By Our Reporter

Amid the ailing health of the national economy, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Oli has been busy holding consultations with former finance ministers and other stakeholders to prepare the budget for the fiscal year 2025/26.

He had already collected suggestions from former finance ministers. On Sunday, he held a meeting with the National Planning Commission (NPC) on the same.

In the meeting, the NPC has suggested the government to bring about the policy and programmes with a focus on increasing the fiscal space by forging better inter-ministerial coordination.

"Recognising the status of poor revenue collection over the years, we decided to recommend searching space of new sources of revenue, expedite the development work and complete the projects in time, and for timely disbursement of dues to the private sector entrepreneurs," Vice-Chairman of the NPC, Prof. Dr. Shiva Raj Adhikari said while handing over the the Policy and Programmes Report prepared for the upcoming budget of Fiscal Year 2024/25 to DPM Paudel at the Ministry of Finance (MoF) on Sunday.

Fiscal space creates room in the annual budget and is important for the government as it helps in allocating resources to key programmes without weakening the country's economic stability. It enables the government to take bold steps such as raising spending or lowering taxes when needed.

In the report prepared after consultation with development ministries, the NPC stressed on proper utilisation of the available and potential resources.

It also recommended that the budget proposals and allocations should prioritise programmes and projects that support increased production, productivity, and employment generation.