Finance Minister Bishnu Paudel’s candid admission that the government is struggling to meet even recurrent expenditures through existing revenue sources should serve as a wake-up call for Nepal’s leadership. The fiscal warning is clear: without bold and immediate reforms, the government’s ability to sustain basic functions will be seriously undermined. Against this backdrop, the formation of a high-level committee led by Chudamani Paudel to implement recommendations on merging, abolishing, or relocating redundant government structures is a step in the right direction. The implementation of the recommendations made by several committees to streamline government structures—especially after the country embraced a federal system of governance—has been delayed due to vested political interests. It is time the political leadership demonstrated adequate willpower and resolve to bring about meaningful administrative reforms with due urgency. It is important to recognize that forming yet another committee alone is not enough. What matters now is swift, decisive action—not more studies, delays or bureaucratic inertia.
For years, various commissions and committees have identified the same core issue: the bloated, overlapping, and inefficient structure of the federal government. The latest recommendations from the Dilliraj Khanal-led Public Expenditure Review Commission are comprehensive and clear. They suggest merging ministries, abolishing unnecessary departments, slashing redundant staff positions, and transferring responsibilities to provincial and local governments where appropriate. These are not radical ideas—they are common-sense measures that reflect the very spirit of federalism and fiscal responsibility. Yet, skepticism persists within the Prime Minister’s Office and beyond about whether this latest committee will finally break the cycle of inaction. Previous committees formed with similar objectives have failed to deliver tangible results, either due to political reluctance, vested interests or bureaucratic resistance. This time, failure is not an option. The Finance Minister has already sounded the alarm; the cost of inaction is unsustainable.
The government’s fiscal distress, combined with the country’s pressing development needs, demands urgent implementation of the recommendations made by the Khanal-led commission. The government must resolve to eliminate unnecessary ministries, departments, and boards. These entities not only burden the national treasury but also hinder effective public service delivery by creating confusion, inefficiency, and duplication of effort. Furthermore, the devolution of responsibilities to provincial and local levels must be completed in earnest. It does not augur well for the federal government to continue micromanaging tasks that can be better handled by provincial and local governments. Empowering sub-national governments while streamlining the federal structure will strengthen governance. This will also help reduce wasteful expenditure and free up critical resources for essential sectors like health, education, and infrastructure. Taking a cue from the Donald Trump administration’s decision to form the Department of Government Efficiency (DoGE) in the US to bring efficiency in the government’s works, our government must act—boldly and without delay—to restructure state institutions, control expenditure, and restore public confidence in governance.