Kathmandu, March 3

The government is preparing to unveil a five-year periodic plan after a gap of 12 years, which will include the country’s development vision and growth targets for the next five years.

The preliminary draft of the concept paper of the 15th five-year plan (fiscal year 2019- 20 to 2023-24) prepared by the National Planning Commission — the apex body responsible for formulating the country’s development vision — has set a target to achieve a minimum average economic growth of 9.4 per cent per annum in the next five years.

However, the economy can grow up to 10.1 per cent per annum in the next five years based on different scenarios, as per the draft.

The government had last introduced a five-year periodic plan in 2001, which lasted till 2006.

Since then the government had introduced only three-year periodic plans on four occasions.

Currently, NPC has been taking inputs on the draft of the concept paper of the 15th five-year periodic plan from concerned stakeholders.

The preliminary draft of the concept paper of the five-year periodic plan states that the country can achieve economic growth of between 9.4 per cent and 10.1 per cent every year in between fiscal years 2019-20 and 2023-24.

Similarly, the draft of the periodic plan envisions that the country’s agriculture sector can witness an average growth of 5.6 per cent per annum in the next five years while the industrial sector can witness average growth of 17.1 per cent per annum.

Likewise, the services sector is expected to witness 9.9 per cent growth per annum in between fiscal years 2019-20 and 2023-24.

The draft of the 15th five-year plan also states that the contribution of the services sector in the gross domestic product (GDP) can reach 57.6 per cent by fiscal 2023-24.

Similarly, the contribution of the agriculture sector and industrial sector in the national GDP can reach 22.1 per cent and 20.3 per cent, respectively.

The 15th five-year periodic plan will be based on the slogan of ‘Generating Prosperity and Happiness.’