Resource Contracts: Washington hails Bangladesh’s move to open up
Staff Reporter :
The United States has praised Bangladesh’s Interim Government for halting opaque deals in natural resource extraction and moving to ensure that all procurement processes are open and transparent.
The commendation came in the “2025 Fiscal Transparency Report,” released by the US Department of State, which assessed Bangladesh’s fiscal management during its political transition.
The report noted that following the July change in governance, the non-political Interim Government broadly adhered to the budgetary framework inherited from its predecessor but introduced reforms aimed at improving fiscal transparency and accountability.
Among the most significant of these measures was the suspension of previous and ongoing direct negotiations for natural resource extraction contracts, a practice that had been widely criticized under the former administration.
While acknowledging that the previous government made its executive budget proposal and enacted budget publicly available, the report observed delays in publishing end-of-year reports, undermining
timely accountability.
It added that although the budget documents were generally reliable, they were not prepared in line with internationally accepted principles, limiting their comparability with other economies.
Public information on debt obligations and allocations for state-owned enterprises, including natural resource revenues, was available, the report said. However, gaps remained in providing a substantially complete picture of government revenues and expenditures, particularly regarding detailed breakdowns for executive offices.
The report also highlighted weaknesses in auditing, noting that the supreme audit institution was unable to fully review accounts due to the political transition and lacked the independence required to meet international standards.
Although some summarized findings were published, the absence of comprehensive audit reports limited public understanding of fiscal performance.
Recognizing legal provisions for awarding resource extraction contracts, the report underscored the Interim Government’s decisive actions to strengthen transparency in this sector.
It recommended that Bangladesh publish end-of-year budget reports in a timely manner, adopt internationally accepted principles in preparing fiscal documents, and provide fuller breakdowns of revenues and expenditures across all sectors.
The report further called for ensuring the independence of the supreme audit institution and equipping it with adequate resources to effectively review accounts. It urged the government to publish substantive audit reports with detailed findings, recommendations, and narratives, moving beyond summary statements to offer greater clarity.
The State Department emphasized the importance of disclosing detailed information on public procurement contracts and natural resource extraction awards as part of strengthening public confidence.
It concluded that the reforms undertaken by the Interim Government represent “important progress,” while stressing that sustained efforts are necessary for Bangladesh to meet international standards of fiscal transparency.