A syndicate led by Smart Technologies and associated with Nafisa Kamal, daughter of former finance minister AHM Mustafa Kamal, is under investigation for allegedly embezzling millions from a $67 million World Bank-funded project intended to advance Bangladesh’s insurance sector. The project, managed by the Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA), aimed to improve financial security through technology but has shown no tangible results. It is reported that funds were misappropriated by several firms including Smart Technologies and eGeneration, with money systematically siphoned abroad.
The Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Department (IMED) was unable to intervene due to Smart Technologies’ ties with Nafisa Kamal. Project documents reveal that various contracts were awarded to these firms under dubious circumstances, with significant sums misdirected. For instance, Smart Technologies secured multiple contracts despite being second-lowest bidders and funds allocated for IT infrastructure and other components were allegedly misused.
With the recent fall of the Awami League government, Nafisa Kamal and her family have moved to Singapore. Investigations suggest that up to Tk8 billion might have been diverted, leaving the insurance sector’s development stagnated. Former officials indicate that if local firms had handled the project, $30 million could have been saved. Both Nafisa Kamal and Smart Technologies Chairman Mazharul Islam have not responded to inquiries about these irregularities.
Bd pratidin English/Lutful Hoque
