Himal Press 
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KATHMANDU: The government’s policies and programs for the upcoming fiscal year 2025/26 prioritize agriculture and youth engagement in the sector.
Presenting the policies and programs before the joint session of federal parliament in Kathmandu on Friday, President Ram Chandra Paudel announced plans to modernize and commercialize the currently subsistence-based agriculture, making the country self-reliant in agricultural produce through mechanization and specialization.
Additionally, the government intends to ensure smooth availability of agricultural inputs, expand the agricultural insurance program and build an ecosystem for market accessibility.
Key Programs
The government has announced that land availability will be ensured by setting up a land bank, while necessary arrangements will be made to use projects as collateral to arrange financing and materials through local financial institutions.
Similarly, project insurance schemes will be introduced to protect against sudden losses, while advanced purchase agreements based on minimum support prices will address commercial risks and ensure market certainty for farmers.
The government also plans to develop major highways like Mid-Hills Highway, Madan Bhandari Highway, BP Highway and Hulaki Highway, among other corridors, green business-based economic routes.
Likewise, the government has said that the Prime Minister Agriculture Modernization Project will be restructured and continued as a National Integrated Agriculture Modernization Program to expand its scope. Entrepreneurs in any agricultural sector will be integrated into this system, and pilot projects will be initiated. Programs targeting major crops, livestock, and fisheries will enhance agricultural production, productivity, food security, and farmers’ income, reads the policies and programs document.
Other Initiatives
The government plans to regulate the import and use of chemical pesticides to minimize risks to human health and biodiversity.
Protecting agricultural land, utilizing fallow land, and promoting land pooling and contract farming will also get priority in the coming fiscal year.
The government has also said that it would make the supply and distribution of chemical fertilizers more managed, while also unveiling plans to start a fertilizer factory in the country. It has also taken the policy of encouraging organic fertilizer production and use.
Streamlining subsidy and concessional loan distribution, expanding agricultural insurance coverage, and aligning agricultural production, distribution, storage and consumption with nutrition goals are the other programs announced by the government.
Developing digital systems to make agricultural services, upgrading quarantine and laboratory services, promoting production and export of dairy, wool and meat products are other programs that will get priority in the coming fiscal year.
The government has also vowed to put in place appropriate technology to minimize crop damage by wildlife. Conservation of native crops, seeds, breeds and agricultural biodiversity also features prominently in the policies and programs for the upcoming fiscal year.
