KATHMANDU, MARCH 27
Newly appointed Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle assumed office at the Ministry of Finance on Friday after taking the oath of office before President Ramchandra Paudel.
Upon taking charge, Wagle expressed commitment to implementing key recommendations of the High-Level Economic Reform Suggestion Commission 2081. He announced that the government would move ahead with the process of abolishing the Revenue Investigation Department and initiating steps to repeal or amend 15 existing laws as recommended by the commission.
He said an "economic situation paper" up to March 2026 would be prepared within five days, along with 100-day, half-yearly and annual action plans to implement the government's election commitments. According to him, priority will be given to translating the manifesto into effective implementation.
Wagle stressed private-sector friendly policies, simplification of procedures and facilitation of large development projects through new legislation and amendments to existing laws. "A conducive environment will be created to accelerate major projects," he said.
He added that the government would adopt a holistic approach to address economic challenges rather than fragmented measures, while promoting systemic reforms by removing discretionary practices. Implementation of public expenditure review recommendations, boosting domestic production, job creation and preparing a transformative budget have been set as priorities.
The minister also said efforts would be made to promote digital governance and gradually move towards paperless and cashless systems starting from the Finance Ministry. He further noted that emerging international developments, particularly the situation in the Middle East, would be closely assessed and managed through inter-agency coordination.
Wagle, who is also a senior leader of the Rastriya Swatantra Party, was elected to the House of Representatives from Tanahun-1 in the March 5 elections. With an extensive background in international development and economic policy, he has previously served in senior roles at the World Bank, UNDP and Nepal's National Planning Commission.
(With inputs from RSS)