MoF presents the economy’s improved report for the first half of current FY
KATHMANDU, Jan 20: Amid widespread criticism of various provisions introduced by the government through ordinances last week, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has defended the government initiative stating that the ordinances will help in effective implementation of the annual budget.
Organizing a press meet on Sunday, Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel clarified that the amendments to a number of laws brought through the ordinances will help ease management of financial resources prescribed in the budget calendar.
“The ordinances will help solve the practical problems that existed in the budget formulation process,” said Paudel. He added that the government will expedite formulating regulations and guidelines in line to implement the clauses revised through the ordinances.
Govt withdraws controversial ordinances after public outcry
Last week, the government enforced a number of laws through the ordinances, many of which were related to economic issues. The recently issued ordinances focus on policy reforms related to land, investment, and government service delivery. The Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Act and the Companies Act have been amended to improve the economic and business environment and attract more investment.
Speaking at a program on Thursday, Prime Minister KP Oli claimed that the ordinances reflect the government's commitment to good governance and development. The opposition parties have slammed the government for the laws enacted through the ordinances, arguing that these laws could invite possible misuse of the state’s resources.
Among others, the laws related to scrapping actions against black marketeers, revision of land use measures allowing authorities to distribute government land to landless individuals and marginalized communities, and bringing in the idle money of various public service funds under the government revenue channel, in particular, have drawn public attention.
Finance Minister Paudel however said that the ordinances were introduced to boost the private sectors’ confidence. “They were issued to materialize the main objectives of the government.”
Box:
Revenue collection increases 12.7 percent in six months
The government witnessed an improvement in revenue generation with an increment of 12.7 percent in revenue collection during the first half of the current fiscal year, compared to the same period last year.
Unveiling a report of the government on Sunday, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has said the revenue collection progress was 83.2 percent, with the amount recorded at Rs 559.61 billion against the target of Rs 672.82 billion. The revenue collection was 39.4 percent of the annual target of Rs 1.419 trillion.
Likewise, the government collected tax revenue of Rs 489.40 billion, up from Rs 443.55 billion during the review period. This shows a growth of 10.3 percent in tax revenue generation.
The tax revenue collection progress stood at 81.2 percent out of the targeted Rs 602.71 billion. The figure makes up 38.1 percent of the annual target of Rs 1.284 trillion in tax collection for the FY 2024/25.
