The development partners for the first time are not taking part in such a programme. They refused to finance the HNPSP as it lacked 'specific plans and strategy', sources pointed out.

The main goal of the HNPSP is to reduce malnutrition and maternal and child mortality.

Under the programme, the health ministry also plans to form a separate directorate for nutrition. The programme was earlier scheduled for a July 1 launch.

Prime Minister Khaleda Zia had instructed the health ministry on January 29 last year to complete the preparations in time for the scheduled launch but the ministry failed.

On December 24 last, establishment, finance, planning, health, external resources division and implementation, monitoring and evaluation division secretaries met to discuss the launch of the HNPSP, which is yet to be approved by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec).

They sought about Tk 450 crore a year for the HNPSP.

The meeting also discussed the non-payment of salaries of about 80,000 field staff of the family planning wing of the health ministry since August. It suggested payment of their salaries from block allocation.

In September 2002, the health ministry had hired three local consultants on a monthly salary of Tk 1.5 lakh, Tk 80,000 and Tk 50,000 and a foreign consultant (a nutrition expert from the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Control, Bangladesh) to prepare the project implementation paper (PIP).

But having failed to do the jobs, the consultants prepared an alternative PIP, which was rejected by the development partners, saying it lacked specific plans and strategy. They also refused to finance the project.

The health ministry had also initiated a number of pilot studies involving an estimated expenditure of about Tk 12 crore to prepare the HNPSP.

The studies were on recycling of user-fee, voucher schemes, cash transfers, community health insurance, expenditure tracking, how and to what extent informal fees hinder access to services for women and the poor, and public and private healthcare providers' role in the healthcare delivery system.