Four key government ministries and divisions lack a permanent secretary, while ten officials of secretary rank have no active departmental charge. Nine are attached to the Ministry of Public Administration; another was promoted and posted but has yet to take up the role.
Officials say a secretary serves as the chief administrative officer of a ministry or division, responsible for financial discipline and policy implementation alongside routine operations. A prolonged vacancy risks slowing administrative work and weakening coordination. However, they also argue the new government must move cautiously on top appointments to avoid controversy.
Cabinet division data shows the secretary posts at the commerce ministry, textiles and jute ministry, information and communication technology division and Prime Minister’s Office are vacant, with acting officers currently managing the departments.
Of the country’s 84 senior secretaries and secretaries, ten are without a department. Nine are attached to the public administration ministry: Ishrat Chowdhury, Md Saifullah Panna, Md Rezaul Maksud Zahedi, Farzana Momtaz, Md Obaidur Rahman, Md Kamal Uddin, Zaheda Parveen, Md Mofidur Rahman and Kazi Anwar Hossain. The tenth, Md Ataur Rahman Khan, promoted from additional secretary at the home ministry to commerce secretary, has yet to take up the post.
State Minister for Public Administration Md Abdul Bari told Bonik Barta: “The government is only four months old. The country was under a fascist regime for 17 years, preceded by two years of an army-backed government. After the fascist government fell, an interim government took over. Now a democratically elected government must take decisions carefully. The prime minister’s instruction is that we must assess honesty, transparency, merit and efficiency. Work is underway on that basis across all divisions.”
“A government arriving after such a long interval needs some time to set up. Everything is running as it should. Postings are being made where necessary; the vacant posts will be filled at any moment. When one officer moves, another vacancy appears, but work doesn’t stop. Honesty and efficiency are being given the greatest priority, as the prime minister directed. The administration is largely set up. A couple of places remain, and those will be filled. Work is progressing positively everywhere. There’s no deadlock anywhere.”
Of Bangladesh’s 56 ministries and divisions, the Prime Minister’s Office stands among the most critical. It houses the head of government’s secretariat. Yet the BNP administration has appointed no secretary to the post since taking office. Its subordinate bodies include the Governance Innovation Unit, the Private Export Processing Zone, the NGO Affairs Bureau, the Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority (BEZA), the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA), the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA), the Public Private Partnership Authority, the National Skills Development Authority, the Special Security Force and the National Security Intelligence agency (NSI).
The commerce ministry aims to build Bangladesh’s competitive edge in global trade. Its affiliated bodies are the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission, the Export Development Bureau, the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh, the Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection, the Office of the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms, the Office of the Chief Controller of Imports and Exports, the Bangladesh Tea Board, the Bangladesh Competition Commission, the Bangladesh Foreign Trade Institute, the Business Promotion Council, the Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh and the Institute of Chartered Secretaries of Bangladesh.
The commerce ministry’s secretary, Mahbubur Rahman, died on April 17 while undergoing treatment. No replacement was named for more than a month. Additional Secretary Abdur Rahim Khan discharged the secretary’s duties during the interregnum. During the Eid holidays, the government promoted Ataur Rahman from additional secretary at the home ministry and posted him to the commerce ministry as secretary. He has yet to join, leaving the post unfilled.
The textiles and jute ministry, one of the government’s most important offices, lacks a permanent secretary. Its subordinate bodies include the Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC), Bangladesh Textile Mills Corporation (BTMC), Bangladesh Handloom Board, Directorate of Jute, Bangladesh Silk Development Board, Directorate of Textiles, Bangladesh Jute Corporation, ZDPC and a liquidation cell. Arifur Rahman Khan handles routine duties. The post fell vacant after the government transferred the previous secretary, Abdun Nasser Khan, to the industries ministry on a contract basis on June 9. Khan had only taken charge of the ministry on April 16, succeeding Bilquis Jahan Rimi.
The information and communication technology division also has no incumbent secretary. Md Mamunur Rashid Bhuiya serves as acting secretary. Its agencies include the Bangladesh Computer Council, Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park Authority, Office of the Controller of Certifying Authorities, Directorate of Information and Communication Technology, National Cyber Security Agency, Bangladesh Data Center Company Limited, Startup Bangladesh Limited and the Agency to Innovate (a2i). The government named Kazi Anwar Hossain, then an additional secretary at the local government division, as ICT secretary on March 26. On May 25, it attached him to the public administration ministry, leaving the post unfilled.
A serving secretary, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Bonik Barta: “Factionalism, division and a tendency to undercut one another in the civil service have reached a point where restoring order is one of the hardest challenges this government faces. Selecting competent officers, posting them correctly and bringing the entire system under discipline is extremely difficult. The biggest challenge is managing this situation, because the administration still contends with deep factionalism, extensive lobbying and intense ambition over posts. It’s far from straightforward.”
Former secretary AKM Abdul Awal Mazumder, a former rector of the Bangladesh Public Administration Training Centre, urged patience. “The government must be given some time. It took office after years of disorder. Overcoming the divisions and factionalism inside the civil service and bringing order to the administration will take time. Decisions must follow thorough vetting, research and inquiry. A little delay is not a problem, but a hasty decision that later proves shaky sends an even more negative message.”