Spending Without Speed

The latest report by the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has revealed some uncomfortable facts regarding economic sector programmes. As of mid-January of the current fiscal year 2025/26, 27 per cent of programmes in the economic sectors had registered zero progress. Only nine of 74 government budget headings had recorded complete implementation. Forty-five had registered slow implementation, while the remaining had registered no implementation at all. The situation is no better in the energy, infrastructure and urban development sectors. Of 14 government programmes implemented in these sectors, three had achieved full implementation, eight had recorded partial implementation, and three had registered zero implementation. This is not merely a matter of slow implementation. It points to major problems in government spending, which remains very low. Between mid-July 2025 and mid-January 2026, the government spent only 11.66 per cent of its capital budget of Rs 407.89 billion.