65,000 Cr Taka, 600 useless Apps, Countless broken promises
For more than a decade, Bangladesh has spoken proudly of its digital transformation. Government agencies have rolled out portals, apps and ambitious e-governance programmes, backed by tens of thousands of crores in public investment.
But a closer look reveals a starkly different reality: despite the expansion of digital platforms on paper, meaningful services have failed to reach the citizens they were meant to empower. The massive investment—nearly Tk 65,000 crore—has produced little visible benefit at the grassroots.
According to ICT Division data, 53 projects and 34 programmes were implemented between 2009 and 2024, of which 22 are still running. About Tk 25,000 crore was spent on these ICT projects alone. The Posts and Telecommunications Division spent another Tk 40,000 crore, bringing the total investment close to Tk 65,000 crore.
Yet experts say the progress is far from satisfactory.
Nahid Islam, a policy adviser, noted that despite “huge investments, Bangladesh has not achieved the expected momentum in digitalisation. The core benefits of digital services are simply not reaching the people.”
Former BASIS president Russell T. Ahmed echoed this concern. “We have repeatedly warned that most projects are undertaken without consulting real stakeholders. As a result, the software built often does not match practical needs. Unless this waste stops, we will see the same failures in the next decade.”
Former BASIS vice-president Farhana A. Rahman said the gains of the last 15 years were captured by “a handful of companies and individuals”. The sector failed to even reach one-fifth of its export target of USD 5 billion, she added.
DataSoft Systems president M. Manzur Mahmood said that early initiatives showed promise, but “corruption surged over the following decade, and even stakeholder consultation was ignored.”
Hosne Ara Begum, former managing director of Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park Authority, painted an alarming picture: “Most hi-tech parks remain half-empty. The incentives meant to attract investment did not work. Many parks now host conferences and wedding events—this is what has become of our digital dream.”
Despite a government pledge to bring services to citizens’ doorsteps, analysis across ministries shows usage of many digital platforms remains as low as 2 to 5 percent.
A senior official admitted, “Platforms are often created just to show progress in reports. Once a project ends, nobody maintains it.”
TIB Executive Director Dr Iftekharuzzaman said ICT projects exhibit some of the “highest levels of corruption,” marked by inflated procurement, non-functional software and absence of maintenance budgets. “There is still time to reform—but there must be political will,” he said.
Ground reality, however, is even more troubling.
Belayet Hossain Sardar, chairman of Patgati Union in Tungipara, said: “How can we work online? In the end, citizens must come to the office. They submit papers, run twice—where is the online service?”
ICT consultants say corruption takes two common forms: purchasing software or servers at two to three times the market price, and building unnecessary or non-functional features just to justify projects.
“Many platforms are abandoned right after purchase. Without updates, they die within a few years,” said one consultant.
Another major problem is the blind adoption of foreign models incompatible with local infrastructure and skill levels.
Why Digital Services Are Failing: Four Major Barriers
The failure, experts say, stems from four fundamental issues:
Complex platforms:
Web portals and apps are too complicated for ordinary users. Registration and verification steps often frustrate citizens. Outdated information:
Many government websites have not been updated for years, leaving citizens confused by incorrect data. No real support:
Most platforms lack functional helplines. Email queries often take weeks to receive replies.
Unreliable electricity and internet:
In rural areas, frequent power cuts and slow internet make online services inaccessible.
Ramu Upazila UNO Md Erfanul Haque Chowdhury said, “Portals exist, but many staff members cannot use them properly. Servers go down. Work ultimately continues in the old manual system.”
Between 2013 and 2017, three programmes spent around Tk 24 crore on mobile games and apps. Later, a new Tk 330 crore project was approved for the same purpose.
Yet none of the 600 apps produced through these initiatives proved useful.
Tahir Khan Swajol, CEO of Bangladesh Apps Company, said multiple overlapping projects “wasted public funds.”
NSU professor M. Rokonuzzaman questioned the purpose of constructing such massive buildings: “What did the nation gain? Donor agencies and consultants who approved these projects must also share responsibility.”
Experts believe meaningful digital governance requires three structural reforms:
1. User-first design – Services must be built so even rural elderly citizens can use them easily.
2. Needs-based projects – No more copying foreign models without assessing local realities.
3. Guaranteed maintenance budgets – Each project must include at least five years of dedicated maintenance funds.
IT policy expert Tahmina Rahman said, “Digital government is not about launching websites. It requires sustainable systems and skilled people to run them.”
While citizens seek fast and simple services, government offices remain slow and paper-dependent. Even when applications begin online, they often end at a physical counter—nullifying the purpose of digitisation. Abdul Karim, a small trader in Mirpur, said, “I tried renewing my trade licence online. For seven days, the server was down, verification code didn’t arrive. Finally, I paid a broker Tk 5,000 to do it offline. Who is this digital system really for?”
Ali Hossain, a farmer from Pirganj, said, “We tried paying land tax online. The union office computer works, but internet doesn’t. When electricity goes, everything stops. In the end we stand in line with papers. What did we gain from all this spending?”
Garment worker Rahima Begum of Savar said she failed to apply for allowances online: “OTP didn’t work, verification failed. After 15 days, I paid Tk 2,000 to a broker. This digital system is not for poor people—only for the rich.”
CU student Fariha Sultana said even scholarship applications fail: “Servers crash, files don’t upload, verification hangs. We finally submit papers on campus. If this is the outcome, the old paper process was better.”
Experts warn that unless this gap between ambition and reality is bridged, the promise of e-governance will remain unfulfilled—and citizens will remain excluded from the very services built for them.
