‘Govt has confidence to achieve budget-set targets’

 Kathmandu, May 30

Finance Minister Janardan Sharma Prabhakar has justified that the higher targets were included in the budget of the upcoming Fiscal Year 2022/23 to create the challenge to the government itself.

Through the budget, the government has set clear targets to pull out 800,000 people from absolute poverty, decrease imports of rice, maize, wheat, vegetables and fruits by 30 per cent, and imports of other goods by 20 per cent over a year's period. It also aims at doubling the exports and creating trade balance in the next five years, increase decent jobs by 30 per cent in a year, and provide housing to landless Dalits, among others.

“Achieving these targets is the challenge for the government. But we have the confidence to implement the programmes announced in the budget and meet these targets by the end of the next fiscal,” he said at the post-budget press meet organised at the Ministry of Finance on Monday.

FM Sharma said that he had tried to set a notion that development is not only about building roads. “It seems that everyone in cities as well as in villages is concerned about constructing roads but we never asked what kind of development would be brought by those roads and what would they contribute in the industrial development and business promotion,” he stated.

In order to address the lackluster in infrastructure development, the government has a policy to set clear deadline to initiate and complete the work. According to the finance minister, the government is serious about enhancing the capacity of the private sector in infrastructure development as well so some expressway would be awarded to them. Likewise, the private sector would also be incorporated in climate change mitigation programmes.

FM Sharma said that the projects like international airport in Nijgadh and Karnali-Chisapani Multipurpose Project are the dream project and the country must aspire for the implementation of such projects.

According to him, in order to strengthen federalism, increase the capacity of the sub-national governments, and decrease the workload of the central government, measures are taken to transfer the infrastructure projects of less than Rs. 50 million and water supply projects of less than 10 million to sub-national governments. All projects smaller than Rs. 50 million will be executed by the local bodies, said FM Sharma.

He said that the fast-track roads with tunnels to Chitwan and Pokhara are included in the budget on the basis of pre-feasibility study. However, he maintained that there is a need to make the line ministries able to spend capital allocation. The mobilisation of development budget in the current fiscal year 2021/22 is pathetic with the use of about one-third of the total budget.

The minister said that the government was striving to creating balance among the provinces so budget to Madhes, Gandaki and Karnali provinces is increased for the next fiscal.

Likewise, FM Sharma said that the loan to entrepreneurs will be provided at their doorsteps.

According to him, the education sector needs a robust development and capacity build up. The government is for enhancing cooperation with foreign universities to enhance research culture and produce human resources needed for the rapid development of the country, he said.

He countered the comments that the budget is election-oriented. “Raising civil servants’ salary, supporting youth in self-employment, honouring farmers, and constructing strategic roads are not election slogans but programmes announced to increase production,” he said.

Vice Chairman of the National Planning, Dr. Bishwo Nath Poudel, said that they had tried to make the budget pro-poor. 

FM Sharma had unveiled a budget of Rs. 1793.83 billion for the upcoming Fiscal Year 2022/23 on Sunday, with priority to agriculture, poverty alleviation and employment generation.

He has allocated Rs. 753.4 billion for recurrent expenditure, Rs. 380.3 billion for capital spending and Rs. 230.2 for financing. These allocations comprise of 42 per cent, 21.2 per cent and 12.8 per cent respectively. Likewise, Rs. 429.8 billion (24 per cent) is allocated for financial transfer to the provinces and local levels.

Resources for these expenditures would be managed by revenue Rs. 1240.1 billion and foreign grants Rs. 55.4 billion. Remaining Rs. 498.2 billion would be fulfilled from foreign loans Rs. 242.2 billion and domestic borrowing 256 billion.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 31 May 2022.