Kathmandu, July 17: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Bishnu Prasad Poudel assured the construction entrepreneurs that their complaints regarding the due payment from government would be addressed soon.
In a meeting with the office-bearers of the Federation of Contractors’ Association of Nepal (FCAN) at his office in Singha Durbar today, Minister Poudel reassured that there will be no room for complaints from the contractors regarding their outstanding payment.
Newly appointed Minister Poudel also pledged to resolve the longstanding electricity fee dispute between the industrialists and the Nepal Electricity Authority regarding the ‘dedicated line’ and ‘trunk line’ in accordance with the prevailing law.
According to him, the Head of the Government has already put forth the government’s perspective on the ‘dedicated and trunk line dispute’ and thus urged the construction entrepreneurs not to panic on this matter.
He said that the government will not create any liability through illegal means and would dodge such efforts if any.
The Finance Minister further said that the government, as the guardian of the private sector, was ever ready to pay heeds to the problems and complaints of the private sector and thereby seeking solutions to those problems and complaints.
“The incumbent government will not let the trust and confidence of private sector be broken,” he vowed, urging the visiting delegation to move ahead with high morale and contribute towards nation-building being confident on getting protection from the State.
He argued that the biggest challenge for him as the Minister of Finance was to raise the moral of the private sector and general public that, he opined, was ebbing lately.
The Finance Minister expressed his concerns over the decreasing demands and exports in recent days and revenue collection and spending of capital expenditure dipping lately.
He also articulated the readiness of the government for legal, structural and practical reforms to raise the moral of the private sector and to boost the construction sector.
Seeking suggestions from the construction entrepreneurs regarding support from government for facilitating policies, the Minister mentioned that the government had adopted the policy of facilitating, supporting and collaborating with the private sector.
According to him, the government had taken cognizance of the inconveniences facing the private sector regarding the policy and implementation of the laws and thus assured that the government would consider making laws flexible and easy if there was problem in the legal arrangement.
On a different note, the Finance Minister asserted that the meaningful initiatives were being taken to address the problems facing the micro finance and cooperatives sector.
He expressed his belief that the monetary policy to be rolled out by the Nepal Rastra Bank in the next fiscal year would address the existing financial sector related issues.
FNCCI calls on government for policy decision to motivate private sector
On the occasion, Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) president Chandra Prasad Dhakal spoke on the need of forming a high-level mechanism with the participation of the private sector for addressing the existing problems seen in the economy.
“The morale of all sectors from the general public to the industrialists and businessmen is low while the whole economy is in a weak situation at present. Serious initiation is required for a way out of this situation,” he said.
The FNCCI president demanded that the industrialists and businessmen as well as the private sector should be given a place in the protocol (order of precedence) determined by the government.
According to him, the industrialists and the businesspersons were not in a position to enthusiastically put in fresh investments.
“Investments are not being made despite adequate liquidity and low interest rate. The industrialists and entrepreneurs have not been able to pay the principal amount and the interest of the loans they have taken. New entrepreneurs have not been able to venture in the market,” Dhakal said and suggested instituting a high-level mechanism with the involvement of the private sector for taking initiatives for resolving several of such problems seen at present. He added that such a mechanism should be formed without incurring any financial burden on the State.
The government should make a big policy decision for motivating the private sector, he reiterated.
The FNCCI president complained that the increase in illegal imports has resulted in the loss of government revenue on the one hand and the traders and entrepreneurs facing problems on the other.
In the meeting, the FNCCI placed a demand before the Finance Minister, urging the government bodies for facilitating in expediting works related to land acquisition for development projects, construction of approach road and carrying out Environmental Impact Assessment.
Similarly, it suggested to the government for clarifying the jurisdiction of the regulatory bodies, for payment of dues owed to the construction entrepreneurs at the earliest and for resolving promptly the dispute related to the dedicated and trunkline power tariff. The FNCCI also called on the government to be serious on resolving the problems seen in the cooperative and microfinance sectors.
The private sector likewise called for putting in place a convenient and flexible system that does not upset the system while bringing the monetary policy for the upcoming fiscal year. Among others, the FNCCI raised topics as the implementation of the guidelines on the current capital loan should be eased and a flexible policy should be adopted for managing the capital fund.
