KATHMANDU – The government has claimed that the goals set in the budget estimates for the financial year 2022/23 will be implemented as intended. At a press conference held at the Ministry of Finance today, Finance Minister Janardan Sharma urged all sides not to worry about the implementation of the programmes presented in the budget for the coming fiscal year.
Stating that the budget is a multi-faceted issue, the Finance Minister said that the issues of increasing employment, developing infrastructure and import substitution have been given priority in the budget by making maximum use of the resources available. He expressed confidence that the forthcoming budget would make the country prosperous and address the development aspirations of the Nepali people.
He however said the budget demands commitment from all walks of life for its implementation. The Finance Minister said that the government intends to reduce the trade deficit by exporting cement. “We have decided to give cash subsidy and exemption in electricity tariff to the industries to promote export,” he said.
He also claimed that the economic growth would be eight percent as the budget was prepared setting the target for the first time in every sector. Everyone has a sense of belonging to this budget as the suggestions of all have been taken into consideration in the budget formulation.
Finance Minister Sharma clarified that the budget has come with the idea of developing a self-reliant economy, with special attention to the agricultural sector. “The goal is to reduce imports, increase exports and expand employment. We have specified all the areas. The challenge is to implement it. The main focus is on the budget by making the government machinery and employees enthusiastic,” he said. The budget aims to lift eight million people a year out of poverty.
Considering the fact that the private sector contributes more than 70 percent to the economy, the budget has been prepared to encourage it for production, said the Finance Minister. He shared that attention has been paid to the development of economy based on internal revenue and the budget intends to gradually reduce the customs revenue.
The finance minister said that the government was planning to reduce the price of fuel by reducing the tax levied as infrastructure tax.
According to the Finance Minister, the budget has given priority to the production of human resource for mining and tunnel construction and has sought to develop a culture of using the products produced within the The Finance Minister informed that the foreign aid received in the current fiscal year has decreased from 35.64 percent to 30.87 percent in the next fiscal year.
