Budget will set standards for good governance: Finance Minister Wagle

KATHMANDU: Finance Minister Dr Swarnim Wagle has said the budget for the upcoming fiscal year will set standards for good governance and bring wide-ranging reforms to policies, laws, institutions, procedures and leadership.

Commencing the budget speech for fiscal year 2026/27 at the joint sitting of the Federal Parliament, Dr Wagle said the document aims to end policy indecision, delay and the capture of institutions, and to stop exploitation of state resources. “An end to policy indecisions, the culture of dilly-dallying, capture of institutions and exploitation of state resources and establishing result-oriented governance is the prime need of the hour,” he said.

He said the nation stands at a decisive juncture for comprehensive economic reform and that the budget is centred on massive economic changes and the establishment of good governance. The plan, he said, focuses on a production-based economy, good governance and technology-friendly development.

Dr Wagle said the government regards its public mandate as an extraordinary responsibility and is moving to transform the character of the state, governance culture and the form of the economy. He said the budget has been presented as a reliable document for policy change rather than merely an official statement.

Information and communications, artificial intelligence, finance, trade and investment, and the collective capacity of Nepalis living abroad are identified as major bases for economic transformation, the minister said. He added that the government aims to build a new structure for coordinated economic growth through the proper use of new technology.

(With input from RSS)