First workers focused budget: Finance Minister Dr Khatiwada

Kathmandu - Finance Minister Dr Yubaraj Khatiwada has claimed that this year's budget was focused on workers and generation of employments to some 800 thousand people. Sharing information about the budget he unveiled for the fiscal year 2020/21, Finance Minister Dr Khaitwada on Friday said 200 thousand additional jobs would be created with the revised schemes on Prime Minister Employment Programme', 150 thousands with mobilization of Rs 19 billion from Poverty Alleviation Fund, 75,000 with skill oriented training, 50,000 trainings to be conducted at federal and States, and 12,000 from Youth Self-Employment Programme.

"This is the first time the budget is focused on workers, but the assistance from all sides has been expected for its effective implementation," he said, adding that some Rs 14 billion will be invested for the job creation. Also the Spokesperson of the government, Minister Khatiwada further said production and distribution of goods would be intensified by maintaining proper caution in the wake of COVID-19 crisis. The community development activities would be implemented on the basis of labour contribution in the federal, State and local levels by expanding the PM Employment Programme.

For this programme, Rs 11.60 billion has been allocated. Budget has ensured the provision of skilled based training and technology to the youths who return from the foreign jobs. Foreigners can do works in Nepal only after taking labour permit. For the case of those losing jobs in the wake of COVID-19, skill transfer would be ensured, he added. The Finance Minister said that the subsidized loan to be provided from all commercial and development banks would be implemented after due provisions arranged from Nepal Rastra Bank and it would help generate more employment opportunities. He argued that budget has been allocated to create more employment opportunities at home considering the impacts of COVID-19 to the workers in the country and abroad.

The labor-intensive development construction works and social and physical development projects to be implemented from the local levels would hire the economically poor people in the work for food programme as stated in the budget as per the aspiration of ‘build our own village’. Minister Khatiwada added that productive industries of private sector would get 50 per cent of the jobholders’ salary in grant for the training period up to three months if they ensure employment of minimum two years to the workers who are recommended from the Labour Information Bank. For the implementation of this scheme, Rs 1 billion has been allocated in the budget.