Kathmandu, May 13
Deputy Prime Minister
and Finance Minister, Bishnu Prasad Paudel, said that the suggestions of the
High-Level Economic Reforms Recommendation Commission (HLERIC) that could be addressed by the
budget of the upcoming Fiscal Year 2025/26 would be included in the
appropriation bill and appended bills.
"It’s a massive
document, so all of the recommendations couldn't be included in the budget due
to the limited availability of resources," said DPM Paudel while speaking
at a conference on 'Roadmap for Economic Transformation' organised by the Confederation
of Nepalese Industries (CNI) in Kathmandu on Tuesday evening,
He also urged the organiser
and Chairman of the HLERIC Rameshwore Khanal to provide an abridged version of
their suggestions including only those that should be addressed by the next
budget.
The event was
organised with the aim of implementing the report and suggestions of the HLERC
which was led by former Finance Secretary Rameshwore Khanal and included the
representatives from the private sector.
Khanal, Chairman of
the HLERC, stressed on redesigning and reconstruction of the social security
programmes, and checking the practice of announcing distributary budget and
scattering the meagre resources available.
"Government and
private sector both should mobilise their resources in close harmony so that it
would contribute in capital formation and opportunity creation. We must crate
trust-based system to achieve the national aspiration for development," he
said.
According to Khanal,
the country should adopt the macroecnomic economic policy to create economic
opportunities, motivate stakeholders to create it and expand the access to
opportunities should get priority.
He said that the
suggestions like not transferring the high government officials for at least
two years, prioritising and completing sick national projects and completing
them withing the next five years, enhancing the capacity of the construction
entrepreneurs, forming an Infrastructure Development Authority, and expediting
and easing the Environmental Impact Assessment should be addressed through the
budget of the next year.
To promote and attract
domestic capital market and foreign direct investment in infrastructure, the
viability gaps funding, minimum revenue guarantee, hedging mechanism, public
private partnership, blended finance and BOOT (Build Own Operate and Transfer)
should be promoted.
Khanal also stressed
on the dismantling of the Revenue Investigation Department, opening FDI in
agriculture, opening capital account convertibility, issuing new Information
Technology Policy, and creating centres of excellence in universities.
Speaking on the
occasion, former Finance Minister Dr. Prakash Sharan Mahat, suggested the
Ministry of Finance (MoF) to first categorise the projects and programmes on
the basis of the available resources or those that can be generated.
When the government
delivers it promises, only then the public trust on it would be strengthened.
"The finance
minister and the government must exhibit their courage to go against the
populism and have evidence-based and time-bound planning for the national
development," said Dr. Mahat.
Likewise, another
former Finance Minister, Barshman Pun, said that the general mood of Nepali
society has been pessimistic due to poor development delivery of the
government.
"It means we have
shortcomings in our policies and practices. They must be improved immediately
and new phase of economic reform should be initiatied," he said.
According to him, the
country needs a few transformative projects that would impact multiple sectors
of the economy and social life.
Pun said that the
country needs a long-term strategy for economic development which would stay
even when the governments are changed.
Surendra Pandey,
former Finance Minister, said the government has to opt for increased domestic
borrowing to finance the development projects.
"As per the
current economic scenario and size of the national economy, the finance
minister should dare to manage at least Rs. 350 billion through domestic
borrowing.
Stating that the
Ministry of Finance now lacks the expertise and technical know-how of economic
reforms and development, Pandey suggested for the promotion 'minimum
government'.
"But we must be
clear about the limiting the power of government in the economic and social
affairs," he said while stressing on the powerful and effective oversight
agencies.
Rajesh Kumar Agrawal,
President of the CNI, said that policies must undergo timely amendment but they
should always be progressive.
The government has
expressed its willingness to implement the report and included its pledge in
the pre-budget policy documents such as the Policies and Programmes for the
Fiscal Year 2025/26 and Principles and Priorities of the upcoming budget of the
next year.
Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 14 May 2025.
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