The High-level Economic Reforms Recommendation Commission has urged the government to create an investment-friendly environment and reduce production costs to boost economic growth.
Submitting its report to Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Poudel on Thursday, Commission Chair and former Finance Secretary Rameswar Prasad Khanal said that consumption and investment have declined due to low credit growth, a drop in real estate transactions, delay in payments by the government, difficulties in recovering commercial loans, and the crisis-hit construction sector. Additionally, millions of people’s savings remain trapped in troubled cooperatives, further weakening financial confidence.
Khanal told RSS that immediate policy intervention is needed to stimulate demand. He emphasized that achieving the country’s economic growth targets requires structural reforms on the supply side and efforts to reduce production costs to improve competitiveness.
Finance Minister Poudel welcomed the report, expressing confidence that its recommendations would help address ongoing economic challenges. He also pledged to implement the suggestions in phases.
“We are in the process of preparing the budget for the upcoming fiscal year. The report helps identify and address key economic issues. We will study it carefully and implement the recommendations step by step,” said Minister Poudel.
The government formed the commission under Khanal's leadership on October 7 last year to advise on steps needed to revitalize the economy. Other members of the commission include National Planning Commission member Prakash Kumar Shrestha, Tribhuvan University Economics Central Department Head Ram Prasad Gyawali, economist Biswas Gauchan, and Policy Research Institute senior researcher Kalpana Khanal. -- RSS
