Earlier in March, the Programming Division issued ADP formulation guidelines for FY26, making it mandatory to include any new unapproved project in the PPS before submission to the Commission. The circular stated that no further steps in the project approval process would be allowed without uploading the DPP in the PPS.

In April, an ECNEC meeting further decided that all new projects must be processed online through PPS to ensure greater transparency and speed in project formulation.

The SDPP, launched in July 2019 with an estimated cost of Tk 376.4 million and an initial completion target of June 2023, has undergone two revisions.

The first revision raised the cost to Tk 577.8 million and extended the deadline to June 2025. The second revision, recently approved by the planning adviser, revised the cost downward to Tk 508.5 million.

Earlier, the Planning Commission had undertaken the Implementation of Digital ECNEC project (2013-2018), but its outcome was limited to piloting within a single  implementing agency.

The digitisation of the project approval process was effectively completed last April, with the approval of the Drilling of Two Deep Exploratory Wells at Titas and Bakhrabad Fields project, which was formulated and presented to ECNEC through the digital platform.

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