Consultations on nat'l policy
review from April 26
Staff Correspondent
21 April, 2003
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Fresh
grassroots consultations will
start on April 26, 2003 under
the Citizen's Initiative to review
the recommendations made by the
16 task forces formed prior to
election 2001.
The recommendations of the task
forces were prepared through six
regional consultations and later
finalised at a National Forum
held in October 2001.
A meeting of the chairpersons
and member secretaries of the
task forces, held on January 14,
2003 at the Centre for Policy
Dialogue (CPD) with Professor
Rehman Sobhan in the chair, decided
to undertake a new initiative
to review the recommendations.
Two years after the elections,
the task forces have been reconstituted
to review the initiatives taken
by the government to implement
the recommendations of policy
briefs prepared by the task forces
before the election.
The newly constituted 17 task
forces are on trade policy, financial
sector, transport, education policy,
information and communication
technology, gender equality and
women's empowerment, budgetary
discipline and fiscal programmes,
development and governance of
the energy sector, administrative
reforms, urban governance, rural
economy, agriculture and non-farm
activities, poverty eradication
and employment generation, health
and population policy, environmental
policy, corruption, democratic
process, and industrial policy.
Members of the task forces, numbering
215, include eminent specialists,
business leaders and representatives
from civil society and grassroots
organisations. Till now these
task forces have met in about
40 meetings to discuss the draft
task force reports.
The CPD, the Prothom Alo and The
Daily Star have supported this
national initiative and are facilitating
the consultation process. The
first dialogue on foreign trade,
financial sector and transport
will be held in Chittagong followed
by consultations in Sylhet, Rajshahi,
Barisal, Dhaka, Mymensingh, Narayanganj
and Khulna.
Local elected representatives,
civil society leaders, grassroots
organisations, specialists and
journalists will participate in
these regional consultations where
the various draft task force reports
would be presented.
The policy review initiative is
aimed to provide an opportunity
to the civil society to voice
its concerns and interests. It
is also expected to help the government
to make mid-course corrections
and take up new initiatives.
The completion of the regional
consultations will be followed
by a National Policy Review Forum
2003 on June 3-5, 2003 on the
eve of the presentation of the
national budget for 2003-2004.
The national forum will finalise
the final recommendations of the
task forces.
National Policy Review Forum 2003
Organised by the Centre for Policy
Dialogue (CPD) in association
with the Prothom Alo and The Daily
Star.
Schedule of the Regional Consultations
and National Forum
Date Location Task Force
April 26, 2003 Chittagong Trade
Policy Financial sector
(Saturday) Transport
May 3, 2003 (Saturday) Khulna
Education Sector Policy
Information and Communication
Technology
Gender Equality and Women's
Empowerment
May 8, 2003 (Thursday) Dhaka Budgetary
Discipline and Fiscal Programmes
May 10, 2003 (Thursday) Mymensingh
Rural Economy: Agriculture and
Non-farming
Poverty Eradication and
Employment Generation
May 17, 2003 (Saturday) Rajshahi
Health and Population Policy
Environmental Policy
May 24, 2003 Barisal Corruption
Democratic Processes
(Parliamentary, Judiciary)
May 26, 2003 (Monday) Narayanganj
Industrial Policy, Privatisation
SMEs
June 3-5, 2003
(Tuesday, Wednesday, Dhaka National
Forum
Thursday)
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