Nepal Chamber of Commerce Chairman Calls for Private Sector-Friendly Public Bodies

Kathmandu. Chairman of the Nepal Chamber of Commerce, Kamlesh Agarwal, has stated that public bodies should be private sector-friendly. He said this while speaking at a program organized on the occasion of the anniversary of the Nepal Auditors' Association (Adan). Chairman Agarwal said that the role of the Office of the Auditor General is important in maintaining economic governance and transparency. However, he said that it should work in a way that keeps the morale of the private sector high. He has given two main suggestions to the Office of the Auditor General at the program. He mentioned that the private sector gets discouraged when questions are raised again by the Office of the Auditor General on matters that have been completed and settled by regulatory bodies like the Inland Revenue Department. Discussing the retrospective tax policy adopted in the past, Agarwal said that such a policy is not implemented anywhere in the world. He said that this has lowered the confidence of the private sector. Stating that the Office of the Auditor General has supported such policies in the past, he demanded that constitutional bodies should be more private sector-friendly in the coming days. Commenting on the country's economic situation, Agarwal pointed out that although the policies are excellent, there are problems in the intention of implementation and the working style of the bureaucracy. Stating that 'trust' is the biggest capital in the economy, he said that only honest auditing and transparent financial reporting can build that trust. Chairman Agarwal said, 'Auditing by the Auditor General again on matters already settled by regulatory bodies discourages the private sector.' He said that since Nepal has set goals for high economic growth, industrialization, and export expansion, auditing according to international standards and effective governance are essential for this. He further said, 'In our country, policies are always made well, but due to the weakness in implementation, we are trapped in the quagmire of policy and intention.' He clarified that economic prosperity is not possible unless the bureaucracy adopts a private sector-friendly attitude. Discussing the new technologies introduced in the auditing sector, he said that auditing should not be limited only to reviewing the past. He emphasized that it should become a strategic tool for identifying future risks through the use of technologies like Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics.