Kathmandu: The government has made a decision, according to which, besides the President, the Vice President, the Prime Minister, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Chairperson of the National Assembly, the officials of the federal, province, and local levels cannot appoint advisors.
Similarly, the government has revoked the facility of personal secretaries for political officials including the members of Parliament, except for the President, the Vice President, the Prime Minister, the Speaker, the Chairperson of the National Assembly, provincial heads, ministers of the Nepal government and provincial governments.
According to the decision made by the Council of Ministers on September 21, the government and provincial ministers, as well as the provincial chiefs, will be allowed to appoint a maximum of three people in their personal secretariat.
The Cabinet has decided on the reconstruction, repair and maintenance of public infrastructure, the smooth operation of public services, management of election expenses, the reprioritization of development projects for economic revival and relief, as well as measures for cutting non-productive expenses and austerity.
Joint-Secretary and Spokesperson of the Ministry of Finance, Tanka Prasad Pandey, said that letters have been sent to all ministries and bodies of the government, provincial governments, and all local levels to implement the said decision. The government has decided to continue the implementation of projects that are under construction obtaining consensus on the sources in the past without reducing the budget.
It has been decided to suspend the funds allocated for capital expenditures under various ministries of the government, specifically for low-priority small projects/programmes that have new entries in the ministry-wise budget information system, and that are not pre-planned, or have duplicate entries, in accordance with Section 21 of the Economic Procedure and Financial Responsibility Act, 2076.
Although budget allocation has been made under various budget headings within the ministries, the government’s decision is to hold back budget allocations in areas that are outside of objectives and of lesser importance.
Because of the lack of identified projects with lump-sum budgets in various headings or others, the budget that shows no utility will be held back. Minor/partial projects to be put on hold Allocations made under various ministries for small minor projects carried out by the province and local levels will be halted.
Similarly, the government has decided to release the blocked budget under the proposed subtitles where activities have incurred obligations in the previous fiscal year but payments are pending, to the extent of being reconciled according to the demands of the relevant ministry.
In case liabilities have been created in projects of national priority, those projects for which the sources have been agreed upon and the carry-over projects, or if liabilities are expected to be created in the current fiscal year but there is minimal allocations, funds will be transferred from the ‘put on hold’ subheading for expenditure management.
The ministry has stated that if the budget is insufficient due to the creation of liabilities under the previously prevailing laws and the lack of adequate funds for payment, expenditures will be managed by reallocating funds, transferring sources, and amending programmes from the withheld amounts.
Among the projects that are on hold, if a purchase agreement has been made and liabilities have been created by the 2nd of September, 2025, or if the purchasing process is in the final stage, the Ministry of Finance will make the decision to release funds after receiving a written confirmation from the relevant ministry.
If the budget of this fiscal year shows obstacles in achieving the goals of the social sector such as basic necessities like education, health, and drinking water, the procurement process for projects and programmes of basic necessities will be moved ahead after obtaining the consent of the Ministry of Finance.
The government has decided to manage expenditures by entering the projects recommended under the Reconstruction Fund Procedures into the budget information system at the ministry level for the reconstruction of the government structures.
Similarly, for the current fiscal year, it has been decided not to provide multiyear source agreements for new projects entered or for any other procurement purposes. A service user-friendly, open, and decentralized structure shall be created when restructuring the government structures.
The government has decided to manage the physical structure and layout by analyzing the office workload, nature of work, and staffing structure. Works not to be allowed to carried out through consumer committees by splitting project It has been decided that projects exceeding Rs 1 million, which are operated by the government or financed through financial transfers from the government to provincial or local levels, shall not be implemented or executed by consumer committees, and that such projects cannot be fragmented to be carried out by consumer committees.
In construction, the limit of the ‘contingency’ amount will be reduced to three percent for projects estimated to cost up to one billion rupees and two percent for projects with higher costs. In the current fiscal year 2082/83, if the operational activities/programmes entered in the ministry budget information system have an unclear operational format, if the programme outcomes are unrelated, or if funds are allocated to unproductive activities/programmes, those amounts will be blocked according to section 21 of the Financial Procedures and Responsibility Act, 2076.
The government has stated that it will not provide meeting allowances for regular work to officials and employees of public agencies, but it can provide allowances for meetings outside of office hours for committees formed in accordance with the law.
The government has decided that officials using government, their own, or their family’s privately-owned housing will not be allowed to receive accommodation allowances. Similarly, the government has decided not to use external consulting services for work that can be carried out with the existing workforce and to utilize the allocated budget for such work, as well as for tasks such as drafting bills, rules, regulations, procedures, guidelines, standards, and directives.
Expenses for capital research and consulting can only be incurred in a situation where it cannot be completed with the existing human resources and only after getting it authenticated by the concerned accounting accountable officer.
The government has decided to maintain austerity in service costs including water, electricity, and communication charges, and to manage expenditures in a frugal manner from the budget allocated for water, electricity, and communication charges. It has been decided that related employees shall regularly check whether electricity consumption devices such as lights, air conditioners, and fans are unnecessarily operating in the office.
The government has agreed to stop renting office spaces that have more rooms or facilities than necessary. As much as possible, government offices shall not be in commercial areas or on major roads. Similarly, staffs at Nepali diplomatic missions abroad are not allowed to rent housing in commercial zones or major cities. This rule also applies when renewing leases.
Officials and employees at all government levels from federal to local are mandated to use second-hand or previously used items such as vehicles, mobile phones, furniture, laptops, desktop computers, and motorcycles. For government offices damaged during the recent Gen-Z protests, furniture, equipment, and machines must be transferred from nearby offices.
These transfers will be approved by the office head. The government will also begin the process of insuring its physical infrastructure. The quota for technical human resources will not be increased. If expert services are needed, the government will hire through service contracts instead of permanent recruitment.
The government has decided that ministries such as Finance, Home Affairs, and Foreign Affairs including those that have recently undergone the endorsement of fresh organizational and management (O&M) surveys with the creation of additional structures and positions are required to go a brief O&M review by promptly reducing unnecessary structures and positions.
The government has also agreed not to create new structures at the federal, province, or local levels that result in duplication or overlap of responsibilities. Existing overlapping structures will be eliminated. Additionally, it will proceed to dissolve the Land Problems Resolution Commission. Agreement to operate National Investigation Department under Home Ministry The meeting agreed to make arrangements to operate the National Investigation Department under the Ministry of Home Affairs, considering security sensitivity, operational effectiveness, coordination among security agencies, past practices, and the objective of achieving intelligence excellence.
Similarly, to effectively control revenue leakage and help Nepal exit the “Increased Monitoring List” for money laundering, the Department of Revenue Investigation and the Department of Money Laundering Investigation will be restructured under the Ministry of Finance. Furthermore, no permanent organizational structures will be created for carrying out works that can be managed through contracting or outsourcing.
Also, no employees on contract basis shall be hired at any level from central to local beyond the approved quotas. To reduce current expenditures, the government will not organize unnecessary training programmes, seminars, or workshops. Essential events will be organised using government facilities or through virtual platforms, wherever possible.
Foreign visits funded by the Government of Nepal, provincial governments, local levels, institutions, enterprises, and regulatory bodies have been restricted, except in cases of absolute necessity. If representation on behalf of the Government of Nepal can be made by the relevant agency, authority will be delegated accordingly.
For international meetings and conferences where government representation is mandatory, delegations led by the Head of State or Head of Government shall include no more than 10 members. For all other delegations funded by government resources, the number of members shall be limited to a maximum of three.
The government has decided that equity and loan investments in public institutions will be made only for result-oriented projects, projects securing foreign aid, and those meant for addressing the responsibilities towards the citizens. No further investments will be made in public institutions with poor financial status or those unable to repay principal, interest, or returns.
During this restriction period, public institutions with government investments will not be eligible for issuing rights shares or additional public offerings (FPOs). Concerned ministries will be held accountable for the recovery of overdue principal and interest amounts the government owes to public institutions.
Except where specific laws allow multiple vehicles, no political or administrative office bearers will be provided with, or permitted to use, more than one government vehicle. Ministries, central bodies, and offices with damaged vehicles must manage replacements internally by reallocating vehicles from their subordinate departments or offices.
No new vehicle purchases will be permitted for political or administrative officeholders; existing vehicles must be utilized. The Ministry of Finance has been tasked with developing separate guidelines for the management of vehicle facilities for eligible officeholders and employees within 45 days.
These guidelines will serve as the basis for future vehicle allocations. However, in exceptional cases such as ensuring peace and security or conducting timely elections, new vehicle purchases may be permitted if necessary. No office space for personal secretariats Ministers and other political officeholders at the federal and province levels will no longer be provided with dedicated office space for their personal secretariats within ministries.
Additionally, secretariat staff will not be eligible for receiving government vehicles, foreign travel opportunities, or other physical facilities. Spokespersons and information officers of the concerned institutions will look after the entire press-related responsibilities as there shall be no additional appointments for media coordination.
Any additional facilities granted to Nepal’s ambassadors beyond their official entitlements have been withdrawn. Likewise, executive posts lying vacant in public institutions will be temporarily filled by deputing permanent civil servants of the government until formal appointments are made.
The government has also disallowed the procurement of expensive electronic and luxury items. Additionally, it has decided to discontinue distribution-based programmes such as the provision of gas cylinders, bicycles, health insurance premiums, electricity bill payments, hand pumps, and sarees.
Relevant ministries will be held accountable for recovering outstanding tax and non-tax revenues owed by subordinate bodies. Any irregularities highlighted in final audit reports must be promptly resolved and recovered. Any outstanding balances legally required to be deposited into the government treasury by regulatory bodies must be ensured by October 17, 2025 in accordance with the existing regulations.
-RSS