Yunus-led govt may introduce new faces this month: Sources

The council of advisers led by Prof Muhammad Yunus is likely to induct some new faces this month to speed up administrative activities, according to official sources at the Secretariat.

Moreover, the distribution of ministries and departments may see a reshuffle, said the sources familiar with the matter. The interim government is now in its second month.

Preferring anonymity, the officials said discussions are ongoing regarding the addition of three or four new faces who have previous experience working in the respective ministries and departments.

Currently, the advisers of the interim government have been handling two or more ministries which slows down the administrative activities.

To reduce the workload of those currently managing multiple ministries, the new advisers will be added to the existing 21-advisory council.

Wishing not to be named, a senior official from the Cabinet Division said new advisers could be appointed within this month but he didn't specify when.

Though the exact number of new advisers is yet to be set, it could be three to four, he said, adding that preparations for this are underway.

There are allegations of noncooperation from the secretaries, department heads and officials of the administration appointed during the Awami League regime to the interim government, resulting in a slow pace of work.

After appointing new advisers, the speed of administrative work and monitoring within each ministry will gather speed, the authorities concerned hoped.

When asked about the current slowdown in administration, Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan, adviser to the Youth and Sports Ministry and the Labour and Employment Ministry, said the problems that persisted for 16 to 17 years can't be solved within a few days.

Echoing Asif, another young adviser, Nahid Islam, at a press conference on 12 September at the Secretariat, said "We are noticing a lack of cooperation from various sources. We hope the stagnation will be resolved soon."

Following the student-led mass upsurge, the Yunus-led interim government took oath on 8 August, with 17 members. Later on 16 August, four more advisers joined them.

Currently, three advisers are responsible for three ministries each, while ten advisers oversee two ministries each.

On 12 August, Chief Adviser Yunus instructed 28 secretaries working across 25 ministries and divisions to accelerate their efforts.

However, no visible headway has been seen yet. Following these four more advisers were appointed on 16 August and the chief adviser called a meeting with secretaries from all ministries on 4 September asking them to increase work speed.

Which ministries under discussion

The ministries under discussion for new advisers include the ministries of commerce, health, road transport and bridges, railways, education, planning, agriculture, food, civil aviation and tourism.

There are 58 ministries and departments under the government. The Awami League-led last cabinet was formed by 45 full ministers, state and deputy ministers.

In the previous cabinet of the 11th parliament, the number of the cabinet was 47. During Fakhruddin Ahmed's caretaker government, the number of advisers was 16.

Ministries under chief adviser

The ministries under Yunus include the Cabinet Division, Ministry of Defense, Armed Forces Division, Ministry of Food, Ministry of Public Administration, and Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism.

Salehuddin Ahmed oversees the ministries of finance, commerce, and science and technology. Prof Asif Nazrul handles the ministries of law, justice and parliamentary affairs; expatriates' welfare and overseas employment; and culture.

Other advisers include Lt Gen (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury for the ministries of home affairs and agriculture, Wahiduddin Mahmud for the planning and education ministries and several others overseeing various ministries.

AF Hassan Ariff has been entrusted with ministries of land; and local government, rural development and cooperatives, Adilur Rahman Khan with ministries of industry; and housing and public works.

Ali Imam Majumdar has been attached to the office of the chief adviser.

Syeda Rizwana Hasan has been performing duties at ministries of environment, forest and climate change; and water resources.

Though Brig Gen (retd) M Sakhawat Hossain was assigned to the home ministry, later he was shifted to the ministries of textiles and jute; and shipping. Md Touhid Hossain is handling the ministry of foreign affairs.

Along with those, the other advisers are tasked with enhancing the operational efficiency and responsiveness of their respective ministries in the current interim government.