Fiscal Nepal
First Business News Portal in English from Nepal
KATHMANDU: Nepali Congress President Gagan Thapa has described the period between 1991 and 1994 as a “golden era” for Nepal’s economy and announced plans to launch what he termed a second generation of economic reforms aimed at accelerating growth and raising national income.
Speaking Thursday at a discussion programme on the party’s policy commitments, Thapa said the Congress-led government during that period had taken strong reform measures that laid the foundation for Nepal’s later economic progress.
He argued that much of Nepal’s current development stems from policies introduced during the early 1990s when the party was in power. According to Thapa, reform efforts stalled afterward as political actors became defensive and failed to sustain the momentum.
Promise of economic revival within five years
Thapa said the next five years should be treated as a “half-decade of economic revival,” with the party preparing to push structural reforms similar in scale to those of the early democratic period.
He claimed that if reform momentum from the early 1990s had continued, Nepal’s per capita income would have reached around USD 2,500 by now. He described this gap as a lost opportunity that must be compensated for in the coming years.
“We now need to cover that deficit within five years through second-generation reforms,” he said, adding that the party aims to raise Nepal’s per capita income to roughly USD 2,500 through expanded economic activity.
Massive investment mobilisation plan
To achieve this, Thapa said Nepal would need to mobilise around Rs13.7 trillion in economic activity and investment. He did not specify funding sources but indicated that policy reforms, private sector expansion, and improved investment climate would be central to the strategy.
He said the Congress would pursue a framework built on “pro-growth, pro-business, and pro-social justice” principles, signalling a stronger policy tilt toward private sector participation.
Thapa also suggested that criticism of the party for becoming more private-sector-friendly would be acceptable if it helped accelerate economic expansion and job creation.
Reform agenda likely to shape political debate
His remarks come at a time when major parties are preparing economic agendas ahead of upcoming political cycles, with economic recovery, investment mobilisation, and income growth emerging as central themes in national debate.
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