Finance and economic affairs secretary Ajay Seth on Saturday said that the ongoing economic and geopolitical uncertainties are unlikely to subside in the coming months.

The government, however, is keen to undertake reforms as it looks to have a sustained growth over the next 20-25 years.

Speaking at the 100th Skoch Summit in New Delhi, Seth said that there is an increasing trend of countries moving away from “cooperation to competition”.

“We are in the midst of a very tough global environment — both geopolitical as well as economic. Economic difficulties are faced by different nation, be it developed or developing. There are many uncertainties and going forward I don’t see those uncertainties subsiding a least in the medium term,” he said.

Seth, however, said that India has to grow fast amid these uncertainties while also adopting the path of inclusive development. He said that the Union government is looking to set the ball rolling on non-financial sector reforms following the announcement made in the Union budget in February. A review on how financial sector reforms can support economic development while allowing the efficient use of capital is also on the drawing board under the aegis of the Financial Stability and Development Council.

“So this initiative of a high-level committee on regulatory reforms in non-financial sector work should be starting soon,” he said.

In the Union budget, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced creation of a high-level committee for regulatory reforms for a review of all non-financial sector regulations, certifications, licences, and permissions. The committee is expected to make recommendations within a year and is expected to work on measures to enhance “ease of doing business”, especially in matters of inspections and compliances.

Observing that a number of structural reforms have been announced in the last 10 years, Seth said, at the same time keeping those reforms in tandem with the technological advancement, removing legislative provisions which have outlived their utility and maintaining their relevance in the 21st century and the next 23 years’ requirement also needs to be looked at.