KATHMANDU: Every July, the same scene repeats itself. The Finance Minister presents the budget, the National Planning Commission aligns the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework, and ministries line up a long list of projects. On paper, everything appears seamless: there are projects, there is a budget, and there are targets. But as the end of the fiscal year approaches, the question returns once again: Why are we skilled at formulating plans, yet so weak at spending money?
This question highlights the most complex irony of Nepal’s public financial management. To understand why even excellent plans become meaningless once they reach the implementation phase, one only needs to examine the 11-month data…