Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: Minister for Finance Barsha Man Pun has said that the development of IT-related infrastructure and policy facilitation are among the top priorities of the government.
Addressing a program titled ‘IT Decade: A Way Forward’ organized by the Society of Economic Journalits-Nepal (SEJON) in Kathmandu on Tuesday, Pun said the government acknowledges and promotes IT as an instrumental tool in achieving economic prosperity. “The budget for the upcoming fiscal year has accorded top priority to the development of IT sector,” Pun said, adding that agriculture, hydropower, tourism and IT have been incorporated as the government’s priority sectors.
He also said that the upcoming budget is focused on escalating the digital economy and building a foundation for the green economy. “The government has set a target of developing Nepal as an IT hub, export IT services worth Rs 3,000 billion, and create 500,000 direct jobs and one million indirect employment opportunities in the next decade,” he added.
Also speaking on the occasion, Minister for Communications and Information Technology, Rekha Sharma, stressed the need for collaboration among the three tiers of government to promote the IT sector. Sharma admitted that the government’s Digital Nepal Framework, intended to integrate IT development with the delivery of civic services has not been effectively implemented.
Dr. Amrita Sharma, a consultant at the Institute of Integrated Development Studies (IIDS) and an IT skills and employment expert, advised the government to come up with planned endeavors to meet its objective of promoting the IT sector in the next decade.
