“The upcoming budget will create long-term reforms and multiplier returns for the national economy.”
लगानी न्यूज
KATHMANDU: Dr. TAG_OPEN_div_36 Sanjay Acharya, a member of the National Planning Commission, has said that the budget for the coming fiscal year will build the foundation of projects and programs and policy reforms that will create multiplier returns in the national economy by improving the foundation of good governance.
Speaking at a discussion organized by the Nepal Management Association on the budget for the coming fiscal year 2083/84, Acharya said, “The general public has high hopes and expectations from the incumbent government.TAG_OPEN_div_34 ”
He said that the National Planning Commission would change the method and procedure of supplementary and special grants as well as motivate the provincial and local governments to be strong in terms of resources. Acharya pointed out the need for improvement in the labor productivity in Nepal as labor productivity is low compared to wages and the cost of transportation and transportation is high in trade and foreign direct investment is being discouraged.TAG_OPEN_div_32
Acharya stressed that the government should listen to the voice of the private sector, which contributes 80 per cent to the economy and 85 per cent to the employment, and behave respectfully. He said that the issue of reducing the tax rate and expanding the scope of tax has been prevalent all over the world since the 1980s, adding that the scope of tax can be expanded if a system of voluntary tax payment is developed by imposing reasonable taxes. He also said that the study will determine the maximum tax collection by keeping the maximum threshold of which tax.TAG_OPEN_div_30
Acharya also said that the government would pay attention to the fact that Nepal has not been able to benefit from the ‘global funds’ related to climate justice in a justifiable way.TAG_OPEN_div_28
Former Finance Minister Dr Yubaraj Khatiwada suggested the government to change the existing formula of ‘rule of thumb’ as well as the formula of complementary and special grants in the form of royalty. He said that the model of public-private partnership would be effective only if the private sector gives up the psychology of taking no risk as the private sector and the government can work in infrastructure development by sharing profit and risk.TAG_OPEN_div_26
Presenting a working paper, former Chief Secretary Dr. Baikuntha Aryal said that production, employment and investment should be the main priority of the budget and that the capacity of the appropriation efficiency and implementation bodies should be increased through reforms in the budget system. He also stressed on the need of performance-based incentives and effective monitoring.TAG_OPEN_div_24
“To solve the problem of money gap, instead of ‘line item budget’, we can also go for ‘agency budgeting’ which can be spent under any heading within an overall project,” he said. He said that the government can make arrangements to pay 10 to 11 months’ allowance and one to two months’ insurance premium directly under the social security program to make health insurance effective.
On the occasion, commentator Dr. Ramesh Chandra Poudel said that digitalization plays an important role for good governance. Former President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants Nepal, Sudarshan Raj Pandey, said that only 17 to 20 percent of the total budget is being allocated towards the capital budget and the actual expenditure is low.TAG_OPEN_div_20
Deepak Malhotra, senior vice-president of Nepal Chamber of Commerce, stressed on the need of making sectors like real estate and construction dynamic at a time when overall demand is weakening in the economy.TAG_OPEN_div_18
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