Limited Government and Maximum Governance

The development activities were carried out relatively rapidly during the three-decade Panchayat although the country was ruled under single party system. A lot of infrastructural developments took place then. The roads of Nepal, Mahendra Highway, Arniko Highway (that connects Nepal with China), Tribhuvan Highway, Kulekhani Hydropower Project (the only one storage type project in Nepal), were built during the same period.  The development process is similar in other countries as economic development is initiated with the involvement of government intervention.

However, the involvement of government is not a sufficient condition for bringing prosperity at every nook and corner of the country because it monopolizes resources available and, hence, looses the incentive to utilize these resources efficiently in the absence of active participation of private sectors, which is quick in decision-making and following innovative practices. This is very true in case of Nepal as well as evinced by several examples in service and production sectors.

Liberalization, followed by privatisation is needed in an economy to mobilize human resources effectively and efficiently, reduce unnecessary expenditure, and manage other available resources more wisely. Furthermore, the involvement of private sector is very helpful for avoiding additional costs associated with insurance, pension and so on.

(The article was published in The Himalayan Times, Perspectives on March 01, 2015.)

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