After 11 years, 36,400 govt websites face major upgrade
After more than a decade, some 36,400 government websites hosted on Bangladesh’s National Information Portal are being upgraded to a new software version, aiming to improve accessibility, security and performance for citizens seeking public information and services.
The websites – covering ministries, divisions, departments, districts, upazilas and unions – were last developed in 2014. Since then, the lack of upgrades has often led to outdated information, frequent downtime and technical limitations, creating confusion among users and hampering access to services.
Concerned officials said the initiative was taken following directives from the Office of the Chief Adviser and the Cabinet Division. With rapid technological advancement, the old system had become increasingly problematic, suffering from software failures, limited capacity to handle high traffic, difficulty in making updates and weak security.
Step-by-step upgrade
The upgrade is being carried out in phases by Aspire to Innovate (a2i), with officials saying the work is expected to be completed within the next month at a cost of only Tk 3 crore.
Abdullah Al Fahim, Head of Programme Management at a2i, told Jago News that the portal servers are being updated according to a schedule.
“Websites are being taken offline in phases and brought back after migration. Temporary issues may occur due to data migration,” he said.
Md Moniruzzaman, Consultant (National Portal) at a2i, said there are 36,400 departmental websites under the National Information Portal.
“We started with the ministry websites, which have already been upgraded. Then we completed the websites of embassies, education boards and results portals. Now we are upgrading departmental websites, followed by divisional and district offices,” he said.
According to him, around 1,000 department or office websites were moved to the new version in the latest phase. “If everything goes according to plan, all government office websites will be brought under the new version by next February,” Moniruzzaman added.
From monolithic to microservices
One of the most significant changes is the shift from a monolithic framework to a microservices-based architecture.
“Earlier, the portal used a monolithic framework, meaning any change in one part affected the entire system,” Moniruzzaman explained. “Now, with microservices, if a specific component faces an issue, the rest of the system will remain active.”
He said the new version also uses a distributed database and multiple caching layers, which will reduce load, improve response time, speed up websites and significantly cut downtime.
Security has also been strengthened. “The previous version had weaknesses, and unpleasant incidents occurred at times. The new version has a much stronger security system,” he said.
Another improvement is flexibility. “We can now migrate the system to another platform much faster if needed. Earlier, content was divided into 18 sections; now everything is integrated in one place,” Moniruzzaman added.
A2i Junior Consultant (National Portal) Masrur Mohammad Shanto said the biggest advantage of the new system is dynamic content presentation. “Now any content can be displayed dynamically, which was not possible before,” he said.
Temporary disruptions
Officials acknowledged that the upgrade process has caused intermittent disruptions. Over the past few days, users reported difficulties accessing several government websites.
On the afternoon of January 12, websites of key offices – including the Office of the Chief Adviser, the Cabinet Division and the Ministry of Public Administration – were temporarily inaccessible.
Explaining the issue, Moniruzzaman said problems arose due to a cache failure while trying to ensure faster response times. “One of the caches failed, which caused several sites to go down. The issue was later resolved,” he said.
An a2i official, requesting anonymity, said websites were being shut down and restarted as part of the migration to new servers. “Many sites went down suddenly that afternoon, but most came back within 10 minutes. Earlier, even the a2i website was down for about six hours,” the official said.
Long-standing content issues remain
While welcoming the technological upgrade, users and observers pointed out that outdated content remains a chronic problem on the National Information Portal.
Many websites still display names and designations of officials from several years ago, depriving citizens of accurate and timely information. The Cabinet Division has issued multiple directives over the years urging ministries and departments to keep their websites updated.
In April last year, the Cabinet Division again wrote to senior secretaries and secretaries of all ministries and departments, instructing them to regularly update portal content. The letter noted that essential information – such as names, designations, mobile and telephone numbers, photographs and official email addresses of officials – was often missing or outdated.
Responding to these concerns, Masrur Mohammad Shanto said content management is the responsibility of the respective offices. “There are site administrators for all 36,400 websites. We look after the technical aspects, but what content is uploaded depends on the concerned offices,” he said.
About the National Information Portal and a2i
The National Information Portal is an integrated government web platform under the a2i programme, connecting all government offices – from ministries to union parishads – on a single digital platform. The portal is intended to ensure citizens’ right to information, improve access to government services, and enhance transparency and accountability.
The Access to Information (a2i) Programme was launched in October 2006 with funding from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and implemented by the Prime Minister’s Office. The Cabinet Division and the Information and Communication Technology Division oversee the programme. In 2020, it was renamed from “Access to Information” to “Aspire to Innovate,” with the slogan “Leaving No One Behind.”
After eleven years, the long-awaited upgrade of the National Information Portal marks a major technological shift. However, experts say its real impact will ultimately depend on whether government offices also address the persistent problem of keeping information up to date.