Kathmandu, July 17
The newly appointed
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Bishnu Prasad Paudel, has said that
the government will focus on building the confidence of not only the common
people but also of the private sector.
In a meeting with the
delegation of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry
(FNCCI) at the Ministry of Finance (MoF) on Wednesday, Deputy Minister Paudel
said that many problems in the economic sector needed to be addressed, but the
most important thing was to build the confidence in the private sector.
He asked the
industrialists to conduct business confidently. Stating that he was aware that the
market demand was decreasing along with production and export, he said that
such problems would be solved.
DPM Paudel reiterated
that the government was committed to solving all the problems, be it the
problem of the dedicated feeder and trunk lines or the delay in the payment to
the contractors.
Speaking on the
occasion, President of the FNCCI, Chandra Prasad Dhakal, emphasised that the
economy was currently in trouble and the morale of the private sector should be
increased to revive the economy.
He said that
cooperation between the government and the private sector was necessary to
improve the economy.
Dhakal told the DPM Poudel
that there was no coordination between the economic agencies and that an
Economic Reform Commission or some other mechanism with the participation of the
private sector was needed to bring the economy back on track.
He also asked the DPM to
solve the problems of the dedicated feeder and trunk lines at the earliest. According
to him, this problem has greatly affected the industry, and as a result,
productive activities have shrunk.
Dhakal stated that the
economic contraction had also affected job creation in the country. The data of
the Nepal Rastra Bank shows that the inflation has dropped to 4.17 per cent,
but in reality, it has been increasing at the rate of 7 per cent since the
COVID-19 pandemic, he said. He urged Minister Poudel to come up with a policy
to help increase market demand by increasing economic activity.
"Even though the
loan interest rate has gone down, industrialists and entrepreneurs do not want
to invest. Therefore, the money that has entered the country through
remittances has accumulated in banks and financial institutions. It shows that a
low interest rate alone is not an incentive for investment," he said.
Dhakal told DPM Paudel
that not only established businessmen are afraid to invest but also new
entrepreneurs are apprehensive of it. He urged Minister Paudel to make policy
reforms and create an investment-friendly environment.
No comments:
Post a Comment