Kathmandu. Federal government stopped the budget on Multi-sectoral nutrition program, which started in the previous fiscal year 2080/081. Within a year, the government stopped the budget and said local government will continue it in coming years utilizing its sources.
With the goal of ending malnutrition by the year 2030, the federal government, which is ready to spend 1 trillion 89 billion rupees for nutrition, is unable to provide additional budget for the multi-sectoral nutrition program for the current financial year due to lack of budget.
In previous year, Multi-sectoral nutrition program was started with 30 percent of the European Union and 70 percent of the federal, state and local governments cost sharing. Now, the federal government has written to the local level to manage the budget by itself saying that it cannot bear additional financial obligations for the current financial year.
The federal government is saying that the aid agreement with the development partner for the budget to be spent on this program for the current financial year (2081/082) is in the process and it is not sure that any additional budget can be released other than the one that has been released.
Earlier, the federal government had already sent a ministerial financial transfer proposal to the local level for the multi-sectoral nutrition program. But the government issued a circular under the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration and informed all local levels that the budget will not be withdrawn.
The federal government, which said that it would not be able to provide a budget for the current financial year, has also issued a circular to allocate budget for multi-sectoral nutrition programs from next year when the local level prepares the budget.
The circular issued by the Federal Ministry at the local level across the country states, “It is requested that to ensure the implementation of the integrated program by allocating the necessary budget, local government need to formulate and implement the program identifying target group and operational nutrition program,”
Federal government said to the local government not to allocate budget for the current financial year and ensure that to carry out programs the budget that has been allocated earlier but has yet to be released will be used.
Since the federal government has asked not to create additional liabilities, it is seen that it will be difficult to meet the goals of sustainable development including the national and global goals related to nutrition by the year 2030, i.e. the financial year 2087/088.
It is estimated that the government will spend 1 trillion 89 billion 354 million 70 thousand rupees for this program with the help of donor agencies.