Priorities Of Budget

The budget session is in progress in the Federal Parliament. The annual policies and programmes of the government have been endorsed by both the Houses after Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle responded to questions raised by lawmakers the other day on behalf of Prime Minister Balendra Shah. On the same day, Minister Wagle presented the principles and priorities of the budget for the upcoming fiscal year in the Lower House of the Parliament. He announced that the budget would prioritise good governance, employment-oriented economic growth, quality public services and equal opportunities, along with restoration of public trust in state institutions.  The government aims to achieve governance reform through accountability, institutional stability and results-oriented public administration; it plans to pursue extensive administrative and legal reform through digital governance. Public services would be made faster and more reliable through an integrated digital system, and efforts would be intensified to control corruption, revenue leakage, and organised crime. The government shall also simplify administrative procedures and introduce a single-window, time-bound and digital service delivery system.

The budget would take measures to transform the consumption-based economy into an investment and production-based one. To achieve this goal, agriculture, tourism, information technology, energy and service exports would be promoted as key drivers of the economy. Greater support would be extended for agriculture through commercialisation, mechanisation and market-oriented reform. Farmers would be provided with fertilisers, seeds and technical services, while minimum support prices for major crops would be fixed before the harvesting season. Timely payments would be ensured to sugarcane and dairy farmers. The budget will make endeavours to improve the investment climate, remove barriers faced by the private sector and encourage innovation and entrepreneurship. It is set to give strong importance to infrastructure – both physical and digital -- and connectivity. It would be pursued in a coordinated manner to strengthen economic integration and regional connectivity.

The long-delayed national pride projects will be completed with priority, strategic roads expanded, energy production intensified and digital infrastructure, including data centres, cloud services and cybersecurity systems would be strengthened. The government would continue mobilising foreign grants and loans for large and incomplete pride projects while also improving budget efficiency and revenue collection mechanisms. The implementation of projects and service delivery would be monitored through the Prime Minister Delivery Unit. A performance-based budgeting system and third-party evaluation of government spending would be introduced to ensure cost-effectiveness and better returns on public investment.

In the social sector, the government is set to reform education and health care systems by linking education with employment and expanding access to quality health services. Investment will be increased in education, technical and vocational education in particular, to make education employment-oriented, practical and accessible to all. It shall adopt a new employment policy with an employment decade campaign aimed at creating jobs. Simultaneously, targeted programmes will be introduced to utilise the knowledge, skills and capital gained by Nepalis working abroad. Health insurance and social protection schemes would be restructured to make them more citizen-friendly. Efforts would be made to strengthen social security, address regional inequality and support marginalised communities.

The government is poised to strengthen balanced foreign relations and use economic diplomacy, tourism, technology and the Nepali diaspora to expand international partnerships and attract investment. Nepalis at home and abroad have pinned high hopes on the government that emerged following the March 5 elections in the wake of Gen Z protests last September. They say ‘morning shows the day’, and there are promising signs that the government will be able to turn the economy around through the upcoming budget and change people’s lot for the better.