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PM slams misuse of funds
KATHMANDU, JAN 25 -
Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal said on Monday that much of the budget aimed at poverty alleviation had been misused thus depriving the poor from getting the targeted benefits.
Addressing a workshop jointly organised by the National Planning Commission and the Poverty Alleviation Fund, he said, "There must be a probe into misappropriation of the budget for the poor."
He, however, admitted that both the political leadership and the administration had not been working hard enough to deliver services to the poor effectively. "The prime minister and the ministers have not been as serious as they should be to lift the poor from their miserable condition," he added.
"Even the administrative agencies are slow in working on programmes for the poor," the prime minister said who is also chairman of both the National Planning Commission and the Poverty Alleviation Fund.
He stressed the need for quality of work in the projects aimed at alleviating poverty. "There is no ground for being satisfied with the achievements made so far," he said.
The prime minister also stressed the need for collaboration among the government, donors and civil society for eradicating poverty at the earliest.
He said that there should be a single precise definition of poverty to address the real poor.
He also expre-ssed concern over the widening gap between the haves and the have-nots which has affected attempts to establish sustainable peace in the country.
Vice chairman of the National Planning Commission Yubaraj Khatiwada complained that many projects aimed at poverty alleviation were not continued after they have ended. "We must ensure that the people continue the good work of the project by getting involved in cooperatives promoted by themselves," he added.
He asked the Ministry of Agriculture to help the Poverty Alleviation Fund in its efforts to eradicate poverty through livestock programmes as 65 percent of its projects were related to livestock.
World Bank country director in Nepal Susan Goldmark said that the World Bank was in favour of co-financing projects related to poverty reduction with the village development committees.
"It is also part of the peace building effort in addition to the economic wellbeing of the people," she said.
Joint secretary at the Ministry of Local Development Dinesh Thapaliya said that over Rs. 40 billion was being spent on poverty alleviation this year through 43 different programmes.
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