Nepal’s carefree Finance Minister

On October 2, Finance Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat left for Marrakech, Morocco for a week to attend the annual meeting of the World Bank. He was not alone; he was accompanied by his entourage. With him were Finance Secretary Dr Krishna Hari Pushkar, Head of the International Development Assistance Coordination Division and Joint Secretary, Shree Krishna Nepal, as well as Under Secretary Narayan Dhakal.

This marked Mahat’s fifth visit to a foreign country in the past five months. During a period when the country is facing economic challenges, Mahat has consistently opted to leave the country for foreign trips. Consequently, the government has fallen behind in achieving its targeted economic growth and has encountered difficulties in implementing the plans outlined in the budget.