KATHMANDU: More than half of the fiscal year has passed, and the government is now deliberating on institutional coordination to boost revenue collection.
During a meeting of the Central Revenue Leakage Control Committee held on Wednesday, ministers and government officials discussed the need for coordination among concerned agencies to make revenue leakage control more effective.
The government has set a revenue collection target of Rs 1.719 trillion for the fiscal year 2081/82 (2024/25). However, as of Tuesday (Magh 22), only 42.83% of the target had been achieved. According to the Office of the Comptroller General under the Ministry of Finance, a total of Rs 607.94 billion has been collected so far, with tax revenue at 41.48% of the target and non-tax revenue at 55.71%.
As revenue and grants fail to cover government expenditures, the government is implementing a deficit budget of Rs 1.860 trillion, requiring it to borrow Rs 388.67 billion in the current fiscal year.
The current coalition government, formed by the two major parties, the Nepali Congress and the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) (CPN-UML), has been in power since the beginning of the fiscal year. However, instead of addressing the revenue shortfall from the outset, the government has only now begun discussions on institutional coordination to increase revenue collection.
According to a statement from the secretariat of Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel, the meeting of the Central Revenue Leakage Control Committee held today (Wednesday) emphasized the need for coordination and cooperation among relevant agencies from the central to the local levels to make revenue leakage control more effective.
During the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Paudel, who is also the committee’s coordinator, stressed the need for strict monitoring of customs checkpoints and alternative trade routes to curb illegal imports and exports. He argued that active and responsible participation from all agencies would help achieve significant progress in controlling illegal trade.
Finance Secretary Dr. Ram Prasad Ghimire highlighted the need for uniform understanding among various agencies regarding the classification, usage, and status of imported and exported goods. He emphasized that policy decisions should be based on factual data.
Similarly, Revenue Secretary Dinesh Kumar Ghimire suggested that regulating the sources of production and import would help curb illegal trade. He expressed confidence that the commitments made by officials during the meeting would be reflected in the implementation phase as well.
The officials present at the meeting acknowledged gradual improvements in controlling illegal imports and exports but emphasized the need for further efforts to achieve meaningful results. They stressed the importance of increasing border surveillance, strengthening market monitoring, and prioritizing the use of technology.
The meeting was attended by officials from the Ministry of Finance, the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, the Department of Revenue Investigation, the Department of Customs, the Inland Revenue Department, the Department of Money Laundering Investigation, Nepal Police, the Armed Police Force, and the National Investigation Department, among others.
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