Finance Ministry Forms Task Force to Draft Law to Strengthen Budget Discipline

The Ministry of Finance has formed a task force to draft legislation aimed at strengthening budget discipline. According to the secretariat of Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel, the task force is coordinated by Mahesh Baral, head of the ministry’s Financial Federalism Coordination Division.

Other members include undersecretaries from the ministry’s Budget Division and Legal Affairs Division, as well as former joint secretary Nirmalhari Adhikari as a subject expert. The undersecretary of the Financial Federalism Coordination Division will serve as the member secretary.

The budget statement for the current fiscal year includes provisions to improve allocation efficiency, enhance the effectiveness of public finance, strengthen cash flow management to balance the federal consolidated fund, and ensure the productive and sustainable use of public debt. It also calls for the implementation of the National Public Finance Management Reform Strategy.

Clause 371 of the budget further calls for the drafting of legislation to strengthen budget discipline at the federal, provincial, and local levels, along with the formulation of uniform public expenditure standards applicable across all three tiers of government.

The Finance Ministry stated that the task force was formed to implement these provisions. Article 59 of the Constitution stipulates that federal law will govern budget deficit management and other budget discipline matters across all levels of government. -- RSS