KATHMANDU, July 18: Government income and expenditure both remained weak in the last Fiscal Year (FY) 2024/25, according to the Financial Comptroller General Office (FCGO). Compared to annual targets, the government spent 81 percent and earned 82 percent of its projected revenue.
For the FY, the government had unveiled a budget of Rs 1.860 trillion. By the end of Asar (mid-July), the government had spent Rs 1.523 trillion—equivalent to 81.87 percent of the annual target.
Out of the Rs 1.140 trillion allocated for recurrent expenditure, the government spent Rs 980.28 billion, which is 85.95 percent of the target.
Likewise, out of Rs 352.35 billion allocated for capital expenditure, the government spent Rs 222.68 billion, equivalent to only 63.2 percent of the planned capital budget.
Diversifying Government Revenue
The government had allocated Rs 367.28 billion under financial management, of which it spent Rs 320.04 billion—equivalent to 87.14 percent.
The government’s revenue collection also fell significantly short of the target. Against a revenue target of Rs 1.471 trillion for the fiscal year, the government managed to collect only Rs 1.219 trillion, which is 82.88 percent of the target. Thus, the government’s spending exceeded income by Rs 303.38 billion.
In terms of revenue collection, the government set a target of Rs 1.419 trillion but achieved only 83.06 percent of it. The government collected only Rs 1.178 trillion in revenue.
Among this, tax revenue stood at Rs 1.049 trillion, or 81.75 percent of the annual tax target. Nontax revenue collection reached Rs 128.94 billion—equivalent to 95.45 percent of the nontax revenue goal, according to data from the FCGO.
Meanwhile, foreign grant mobilization saw only 44.97 percent progress. The government had aimed to receive Rs 52.32 billion in foreign grants, but collected only Rs 23.52 billion—less than half of the target.
Despite revising the targets twice, the government failed to meet its goals. The first revision came during the mid-year review in Magh (January/February), and the second occurred during the presentation of the FY 2025/26 budget in Jestha (May/June).
According to the revised estimate from Jestha, the government expected to spend Rs 1.662 trillion—or 89.4 percent of the initial annual allocation—in FY 2024/25. However, actual expenditure was around Rs 140 billion less than the revised projection just 1.5 months prior.
The revision made by the government in May also estimated that 88.5 percent of the recurrent budget, 84.4 percent of the capital budget, and 97.6 percent of the financial management budget would be spent. Similarly, the second revision projected revenue collection of Rs 1.267 trillion.
