Kathmandu. Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle has urged the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) to hold free, transparent and fair elections. Addressing the inaugural session of the 60th annual general meeting of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) here today, he said institutional unity and collaboration should be prioritized rather than factionalism. “Conduct the election in a fair manner, don’t create factionalism,” he said.

Minister Wagle said that Nepal has set a target to become a USD 100 billion economy and active participation of private sector is essential to achieve this goal. “This is not possible without the support of the private sector. The private sector is the backbone of the economy,” he said.

Similarly, in the program, he has also commented on the rumors and exaggeration spread about the budget. Stating that the tendency to present the budget as everything was wrong, he said that the government has been spending around Rs 19 to 2 billion annually through the budget. The main source of which is the revenue paid by the private sector, he claimed.

According to Finance Minister Wagle, some part of the budget is also spent through borrowing. According to him, the government presents the budget equivalent to 25 to 30 percent of the GDP. However, due to resource constraints, it will be a challenge to fully spend all the budgets, he said.

He also stressed the need for collaboration between the government and private sector to achieve the goals of economic development.