The government is focusing on reconstruction in the next fiscal year’s budget.
The government is all set to prioritise economic dynamism, rehabilitation and reconstruction of quake-ravaged structures, promotion of good-governance, development of energy, and modernisation of agriculture sector in the next fiscal year’s budget, said finance minister Dr Ram Sharan Mahat today presenting the ‘Principle and Priorities’ of the Appropriation Bill 2015 at the Parliament
Informing the House about the government’s policies and programmes, during the pre-budget discussion, Mahat also informed that the budget would also target making nation economically prosperous and complete the rehabilitation and reconstruction works of the earthquake-hit structures in a given timeframe.
The government will present its policies and programmes and budget for the next fiscal year 2015-16 in the House after the pre-budget discussion that started yesterday and ended today.
Presenting the principles and priorities of Appropriation Bill, 2072 BS in the Legislature-Parliament meeting, Mahat reiterated achieving high economic growth rate to be the major target of the next fiscal year’s budget.
“Constitution writing, disaster preparedness, prioritisation and continuity of development programmes, economic stability, productivity, economic growth and holding local election have been included as the major principles of the next fiscal year’s budget,” he said, adding that poverty reduction and social justice, capital formation and investments, capacity building of the government bodies, legal and policy reforms, quality reforms of physical infrastructure construction, human resource development and resource mobilisation are given top priority.
Mahat also informed the House that the government will expedite socio-economic development by revitalising the earthquake-hit economy, and those beneath the poverty line would be encouraged to involve in economic activities. “Earthquake survivors and homeless will be resettled, the risky settlements would be shifted and integrated development would be carried out as well as reconstruction job of the quake-damaged structures would be conducted with the involvement of the National Reconstruction Authority.”
National Planning Commission (NPC) has already revised budget ceiling for 2015-16 upward by Rs 106 billion for reconstruction works – from Rs 735 billion to Rs 840 billion – which will be handled by the National Reconstruction Authority.
However, the government is adding a chapter on ‘capacity enhancement of government employees on higher spending capacity’ in the curriculum of training to be provided by staff training institutes to address low spending of developmental budget, according to the Bill tabled at the House.
According to Principles and Priorities of Appropriation Bill 2072, the government plans to run short-term technical skill development programme to prepare workforce for reconstruction works. Similarly, the government will mobilise domestic resources like ‘reconstruction debenture’ to collect fund for reconstruction. But the Bill has not focused on economic reforms, particularly on legal front. The government is in the process of reforming over three dozen laws – which are not only key to boost economic growth but also create investment-friendly environment – under the second generation economic reform programme.

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