Lumbini, Nov. 10
The relations among the federal, provincial and local
governments have not been functional as envisioned by the Constitution of Nepal
even eight years after the implementation of federalism, said the representatives
of the provincial and local governments of Lumbini Province.
Speaking at an interaction programme on the draft of the
upcoming 16th Plan 2024/25-2028/29 organised by the National
Planning Commission (NPC) in Lumbini on November 9 and 10, they said that the
coordination among the three levels of the government have been poor and it has
had detrimental impacts on their development policies and programmes.
While provincial and local governments are facing a shortage
of resources and expertise in creating plans and development projects and
executing them for the past six years since their establishment, the federal
government has largely been apathetic to these concerns.
"We are not getting
support from the federal government in the technical issues like formulating
the periodic plan and creating the Mid-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF),"
said Bishnu Kumar Giri, President of the National Association of Rural
Municipalities in Nepal (NARMIN)'s Lumbini Provincial Committee, and
Chairperson of Gaumukhi Rural Municipality of Pyuthan district.
The provinces and local levels expressed ire against the
change in policy and programmes along with the change in the government which was
creating confusion among the implementing agencies, and sub-national
governments were more affected by such practices.
However, Santosh Kumar Pandeya, Minister for Home Affairs of
Lumbini Province, said that the sub-national governments should be stronger to
make their plans happen. "There is a lacking on our part as well. We all
are waiting for someone to come to us and implement miraculous development
programmes," he said.
Meanwhile, most of the local body chiefs have a feeling that
the federal and provincial governments failed to understand the needs of the
local governments. For example, Lumbini Sanskritik Municipality has long been
urging them to support it in waste management project but there has been no
response, said Sajaruddin Khan, Mayor of Lumbini.
Local governments also have a feeling that there is no
coordinating body to make strong workable partnerships among the three levels
of the government. According to many representatives, the NPC can function as
that connection agency and provide technical support in devising local plans
and budgetary activities.
Dr. Nahakul KC, Vice-Chairman of the Provincial Planning
Commission of Lumbini, said that communication and interaction among the
various levels of the government had become weak. It is important how the
governments at various levels cooperate to include the issues of development
that will benefit the grassroots level, he said.
The provinces also discriminate while allocating budget to
the local levels, and the local bodies that are led by the leaders of the
political parties other than the ones in the ruling do not get enough budget.
"It is ironical that the local governments that have a
critical role in making any plan a success are seldom consulted and their
capacity is enhanced in this regard. Federal and provincial governments should
ensure that the benefits are leveraged to the local levels," said
Chakrapani Aryal, Joint-Coordinator of Municipalities Association of Nepal
(MuAN) of Lumbini Province, and Mayor of Banganga Municipality of Kapilvastu
district.
Tika Ram Khadka, Deputy Mayor of Tulsipur Sub-Metropolitan
City in Dang, voiced the same concerns. He said that poor implementation of
policies and programmes had plagued national and local development.
According to him, until and unless fiscal federalism is
promoted to the fullest, problems that exist at the local and provincial levels
will not be resolved fully. Local government's suggestions on policies and
planning are not taken seriously by the provincial and federal government, he
said.
Samjhana Chaudhary, Deputy Mayor of Ramgram Municipality of
Nawalparasi West, said that most of the plans and programmes have been the
victim of poor or no implementation, and requested all the governments and
agencies like the NPC to make the execution part more effective.
Mahesh Bhattarai, Joint Secretary at the NPC, said that the
new national plan has to address the key challenges in the economy, meet the
development aspiration of people and promote good governance by minimising
corruption. Local bodies should also work to create their own project bank and
implement them according to the local needs and priority, he suggested.
Dr. Ramesh Chandra Poudel, Member of the NPC, requested the
sub-national governments to point out important plans or projects that have the
potential to transform economic development of the province and local level but
have long been missed from the national plans.
Expansion of informal economic activities has adversely
impacted the revenue collection of all governments, so all of them should
devise effective plans to formalise all business and activities he said.
The NPC is organising country-wide discussions, except
Karnali Province due to the recent earthquake, with the stakeholders including
the provincial and local governments, private sector, civil society to solicit
input for the upcoming 16th Plan.
The planning body has conducted discussions with the
provincial ministries, planning commissions, district coordination committees,
local governments, private sector organisations, civil society, media and
political parties in Lumbini Province.
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