Never-ending education projects: Why no action against those responsible

None of the major projects taken up by the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education to improve the quality of education have been completed on time in the past 12 years. The cost of construction spiked over the time. Besides, the project directors of some projects have been replaced due to allegations of corruption and irregularities.

The picture of various projects taken up by the directorate revealed by a Prothom Alo report on 20 December is not only unacceptable but also a matter of concern. The directorate undertook a project at a cost of Tk 13.53 billion to make technology-based multimedia classrooms in schools in 2016. Not a single multimedia classroom came into being in six years. The project has made only 8 per cent progress.

Although the multimedia classrooms have not been ready, about 150,000 teachers and officials have been trained under the project, in which evidence of widespread irregularities and corruption has been found. The former director of the project Abdus Sabur Khan received an honorarium of around Tk 1.7 million under different signatures as programme director without attending the training centres organised at 20 places. Many other employees involved with the training programme embezzled government money in this manner. A new director was then appointed to the project.

Other than this project, 10 such other projects are being implemented slowly undertaken by the directorate. The infrastructure development project of 70 government postgraduate colleges located in the district was started in 2010 which was to be completed three years. The project was extended to next June by revising it again and again. The cost of this project is Tk 16.90 billion. The construction of 10-storey buildings of several colleges, including Dhaka College, was completed a few years ago. It was not possible to make the buildings operational only because the elevators and generators were not installed.

The Secondary Education Sector Investment Programme (SESIP) for the overall upgradation of education of Tk 38.26 billion was scheduled to end this month. The project is being extended by another year. In 2017, only 15 per cent of the projects for the development of government secondary schools have been completed.

In the project review meeting on 23 November, the secretary of the secondary and higher education directorate Abu Bakar Siddique deplored the progress of project work on creating multimedia classrooms. But an angry reaction alone is not a remedy.

Former education secretary Nazrul Islam Khan blamed the project director’s lack of experience and lack of action against those responsible for such a situation. This may be partially true. This is more likely to happen if the project director is hired by preference, not by qualifications and experience.

Beside project director, there is also a higher authority to oversee the works of the project. In this case both the superiors and subordinates misappropriated in the project. The minister, secretary and the director general of the directorate have been replaced, but the project is yet to finish. How is that?

Strict legal action should be taken against the persons with specific allegations and evidence against them involved in the implementation of the project. Such projects funded by people’s tax money cannot be allowed to go on for years. All superiors and subordinates related to the projects should be held accountable.