Against the government projection of 8 per cent, the economy is projected to grow at 6.02 per cent in the fiscal year 2018-19 and 5.77 per cent in the current fiscal year.
The Institute for Integrated Development Studies (IIDS) – a research wing of Kathmandu University (KU) – projection of economic growth is not only lower than government but also the projections of development partners including World Bank (WB), Asian Development Bank (ADB) and International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The World Bank has projected Nepal’s economy to grow at 6.4 per cent in the fiscal year 2018-19, while ADB and IMF both have forecast a 6.3 per cent growth. The IIDS growth – based on the current macroeconomic scenario – forecast for the fiscal year 2020-21 is also lower compared to World Bank – that has projected the economy to grow at 6.5 per cent during the year. But the IMF has projected Nepal’s economy to grow at 4.5 per cent in fiscal year 2020-21.
The IIDS – releasing Nepal Economic Outlook 2018-19 today – also claimed that the growth rate will moderate in the current fiscal year, and is expected to decline in the next fiscal year 2020-21.
Speaking at a panel discussion – after launching the Nepal Economic Outlook 2018-19 – former finance ministers emphasised on the need to focus on policy implementation, project execution, corruption control, good governance and enhancing bureaucratic capacity to foster desirable economic and development growth.
Accusing the government of failing to lay the economic foundation for sustainable development, they also said that the government has not succeeded in attracting investment adequate enough to achieve double-digit growth target though economic development is its top priority. They said that internal and external investment and infrastructural development are important factors to ensure sustainable economic development in Nepal.
On the occasion, former finance minister Dr Ram Sharan Mahat said that the government has yet to formulate a plan needed to achieve the objective of sustainable development. Urging the government to emphasise institutional capacity building to ensure sustainable economic development, he advised the government to focus on implementing policies, generating employment opportunities, establishing a culture of respect for labour, developing infrastructure and enhancing the capacity of the three tiers of the government so that the country can achieve competitive development and economic growth, rather than being populist.
Likewise, another former finance minister Prakash Chandra Lohani, on the occasion, said that the government should primarily address the issue of corruption and maintain transparency to develop the economy and the country. “For this, the government should immediately endorse the Transparency Law, which was drafted many years ago,” he added.
Meanwhile former finance minister and leader of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) Surendra Pandey said that efforts should be made to bring informal businesses and activities into the formal economy. Pandey also claimed that sustainable economic development in Nepal has not taken place due to lack of political reform. He said that the country could achieve its objective of sustainable economic development only after making reforms in political, administrative and educational systems.
The IIDS report has, meanwhile, projected inflation to remain at 4.76 per cent in the current fiscal year and 4.7 per cent in the next fiscal year against the World Bank, ADB and IMF projection of 4.7 per cent, 5.1 per cent and 6.5 per cent inflation, respectively in the current fiscal year. In the next fiscal year 2020-21, the IMF and World Bank have projected inflation to reamin at 6.2 per cent and five per cent, respectively.
The Institute for Integrated Development Studies (IIDS) – a research wing of Kathmandu University (KU) – projection of economic growth is not only lower than government but also the projections of development partners including World Bank (WB), Asian Development Bank (ADB) and International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The World Bank has projected Nepal’s economy to grow at 6.4 per cent in the fiscal year 2018-19, while ADB and IMF both have forecast a 6.3 per cent growth. The IIDS growth – based on the current macroeconomic scenario – forecast for the fiscal year 2020-21 is also lower compared to World Bank – that has projected the economy to grow at 6.5 per cent during the year. But the IMF has projected Nepal’s economy to grow at 4.5 per cent in fiscal year 2020-21.
The IIDS – releasing Nepal Economic Outlook 2018-19 today – also claimed that the growth rate will moderate in the current fiscal year, and is expected to decline in the next fiscal year 2020-21.
Speaking at a panel discussion – after launching the Nepal Economic Outlook 2018-19 – former finance ministers emphasised on the need to focus on policy implementation, project execution, corruption control, good governance and enhancing bureaucratic capacity to foster desirable economic and development growth.
Accusing the government of failing to lay the economic foundation for sustainable development, they also said that the government has not succeeded in attracting investment adequate enough to achieve double-digit growth target though economic development is its top priority. They said that internal and external investment and infrastructural development are important factors to ensure sustainable economic development in Nepal.
On the occasion, former finance minister Dr Ram Sharan Mahat said that the government has yet to formulate a plan needed to achieve the objective of sustainable development. Urging the government to emphasise institutional capacity building to ensure sustainable economic development, he advised the government to focus on implementing policies, generating employment opportunities, establishing a culture of respect for labour, developing infrastructure and enhancing the capacity of the three tiers of the government so that the country can achieve competitive development and economic growth, rather than being populist.
Likewise, another former finance minister Prakash Chandra Lohani, on the occasion, said that the government should primarily address the issue of corruption and maintain transparency to develop the economy and the country. “For this, the government should immediately endorse the Transparency Law, which was drafted many years ago,” he added.
Meanwhile former finance minister and leader of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) Surendra Pandey said that efforts should be made to bring informal businesses and activities into the formal economy. Pandey also claimed that sustainable economic development in Nepal has not taken place due to lack of political reform. He said that the country could achieve its objective of sustainable economic development only after making reforms in political, administrative and educational systems.
The IIDS report has, meanwhile, projected inflation to remain at 4.76 per cent in the current fiscal year and 4.7 per cent in the next fiscal year against the World Bank, ADB and IMF projection of 4.7 per cent, 5.1 per cent and 6.5 per cent inflation, respectively in the current fiscal year. In the next fiscal year 2020-21, the IMF and World Bank have projected inflation to reamin at 6.2 per cent and five per cent, respectively.
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