KATHMANDU, JUL 26 - The Nepal Economic Association (NEA), an organization of Nepali economists, has urged the Constituent Assembly (CA) to adopt a liberal economic model instead of the one proposed that leads the country to socialism. The preamble to the draft constitution has mentioned leading the country to socialism.

“The constitution must be clear on what type of economic model the state should adopt,” the association said in a press release. It has stated that the role of the state, private sector and cooperatives should be accorded priority.

It has also suggested bringing down the number of provinces to five from the eight agreed by the major political parties. “There should be a clear provision requiring the government to protect the people’s life and property,” the association said. “There should be a clear provision on social security too.” The NEA has also urged developing the National Planning Commission as a constitutional body and not curtailing the powers of the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority.

Banks and financial institutions should be put under central control instead of the provinces, the association said, adding that the central authority should be stronger and all the customs offices should be connected with the central authority.

It has also suggested allocating 30 percent of the resources for the provinces through the federal government’s budget. News taken from ekantipur.com