Government Introduces 'Mission Mode' for Infrastructure Development

Kathmandu. The government has put forward a new administrative and legal weapon this time to address the long-standing anomalies in Nepal's infrastructure development. Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle, while presenting the budget for the fiscal year 2083/084, announced the concept of 'Mission Mode' to stop the sluggishness of infrastructure projects.

The most important aspect of this strategy is to ensure the stability of project chiefs and accountability based on their work.

An allocation of 3 kharba 2 arba 83 crore 52 lakh rupees has been made for the infrastructure development ministry for the physical development of the country. The Ministry of Infrastructure Development, which has merged the former Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, Ministry of Urban Development, and Ministry of Water Supply, has received less budget compared to the previous year. While these line ministries received 3 kharba 4 arba 23 crore 46 lakh rupees in the current fiscal year, the total budget for the upcoming fiscal year has been limited to approximately 1 Arba 39 crore rupees.

This time, the government has emphasized improving the work style more than the size of the budget. Finance Minister Wagle announced in the budget speech that project chiefs will not be changed until their tenure or until the project is completed.

This policy has been adopted to address the problem of project delays that stretch indefinitely due to project chiefs being changed frequently in Nepal due to political pressure or administrative interests, which obstructs the decision-making process.

However, former president of the Federation of Contractors' Associations of Nepal, Ravi Singh, argued that while some theoretical aspects of the infrastructure development budget appear positive, the implementation part and the practical difficulties in the field have been overlooked.

Point number 11 of the budget speech states, 'Improvements in the procurement process, flexibility in resource management including re-appropriation, mobilization of alternative finance, and ensuring the stability of project chiefs will be carried out in 'Mission Mode' to complete projects within the stipulated cost and time.'

The meaning of this 'Mission Mode' is that projects will no longer operate in a normal bureaucratic manner. A concrete timeline will be set for each major project, and the project chief will have to show progress within that period. Former president Singh said, 'Ensuring the stability of project chiefs is a good thing, but it's not enough for employees to be stable; the working environment must also be stable. There should be clear legal provisions for punishing project chiefs who do not perform and rewarding those who do well. Currently, employees are afraid to make decisions, and contractors are struggling due to non-payment.'

Strictness in Re-appropriation and Budget Discipline

To strengthen the implementation aspect, the government has also emphasized budget discipline. In the past, the practice of transferring budget from one project to another (re-appropriation) and arbitrary spending at the end of the fiscal year had degraded the quality of infrastructure. This time, while providing flexibility in resource management including re-appropriation, the government has set a condition that the results must be mandatory.

The announcement to present a 'Sunset' law related to projects in parliament will also create a situation where the budget will be automatically halted or re-evaluated if projects are not completed within a certain period.

Similarly, to bring construction entrepreneurs who take mobilization advances and do not work under control, a tracking system has been arranged to ensure that the advance amount is spent only on the concerned project. This is expected to end the wrong practice of investing infrastructure money in real estate, stock markets, and other sectors.

Result-Oriented Goal: 1 Thousand Kilometers of Blacktopping and 275 Bridges

Standing on this foundation of administrative reform, the government has set an ambitious goal of blacktopping 1,000 kilometers of roads and completing the construction of 275 road bridges in the coming year. To ensure the proper utilization of the 2 kharba 86 arba 48 crore rupees allocated for roads and urban infrastructure, the nationwide maintenance campaign will also be conducted in a mission mode. For this, 28 arba 52 crore rupees have been allocated, the mobilization of which will now be through a result-oriented fast track rather than the traditional process of shuffling files.

Former president Singh said that concentrating the budget on large projects is positive. However, he recalled that projects of pride like the East-West Highway expansion, Hulasi Highway, Mid-Hill Highway, and Madan Bhandari Highway have been gracing budget statements for decades. He argued that the main reason for the non-completion of these projects on time is not just the budget, but also legal and administrative complexities.

The Finance Minister has reiterated the old promise of completing them within three to five years this time, but Singh stated that the budget does not show a concrete roadmap to untangle the structural and legal knots seen in those projects.

The government has announced the detailed feasibility study of 6 new tunnels. This budget has also failed to address the tendency of spending billions of rupees annually on feasibility studies and consultations, while projects remain stalled for years in the construction phase. Singh argues that the practice of spending budget in the name of studies without focusing on implementation only increases the cost of infrastructure.

For urban development, only 1 Arba 83 crore rupees have been allocated for 12 identified new cities. With less than 15 crore rupees per city, this allocated budget carries a higher risk of being distributed for petty schemes to please political activists rather than fulfilling the dream of 'smart cities' or identified cities. Similarly, the tendency to spread the budget thinly on suspension bridges and small projects will lead to a shortage of resources for national pride mega-projects.

'Budget Failed to Address Real Problems of the Construction Sector'

Former president Singh commented that the budget brought by the government has not concretely addressed the realities and experiences of infrastructure development and construction entrepreneurs. He argued that the budget has failed to resolve the practical difficulties faced by entrepreneurs in their field of work.

Former president Singh complained that the government has not paid attention to the easy availability of stones, gravel, and sand, which is the main problem of the construction sector. He said, 'While 'Bahubalis' get it for free, ordinary businessmen have to pay a hefty price. This should be included in the estimate and made transparent. The working environment cannot be created without addressing the problems of forests and local levels.'

Discussing the impact of price hikes faced by entrepreneurs, Singh stated that although the government had committed to adjusting prices within 15 days, nothing has been done even after 45 days. Citing examples of such decisions being made within 3-4 days in neighboring India, he mentioned that the construction sector is in trouble due to the working style of the government in Nepal. He suggested that corruption can be reduced by ensuring payment to construction entrepreneurs upon completion of work and by providing rewards to project managers.

He expressed dissatisfaction that only 20 percent of the capital expenditure was allocated in the budget, despite construction entrepreneurs demanding it to reach 40 percent. He emphasized that the government should have the capacity to spend at least 80 percent of the allocated budget. Singh said, 'Spending should start from Shrawan and work should be done to achieve the target in the first quarter itself, only then will the revenue target also be met.'