Economic reforms panel submits report to govt

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, Jan. 9: The High-Level Economic Sector Reforms Advisory Commission has submitted an interim report to the government on Wednesday. 

Chairman of the Commission Rameshore Khanal submitted the report to Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel at the Ministry of Finance.

According to the Ministry of Finance, the report mentions urgent issues to be addressed to make the economy more vibrant and stronger. 

The Commission has made suggestions for paying government liabilities and other arrears, facilitating genuine troubled borrowers in the financial sector and formulating acts and laws to regulate credit in business.

Similarly, the report suggests addressing the problems seen in problematic cooperatives, increasing capital expenditure during the remaining period of the current fiscal year and accelerating the reconstruction of physical infrastructure damaged by disasters, including the Jajarkot earthquake.

The Commission suggested the government for accelerating the distribution of compensation for land acquisition proceedings initiated by the government for which the process has been finalised and providing further facilitation to Indian tourists coming via land.

According to the ministry, it has been suggested to prioritise the payment of construction works completed in the current fiscal year without entering into new contracts, and to include new projects in the budget for the coming year only if the budget can be made available by fulfilling the obligations created by entering into multi-year contracts.

The Commission has suggested to consider the availability of resources based on the impact of the subsidies provided by the government in various sectors in production and employment and to review the interest subsidy programme for concessional loans.

It is suggested to increase the premium of health insurance and increase the co-pay ratio. 

The Commission suggests issuing the necessary laws to establish asset management companies in a public-private partnership.

In the context of the sluggish real estate market and the increasing non-banking assets of banks, the commission suggested the government to provide an opportunity for a year to reschedule loans if the business, which was in good shape before COVID-19, is currently in trouble but is expected to improve later.

The Commission has suggested making legal provisions for a single loan limit in savings and credit cooperatives, like in financial institutions, and for the time being, not allowing the total loan investment to a single person from one or more than one contract to exceed 10 per cent of the total share capital of the institution.

Similarly, the Commission has suggested that all projects with an allocation of more than Rs. 100 million should be regularly monitored to increase capital expenditure during the remaining period of the current fiscal year and that a team with authority should be mobilised to resolve problems on the spot.

The government had formed the Advisory Commission consisting of experts and private sector representatives in October 2024 to make suggestions on the economy.