Principles and Priorities of the Upcoming Fiscal Year Budget (Full Text)

31 Baishakh, Kathmandu – Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle has unveiled the principles and priorities of the upcoming fiscal year budget.

Following the approval of the government’s policies and programs in the National Assembly on Thursday, Minister Wagle announced the budget’s guiding principles and focus areas.

He presented these in 40 detailed points.

The full text is as follows:

Principles and Priorities of the Appropriation Bill

1. As the Finance Minister of a government formed through a historic mandate derived from an inclusive general election driven by transformational youth movements aspiring for a capable, just, and prosperous Nepal, I stand before this esteemed House today to present the principles and priorities of the Appropriation Bill, 2083. On this occasion, I pay respectful homage to the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for political freedom, civil rights, and inclusive prosperity. I also express my sympathy and wish a speedy recovery to citizens injured and affected by those movements.

2. We center the budget formulation process around good governance and justice, employment-led economic growth, quality public services, and equal opportunity. Adhering steadfastly to Nepal’s constitution, democratic values, and the fundamental ideals of effective governance, the government is committed to stabilizing the current situation, fostering policy continuity, strengthening institutions, and establishing a results-oriented governance system. With this commitment, I present the principles and priorities of the Appropriation Bill for the fiscal year 2083/84.

First, I present the five core guiding principles of the Appropriation Bill, 2083.

(a) Benefits of Good Governance

3. We will establish good governance as a tangible benefit for citizens by ensuring the moral legitimacy, service efficiency, and economic capability of the state. Discretionary rule of law, institutional efficiency, and public integrity will be top priorities to guarantee good governance. We will implement a series of governance reforms that make the state accountable and technology-friendly so that citizens experience the benefits of good governance daily.

4. The upcoming budget will focus on ensuring fast, reliable public services that save citizens’ time, labor, and costs. Through integrated digital governance and administrative reform, delays, complications, and unnecessary intermediaries in service delivery will be eliminated. Public institutions will be freed from illegal occupation and exploitation, and a comprehensive review of policies, laws, and regulatory frameworks will be undertaken. Measures such as asset purification, plugging revenue leakages, preventing misuse of public resources, and robust investigation and prosecution against organized crime will become part of an effective anti-corruption campaign.

(b) Economic Restructuring

5. Achieving high, broad-based, and rapid economic growth with sufficient employment generation will be the primary objective of economic restructuring. The upcoming budget will shift the economy from consumption-based to investment and production-centric. It will promote economic opportunity expansion, entrepreneurship, competitive environment, and productive use of financial resources to move forward with the “new phase of economic reform.”

6. Through balanced public financial management, we will strengthen an investment-friendly economic environment. We will restore private sector confidence by removing barriers to entrepreneurship. Unhealthy competition, syndicates, cartels, and monopolies will be curbed, reinforcing an equitable “social market economy.” The tax system will be simplified and made fair to encourage production and innovation. Digital economy, service exports, clean energy, and high value-added agriculture will be drivers of economic transformation. To address Nepal’s landlocked challenges, significant improvements will be made to air services, telecommunications, and logistics infrastructure at the international level. Temporary protective measures will be adopted to boost the competitiveness of import-substituting industries. The state will ensure the protection of private property.

(c) Integrated Infrastructure for Connectivity

7. Connectivity reduces distances not only between geography and settlements but also production, markets, services, and opportunities, strengthening economic and social interrelations. We will expand connectivity through extensive infrastructure development to support economic dynamism and social integration. Roads, air, energy, urban, and digital infrastructure will be developed with an integrated approach. Institutional coordination will be strengthened to maintain discipline in time, cost, and quality.

8. To ensure balanced development and equitable benefits across all regions and communities, appropriate deployment of capital, technology, and managerial capacity will be prioritized. Expansion of digital public infrastructure will elevate economic activities, service delivery, and national connectivity to new levels. High-level infrastructure development concepts will be adopted, mindful of climate change, environmental balance, and disaster risk. A balance will be maintained between natural resource conservation, utilization, and future-proof economy.

(d) Inclusive Social Upliftment and Middle-Class Expansion

9. We will ensure equitable access to quality education, health, nutrition, and skills to develop capable human capital. Reliable social security foundations will be provided for those requiring state protection. We will expand the middle class by ensuring economic mobility and social security. Promotion of agriculture, small, medium industries, and employment-focused education will foster skilled human resources. Appropriate financial mechanisms will be employed to link innovation, entrepreneurship, and startup culture to production and employment.

10. The education system will be strengthened by increasing state investment in technical and vocational training linked directly to production, entrepreneurship, innovation, and labor market demands, promoting employment-focused education. Health insurance and social security restructuring will enhance citizens’ access to healthcare and financial protection. Steps will be taken to raise the living standards of all Nepalese. Inclusion will extend beyond representation, connecting economic opportunity and dignified participation.

(e) Strengthening Soft Power

11. The government will strengthen balanced foreign relations based on mutual benefit, national self-respect, and sovereignty, operating soft power to promote economic prosperity. Through economic diplomacy, cultural identity, technology, and tourism coordination, Nepal’s international presence, credibility, and influence will expand. Mature relations with neighbors, friendly nations, and international institutions will foster increased economic benefits.

12. Domestic capital, technology, and entrepreneurship, along with expertise, skills, and capital from Nepali communities abroad, will be integral to national development. The expertise of non-resident Nepali professionals will be integrated with the national economy more easily. Legal reforms will align economic diplomacy with investment, technology transfer, export expansion, and international capital mobilization.

Honorable Speaker,
Honorable Chairperson,

Now, I present the priorities of the Appropriation Bill.

(a) Legal-Institutional Reform and Effective Use of Information Technology for Service Delivery

13. Establishing a strong state structure through cooperative federal governance will be a budget priority. The federal government will focus on policy-making, research, national standards, and transformative projects, while the provincial level will be restructured as a powerful bridge for coordination, regional planning, and service facilitation. Local governments will be strengthened as the state’s implementing units with sufficient financial resources and organizational capacity, especially linking education, health, agriculture, tourism, and basic services with local potential.

14. Laws related to investment, financial sector, and public service delivery will be reviewed to introduce a “one-door, timely, and digital” administrative system. Clear role division between regulatory and implementation bodies will end overlapping functions. Processes from business registration to licensing, tax administration, payment, and regulation will be digitized.

15. Removing legal, procedural, and institutional hurdles in major project implementation will be a government focus. Performance agreements with project heads will establish fixed timelines, clear responsibilities, and results-based assessment. Processes relating to forest, environment, land acquisition, public procurement, and construction materials will be simplified and managed strategically under a “mission mode.”

16. Strict regulatory frameworks will be applied against conflicts of interest, cartels, and monopolistic tendencies. Risk-based audit systems will monitor public procurement, revenue administration, service delivery, and policy decisions. Transparency in asset declarations and expenditure of public officials will be enhanced to restore citizen trust in the state.

17. The government prioritizes building modern administration that offers “more services with fewer people,” eliminating queues, hassle, and unnecessary intermediaries for public service access. Civil service and public administration will be professional, neutral, capable, motivated, and results-driven. The expansion of “single service centers” offering essential public services seven days a week will be pursued.

18. Transforming public administration through data, technology, and artificial intelligence is a priority. Aligned with the “provide details once–use across services” policy, an integrated database and interconnected government systems based on the national identity card will be developed. Citizenship, business registration, tax, health, education, social security, land, banking, and other public services will be accessible via a “citizen app” and integrated digital platform.

(b) Sectoral Reprioritization of Economic Growth Resources

19. The upcoming budget will reprioritize limited public resources and private investment towards high-return, employment-creating, and value-adding sectors. It aims to transform an import-consumption economy into a productive, innovative, export-oriented competitive economy by developing agriculture, energy, tourism, information technology, and service sectors as growth drivers. Maximizing utilization of dormant capital assets and private sector production capacity will be a key focus.

20. Strengthening systemic relations across agricultural production, processing, storage, distribution, marketing, and consumption will be a priority. Agriculture will underpin rural prosperity, food security, job creation, and import substitution. Small farmers will be supported through adopting a “commercial agriculture model.” Farmers will be linked to markets, technology, financing, insurance, processing, and price stability via cooperatives, producer companies, contract farming, and agricultural enterprise groups. Production clusters will be developed in potential areas, expanding coordinated packages of irrigation, roads, cold storage, testing labs, seed-fertilizer-machinery services, and processing industries.

21. Minimum support prices will be applied to food crops, and export-oriented growth will be promoted for high-value crops, livestock, medicinal herbs, and agroforestry. The subsidy system will be production-oriented. Farmer record-keeping, market information systems, agricultural insurance, concessional finance, and mechanization will enhance competitiveness and modernity. Forestry-based industries, herbal processing, carbon trading, biodiversity conservation, and climate-resilient production will be promoted.

22. Physical infrastructure development will form a firm base for economic transformation. The “Investment Express” policy will streamline approval and implementation processes for industry, investment, and infrastructure projects in a timely manner. Mining and mineral sectors will be developed to increase productive use of domestic resources. Private sector investment incentives will target green hydrogen, energy storage, and clean industrial technologies.

23. Public investment will focus on transformative projects using alternative development finance such as infrastructure bonds, offshore green bonds, diaspora capital, and public-private partnerships to mobilize long-term capital. Unorganized savings and welfare funds will be channeled to productive, non-commercial investment sectors. Foreign aid and loans will be prioritized for high-return projects. Restructuring public institutions, asset monetization, and efficient management will enhance financial discipline and private sector confidence. The capital market will develop through expanded institutional investors, debt and bond market growth, and new financial instruments adhering to international standards.

24. To transform Nepal into a “weightless, high-value-creation economy,” the export of software, cloud services, data centers, AI computation, cybersecurity, and digital services will be promoted. Legal recognition will be granted to remote work, digital nomads, international payment systems, and digital enterprises. Nepal will be developed as a regional “tech hub.” “Startup Nepal” and national entrepreneurship and innovation programs will be integrated.

25. Urbanization and regional connectivity will be developed as new poles of economic growth. Qualitative expansion of religious, cultural, health, adventure, and community-based tourism will be promoted. Rural-urban economic links will be strengthened through economic corridors.

(c) Multilateral Capital Mobilization for Physical Infrastructure

26. Prompt completion of long-pending transformative projects is a key government priority. Instead of initiating new projects, resources will focus on completing high-return ongoing projects.

27. Construction of energy generation, transmission, and distribution projects will be expedited, advancing completed reservoir-based projects. Energy consumption growth, regional energy trade expansion, and energy-based industries will be promoted. Financial incentives and investment facilities will support renewable energy industries. Groundwater-based irrigation will be extended in under-irrigated Terai-Madhesh areas. Hill and mountain areas will revive lift irrigation and traditional irrigation systems. Ongoing large irrigation projects will be completed as soon as possible.

28. To promote national economic integration and market access, remaining sections of strategic road projects such as Pushpalal, Hulaki, North-South Corridors, and Kathmandu-Terai Madhesh Fast Track will be completed. Budget allocations will accelerate road connections from main highways to municipalities. Collaboration with private investment will support construction of tunnels, flyovers, underpasses, and overpasses. Economic corridors, dry ports, warehouses, cold chains, and multimodal logistics infrastructure will be developed to aid industrial and export promotion.

29. Urbanization will be linked with economic growth, service delivery, and improved living standards. Mass transit systems will be prioritized in Kathmandu Valley and major cities. Integrated waste management, sewage treatment, and recycling systems will foster circular urban economies. National priority water projects such as Melamchi will be strengthened to ensure regular, safe water supply.

30. Development of tourism circuits based on Lumbini-Buddha, Janakpur-Ramayana, Himalayan, and nature tourism will be enhanced. New trekking routes, homestays, cultural destinations, and service centers will invigorate local economies. Full operation of airports, effective implementation of aviation security standards, and restructuring of Nepal Airlines Corporation will position Nepal as a safe regional tourism hub.

31. Digital public infrastructure will be the foundation for economic competitiveness. Expansion of data centers, G-cloud, high-speed internet, cybersecurity, and digital payment infrastructure will be prioritized.

(d) Social Investment for Equal Opportunity

32. The education system will be restructured from basic to higher levels to be free from political interference, competitive, and linked with the labor market. Beyond expansion, quality learning will be prioritized. The education system will support the country’s economic transformation.

33. School education will be improved to ensure basic and essential education for all children. Technical and vocational education will be developed as employment engines. School mapping, network planning, shared quality standards, teacher-post matching, and school categorization will enhance public education quality. Public and private schools will meet minimum learning and inclusion standards. Teachers and principals will be at the core of education reform, with systems based on qualifications, performance, and professional development.

34. Higher education will be made research-driven, competitive, and innovation-centered by strengthening collaboration between universities, industries, and research institutions. A national research fund will support science, technology, agriculture, health, energy, AI, and digital economy with long-term funding. Sports will be professionalized and made internationally competitive, linking it to national pride, health, tourism, and overall economy.

35. Minimum standards in basic health services will be applied, developing an integrated health system with necessary workforce, medicines, equipment, and infrastructure. Priority will be given to expanding primary hospitals and health services in rural and remote areas. Health insurance and social security systems will be restructured to be citizen-friendly. Emphasis will be placed on disease prevention, mental health, nutrition, non-communicable diseases, telehealth, and public health system strengthening. Ayurveda, yoga, meditation, and alternative treatments will be promoted scientifically and systematically. Regulation of private health service quality will be strengthened. Community-based care economy will extend to senior citizens, persons with disabilities, and chronically ill patients.

36. Social security programs will be restructured based on coordination, targeted protection, state financial capacity, and social dynamics. Returning migrant workers will be prioritized for entrepreneurship opportunities. Apprenticeship and employment promotion programs will operate under the “learning while earning” model. The informal sector will gradually transition to the formal economy, with workers incorporated into social insurance and labor protection. The cooperative sector will be restructured building savers’ trust, financial discipline, and productive economy, developing a regulated member-centric system.

37. Reducing structural inequality, marginalization, and imbalance of opportunity is a key government responsibility. Equal access to public services will be expanded for disadvantaged regions, marginalized communities, and excluded groups. Historical discrimination against Dalits will be eradicated with strengthened targeted interventions. Remaining peace process activities will be concluded to provide justice and relief to conflict victims. Identification of actual landless and squatters, secure housing, land ownership, and livelihood support will be strengthened.

38. Transforming underdeveloped areas like Karnali, Madhesh, and Sudur Paschim, historically dependent on grants and relief, is a top priority. These regions will be developed as strategic centers for national potential, agriculture, water resources, tourism, culture, entrepreneurship, and human capital development.

(e) Diversification of Multidimensional International Relations

39. We will develop balanced, independent, and results-oriented foreign relations upholding Nepal’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, self-respect, and national interests. Foreign policy will support economic transformation by focusing on foreign investment, energy trade, tourism, export, technology transfer, and quality foreign employment expansion. Diplomatic efforts will establish Nepal as an attractive hub for information technology, education, health services, green energy, and digital services.

40. The diaspora’s capital, knowledge, skills, technology, and international networks will be mobilized for national development through strengthened diaspora partnerships. Legal and institutional reforms will facilitate non-resident Nepali investments, financial participation, and innovation. Access to international financial resources, climate finance, technology, and innovation will be expanded to meaningfully integrate Nepal into the global economy.

Honorable Speaker,
Honorable Chairperson,

In conclusion, the upcoming fiscal year 2083/84 budget will address the country’s current economic challenges and lay a sustainable foundation for a prosperous Nepal. Its guiding principles and priorities center on employment-focused economic growth, structural reforms, digital transformation, and good governance. It embodies a commitment to restoring private sector confidence, creating an investment-friendly environment, and delivering technology-driven public services to qualitatively improve citizens’ living standards.

I look forward to constructive discussions among honorable members on the principles and priorities I have presented today in this august House. The suggestions arising from those discussions will guide the formulation of next year’s budget.