The Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) has issued a statement welcoming the budget announced by Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Poudel on May 29 for next fiscal year 2078/79. It has said that even during these difficult times the government has allocated funds for the control and treatment of coronavirus and included programmes to revive the economy.
The FNCCI has also mentioned that the budget for fiscal 2078/79 has included most of the recommendations that the federation had provided to the government. It mentioned that the country was going through both a health and economic crisis that had never been witnessed before and the policies that the budget has prioritised send a positive message.
The budget has allocated Rs 26.75 billion for the purchase and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines and another Rs 37.53 billion to control the spread of the virus and for treatment of patients infected with the coronavirus. The government has separated a substantial amount of money to purchase vaccines, however since the demand for vaccines across the world is very high the government must also focus on economic diplomacy, FNCCI has said.
The federation has stated that to revive the economy which has been severely hit by the coronavirus and prohibitory orders imposed to stop its spread the private sector as well as employees must also receive vaccines against the contagion. Towards this effort the private sector is ready to collaborate with the government, the FNCCI added.
The budget has mentioned that the government will add more facilities to conduct more tests and provide better treatment at the local levels, the private sector body said. However, the progress made on this front in the previous year was not satisfactory, it added. The FNCCI has thus urged the government to give more priority to the health of the common people in the future.
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