MoFAGAaims to reduce arrears

Kathmandu, November 17

The Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration has developed Arrears Settlement Action Plan and Guideline to be implemented by the MoFAGA and agencies under it for the fiscal 2018-19.

Financial Administration Section of the MoFAGA informed that the action plan and guideline were provided to all departments, projects, programmes, boards, district coordination committees and local levels on November 14, requesting them to implement them accordingly. The action plan and guidelines aims to gradually reduce the arrears to zero in the agencies under the MoFAGA.

MoFAGA Secretary Dinesh Kumar Thapaliya said arrears or accumulated financial irregularities of the ministry amounted to over Rs 19.63 billion as of fiscal 2017-18. “When the law requires the government agencies to perform their business in such a way that they maintain financial discipline and arrears do not exceed one per cent, the arrears of DCCs stand around 39 per cent,” he said.

Of the total arrears, advance payment accounts for approximately 60 per cent. “The tendency of showing activeness in giving and taking advance, and doing less for settlement of advances has led to accumulation of arrears which is not a good sign in terms of financial discipline. Therefore, the MoFAGA has expedited its efforts to reduce arrears,” he informed.

As per the action plan and guideline, the local levels and agencies under the MoFAGA will settle minimum 50 per cent of their existing arrears in the fiscal 2018-19 and gradually reduce it to zero. The agencies under the MoFAGA have yet to settle even the arrears which date back to fiscal 2002-03. The action plan and guidelines require them to bring the arrears of until 2002-03 to nil and settle at least 80 per cent of arrears accumulated between 2003-04 and 2017-18 within the current fiscal.

The ministry has made a provision of rewarding the concerned offices and their chiefs who succeed in maintaining zero arrears besides initiating action against the employees committing financial indiscipline.