Economic Planning Time Ripe For Review

By Gandhi Raj Kafle

ECONOMICALLY backward Nepal entered into an age of planning to accelerate development activities in 1956. So, there was euphoria in the initial years. The country which had virtually no infrastructure for economic development braced ahead with high hopes. The experts held discussions, the national economy was assessed, objectives were defined and strategies were prepared. The planning came as a tool to start a process of reforms for keeping the nation fit to achieve higher growth in potential areas of development. So, the beginning of planning in Nepal had a positive impact since it helped the country to align itself to a definite direction to address the complex problems related with socio-economic development.

Investment: The nation is to complete a period of nine five years plans shortly. Meanwhile, it is busy chalking out the strategies for the Tenth Plan. What needs to be reckoned is that the Tenth Plan will not be implemented meaningfully if we ignore the country’s investment made so far in this reasonably long period of planning. In fact, Nepal has already made a huge investment amounting to billions of rupees for socio-economic reforms. What are the people getting from it? Has planning, which we started with great hopes, yield the desired objectives for becoming economically self-reliant in the days to come.

Not only planning, our national budget too requires objective evaluation and justification from the viewpoint of long-term economic perspective. If we do it, we will be able to harmonise all our short-term planning to keep the nation in an economically advantageous position in the long run too. This would also prove to be an economic commitment to our future. So, for it, the budget is an immediate agenda for gaining higher growth. But, the core issue to ponder over is that the annual budgetary policy should be supportive to the five year plan’s economic vision so that the nation could gradually achieve the targets in five years. The budget in this sense becomes accountable to realise gains envisaged in every five year plan.

Then comes the physical volume of investment. Nepal, over the years, especially during the economic planning, has made a tremendous progress to invest capital for the country’s socio-economic progress. But, the problem is that the growth of the volume of capital investment alone does not help achieve the economic objectives of the nation. This development dilemma provides a room for brain-storming discussions on economic matters related to effective utilisation of national resources. So, the country’s experts can caution the government for helping it to mobilise available resources effectively.

And, the government should also entertain such cautioning and suggestions because any shortcomings pointed out for effective resource mobilisation by experts in the process of planning becomes an asset to meet both the short and long-term economic targets. Provided that the above measures are taken Nepal’s investment in the development sector would benefit the people. But, the point to be considered here is whether the financial investment, which we are making, showing a convincing direction for us to keep up the hopes for better life in the days to come? Certainly, the development results in the nation are mixed and the answers to it too are not very much convincing. However, optimism can be kept up if investments of the nation are made prudently while implementing development planning.

Our history of economic planning tells that Nepal could only spent 65 per cent of the targetted investment of Rs 330 million during the country’s first five year plan. It may be amazing in the present context because there has been a situation of excess spending in the recent plans. The only reason for it is that the country’s potential to invest has been fortified in the recent times. There are economic projects, which can absorb financial resources promptly. But, there are constraints and challenges for the government. That is the availability of financial resources itself is becoming limited both at the national and international level.

The other equally mentionable constraint is the rising general expenditure for the government. In our country, if we cite an example from the Eighth Five Year Plan, we can find that the general expenditure has risen by nearly Rs. 15.0 billion during the current ongoing plan. This situation shows that our economic planning has not been effective for curbing such expenditures to boost development investment in the country. Why is the government compelled to grapple with this problem unwillingly? The only answer is that the pressure of general expenditure is increasingly becoming unavoidable in the recent times.

Yet, the government has not abandoned the fiscal motto of controlling general expenditure because it knows that this is the simple way to be able to allocate more resources for development purpose. But, the government has to adopt disciplinary measures for it. Due attention must be given to internal resource mobilisation also. In fact, Nepal can succeed in both of these priority fiscal tasks, if the country’s indigenous capacity to invest finds some sustainable basis in the future.

Nepal will enter into the Tenth Five Year Plan next year. This means the country has already made a headway towards planning while moving ahead for accelerating the process of economic development. In fact, one can see a network of Nepal’s new economy in this period. Development mindset of the country too has witnessed a sea change. The people’s response to development activities, their interest to compete to be in an advantageous position and their interest to local development issues are becoming stronger in these days. Furthermore, to accelerate the process of economic reforms, the national and international environment too has become more promising.

Efforts have been made to keep Nepal infrastructurally fit for development. And, planning has proved its utility in this task of national importance. Actually, Nepal had been leading an isolated economic life before planning. But, the situation today is different because the challenges of development are being faced in a planned way. As a result, we have roads, modern means of communications, schools, colleges, health posts and hospitals, which are helping to modernise the country. Nepal has also made a convincing progress in the sector of Information Technology (IT), which is a promising field of its kind for development.

Not only in the field of communications, the national endeavour can be seen in various other fields like agriculture, commerce, industries, and tourism. Predominantly an agrarian country, Nepal has been trying its utmost to diversify its economy and be in an advantageous position nationally and internationally. The farmers are increasingly accustomed to use the modern methods of cultivation to get better output.

The volume of trade has witnessed a significant growth. The foreign exchange reserve is satisfactory, the process of economic reform has got national limelight, the economy has been opened and efforts are made to reduce administrative hassles for benefitting genuine entrepreneurs. Nepal’s industrial performance in the production of commodities like cotton clothes, soap, sugar, cigarette and cement have greatly helped the country to substitute imports.

Conclusion: In the light of investment made and gains achieved in the period of more than four decades, Nepal’s planning has been advancing towards a more challenging phase of the economy of the twenty first century. However, the tool to accomplish this daunting task can only be effective through planning. Will Nepal then achieve its economic target? The hopes run high because the process of planning has still not outlived its utility. That’s why Nepal right now is seriously engaged to make exercises for refining and finalising the Tenth Five Year Plan goals and programmes, which are expected to be mature and realistic.

Constitution Day: Time For Evaluation

By Mohan K.C.

ELEVEN ySears in the normal time span of a person may be a long time but for democracy to be entrenched in the country to the fullest possible extent it is, indeed, a very short time. On the eve of the completion of eleven years of the promulgation of the Constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal-1990, it is relevant to evaluate the achievements made and how well it has satisfied every citizen of the country.

It was after a protracted struggle of the Nepalese people that the present multi-party polity came into being. It was not an easy path to traverse since the erstwhile Panchayat system had entrenched itself. The freedom that was achieved in 2007 B.S. came to noughts a decade later. It is true that the first general elections in 2015 B.S. saw Nepali Congress party come to power with a majority but it did not have much time to sort out the problems and challenges facing the nation. Not even two years passed before the whole democratic exercise came to a standstill with a new partyless system that came into existence.

The three decade old Panchayat system, despite some achievement mainly in foreign relations, could not do much to appease the mass. What people wanted was the freedom to practice any ideology or indulge in party activities but this was denied. This naturally led to discontentment among the people. The political parties were banned and many of the top leaders of Nepali Congress and leftist parties were in exile. This was unfortunate for a country where everyone’s hand was necessary to lift the people from the mire of poverty, illiteracy and lack of awareness. For this the need of dedicated and sincere leaders was the need. As the time was not right for openly coming into the playground under the stern eyes of the then system, clandestine activities were resorted to.

It was a struggle to lift the country and its people to new heights when all over democracy was the buzzword. And to remain in isolation from the movements that were taking place in the world was sheer stupidity and against national interest. The groundworks having been laid, it was time for the major parties to join hands to change the system altogether in favour of a democratic set up. This was realised with the Nepali Congress and the United Left Front agreeing to work together for ushering in democracy that had been swept under the carpet for thirty years. It was not only the political parties but the people also who worked for bringing democracy back to the country.

It was on Falgun 7, 2045 B.S. that a open demonstration against the Panchayat system came to the fore. In the ensuing days hundreds of people were arrested and many were killed. The shedding of blood did not go in vain and democracy was re-installed in the country to the delight of all. In all this, the role of late Ganesh Man Singh cannot be forgotten. He has carved for himself a niche in the annals of Nepali history. The contributions of the other political leaders and other countless unknown soldiers of democracy and martyrs cannot be forgotten.

With Krishna Prasad Bhattarai as the Prime Minister of the interim government, two tasks were successfully done. It was during his tenure that the existing Constitution was framed and promulgated. It was not an easy task preparing the Constitution of democratic Nepal. Yet, within the shortest possible time the Constitution was prepared with the inputs of numerous people including legal experts, intellectuals, scholars, political parties and leaders and even the common people. The Constitution represents all the aspirations of the people as to what principles the country was to be governed by. It was the overall law of the country. It embraced every aspect of a civilized country in that all citizens were equal without discrimination of any kind and the fundamental rights inalienable to every person adequately defined.

A most significant feature of the Constitution is the provision of Constitutional Monarchy and the sovereignty vested in the people. This itself makes the Constitution par excellence. The Constitution, promulgated in 1990, paved the way for the greater welfare of the people and the country.

Despite the high expectations of the people the development possibilities have not been fully realised. It is not that there is any fault with the Constitution but that the implementing authorities are at fault. The hopes of a prosperous society that people had when the Constitution came into force has not yet been fully fulfilled. There are many reasons for this. Petty political and vested interests have always offered obstacles for following the Constitution both in letter and spirit. Politics as such has not been able to keep up dignity that is expected. It is the people, every citizen of the country, who have the duty to uphold the Constituion through thick or thin so that freedom, prosperity and happiness will bless everyone.