Govt issues white paper on nation’s economy

KATHMANDU, March 30: The government on Friday issued white paper on country’s economic status. Finance Minister Dr Yubaraj Khatiwada presented the report amid a press meet at Singha Durbar today.

Minister Khatiwada, issuing the report, pointed out the economic challenges the country is facing due to various causes.

Blaming the lack of proper capital mobilization in part for economic challenges, he stated some difficulties in budget expenditure.

“Big projects fail to be completed in stipulated time, and for estimated costs. Distribution-oriented programs have surpassed productive ones,” he said.

He also stressed the need for all to help achieve the goal set by the government to upgrade the country to the list of developing one by 2022.

He pointed out failure in making industry sector competitive, while identifying additional challenges alongside shrinkage in investment in employment and production sectors.

“Industries established by the government are in loss. Problem of unemployment is growing in Nepal’s labor market. Fiscal mobilization is yet to reach rural areas,” the Finance Minister added.

Stating that domestic capital market was just limited to securities, he said the entire nation’s economy had become import-oriented. Allocation of budget without proper plan and the trend of spending capital budget at the eleventh hour of the fiscal remained as challenges in the economic sector. “Huge budget has been invested to operate a pension fund.”

As stated by the Finance Minister, the government has not got price (results) for its investment in public enterprises and it is yet to pay them for the management of employees’ salary and for operation of the retirement fund.

He was of the view of proper development and utilization of information technology to attain economic progress.

In 2015, Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel of the then K P Sharma Oli led government had also issued white paper in light of the undeclared economic blockade in Nepal and the devastating earthquakes of 2015 that crippled the country’s economy.