INLFLATION

CURBING INFLATION, WIDENING TRADE GAP CHALLENGES FOR GOVT.

Kathmandu, 12 July : The government has accepted that the low economic growth rate and high rate of inflation and increasing trade deficit were the main challenges of the country´s economy, RSS reports..

At a programme organized at the Ministry of Finance while making public the economic survey of the current fiscal year on Friday, Minister for Finance, Shankar Prasad Koirala said the total trade deficit had reached Rs. 438 .67 billion.

As against the set target of 5.5 percent growth in current fiscal year, it will be only 3.6 percent, he said, adding it is projected 1.3 in agro sector and 5 percent in non agro sector.

The targeted growth could not be maintained for the deterioration of growth in agro sector, he said. The minister, however, said the industrial environment was improvement-oriented.

He said import was boosted from the increase in spendable income of the people and import increased by 21.2 percent, but export only increased by 4 percent.

Koirala also said the current three year plan just brought poverty to 23.8 percent as against the target of 21 from 25.2 percent, and added it is urgent to decrease the poverty.

The inflation has reached 8 percent as against the target to limit it to 7.5 percent, he said.

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ADB GRANT

Kathmandu,12 July: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed to provide Rs. 1.924 billion (equivalent to 20 million US dollars) grant assistance to the Government of Nepal for the implementation of Skill Development Project, RSS reports..

According to a press release issued by the Ministry of Finance on Friday, the project will support the Government of Nepal to develop a market responsive and social and gender approachable technical vocational education and training (TVET) system.

For this purpose, the project will deliver four outputs namely: (1) expanded provision of inclusive market-oriented training, (2) improved quality and relevance of TVET provision, 3) policy, institutional and operational reforms, and 4) effective project management and monitoring and evaluation.

The major priority of this project is to match the skills by TVET trainees with needs of both the domestic and international labour market.

Under this project, the training programme will be categorized on two level i.e. basic-level (of three-month duration); mid-level (diploma and technical school leaving certificate) by focusing on the three areas namely, constriction, services and manufacturing. It is expected that the project will increase employment opportunity to Nepalese workforce.

The duration of the project is of five-years to be implemented from September 2013.

The Ministry of Education will be responsible as an executing agency and Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT) as key implementation agency.

Secretary at the Ministry of Finance, Shanta Raj Subedi, and Country Director of ADB for Nepal, Kenichi Yokoyama, signed the agreement.

On the occasion, Kenichi expressed the belief that the grant assistance would make a great support in producing human resources for the economic development of the country.

He added that 50,000 skilled human resources would be produced from the project.

Similarly, Finance Secretary Subedi said that the project is important in creating employment, inclusive development and poverty alleviation.
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He expressed sincere appreciation to ADB for its continuous assistance in the socio economic development of Nepal.

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21 PUBLIC ENTERPRISES IN LOSS

Kathmandu, 12: Of the 37 public corporations running in full government ownerships, 21 were in losses, RSS reports.. At a programme organized in the Finance Ministry on Friday, Finance Minister Shankar Prasad Koirala said 15 were in full profit and others were in losses. Economic survey of the current FY showed, they had 185.79 billion income in 2068-69 BS increasing 2.3 percent in the FY. Of them, the Nepal Engineering Consultancy Service Centre Ltd. did not have transactions. In 2067-68 BS, there was Rs.6.58 billion net profit and in the current FY it was 3.49 billion as net loss. Eight corporations making profit last year have incurred losses in this FY and others have decreased profit. Nepal Oil Corporation was in loss by 9.47 billion in the FY and had Janakpur Cigarette Factory, Nepal Orient Magnetite Ltd., Nepal Drugs Ltd. had more losses. Of the 37 corporations, only 21 had their audits done in time, and Rastriya Beema Sansthan, Udayapur Cement, and Orient Magnetite Ltd have not had auditing for the past eight years, and action was stressed for them.
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