Nepal to try to attract more investment in second TPR

Kathmandu, Nov. 29:  The country aims at amplifying the message through the second Nepal Trade Policy Review Meeting (NTPRM) being held next week at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Geneva that the country has a favourable investment climate and immense business potential.

The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies (MoICS) is set to highlight the investment opportunities in the country, the reforms it made in the past six years and economic development policy.

“We want to assure the world that Nepal’s policies are favourable for the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in many sectors,” Secretary for Commerce Chandra Kumar Ghimire said in an interaction with the journalists at the Ministry on Thursday.

“Our tariff regime is liberal,” he added.

According to him, political stability, conflict resolution and smoothening energy supply have given an impression that Nepal is a vibrant investment destination.

The NTPRM is slated for December 3 and 5 where all WTO member countries will present their views on Nepal’s trade policy it adopted in the last six years, from 2012 to 2018.

The first NTPRM was held in 2012.

Nepal became the 147^th member of the WTO in 2004. According to the WTO rules, the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) should review their trade policy in every six years whereas the developed and developing nations are required to perform this task every two and four years respectively.

A committee led by Secretary Ghimire had prepared a review report and sent it to the WTO while,  at the same time, the Secretariat of the multilateral organisation also visited Nepal and prepared another review report.

The report has been studied by 164 WTO member nations and they raised 111 questions. “We have responded to most of the questions while some are being answered,” said Toya Narayan Gyawali, Joint-Secretary of the MoICS.

He said that the review reports on Nepal will be discussed for the two whole days.

According to the Ministry, Nepal has made a significant progress in terms of policy formulation and implementation in the areas of energy, investment, tourism, agriculture, bilateral trade treaties, intellectual property, FDI and trade in goods and services.

“Member nations will know that we have made some significant policy progress in creating investment environment which will contribute to more FDI and tourism inflow,” said Gyawali.

He said that the country would learn immensely from the review as other countries would point out its weaknesses and suggest better policy options.

This is also the time when the multilateral organisation monitors whether the policy of the member countries is as per the WTO standards.

The review report submitted to the WTO includes the economic environment of the country, institutional framework, trade policy instruments, objectives and trade agreements, aid for trade and sectoral policies such as agriculture, manufacturing and services – financial services, telecommunication, transport and tourism.

It also carries sections on measures directly affecting imports and exports, and measures affecting production and trade.

A delegation led by Ghimire will attend the NTPRM in Geneva which will include Gyawali, Nepali Ambassador to Geneva, Deputy Chief of Mission and a joint-secretary from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA).

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 30 November 2018. 

Balgopaleshwor to be built in Shikhar style

Kathmandu, Nov. 28:The Balgopaleshwor Temple of Ranipokhari will be built in Shikhar style.

The government has decided to rebuild the temple in its original Shikhar style, Sushil Gyawali, Chief Executive Officer of the National Reconstruction Authority (NRA), said at a meeting of the Development and Technology Committee (DTC) of the Parliament on Wednesday.

Dispute on the design of the temple has delayed the reconstruction of the temple, which was completely damaged in the devastating earthquake in 2015,more than three years ago.

The debate was about whether to build the temple in dome style as reconstructed by Rana Prime Minister Junga Bahadur and Juddha Shumsher or in Granthakuta style – a variant of Shikhar Style – as originally built by King Pratap Malla in 1670.

The Department of Archaeology (DoA) was rebuilding the temple, which is opened only on Bhaitika day during Tihar festival, in dome style as it was before the quake while the KMC and locals demanded that the temple should be built as per its original Granthakuta style.

Although multiple study teams were formed to resolve the issue in the past two years, the dispute remained as it was while the DoA tendered out the temple for reconstruction in dome style and the contractor built the ground storey of the temple as well, but a committee formed by the reconstruction body recently recommended Shikhar style and also prescribed the architectural map of the temple.

Gyawali also said that instead of bricks, black soil and sand will be used to create the bed of the pond, and the government was planning to use water from Melamchi Water Supply Project as the backup supply system for the Ranipokhari since no source of water was found.

The lawmakers raised questions on the slow progress of reconstruction and use of funds.

“Less than half of the estimated reconstruction budget has been used so far, and it seems that there is no plan to complete the work in the next two years. The government has not also told about the methods of collecting the remaining fund,” said Yagya Raj Sunuwar.

Ganesh Pahadi recommended that the NRA officials should not be transferred till the rebuilding campaign is over.

He also said that people are still residing in the houses partially damaged by the quake and there might be accidents in the future so the government should provide them concessional loans to rebuild their houses in order to maintain their safety.

The DTC directed the NRA to find the required amount as the available funds were not sufficient to cover all the costs of reconstruction.

It also directed the reconstruction body to provide additional Rs. 50,000 to the beneficiaries that are in the risky group as soon as possible.

Likewise, it drew attention towards identifying the landless people and finding a solution to support them in building houses.

Gyawali said that the reconstruction of the private houses would be completed within the current fiscal year 2018/19.

“More than 77 per cent beneficiaries are rebuilding their houses while 43 per cent of them have alreadycompleted their houses. And the reconstruction of health, education, water supply and other facilities is moving ahead at the desired speed,” he said.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 29 November 2018. 

Imark introduces Smart Vista Switch

Kathmandu, Nov. 28: To facilitate trade and payment in Nepal, Imark has forged collaboration with BPC Banking Technology, a Swiss company, and introduced Smart Vista Switch that converts the banking card system to digital.

Smart Vista has converted the card system in many countries into digital system.

The technology will play an important role in transforming the society into cashless system, Vice-Chairman of BPC Banking Technology and Managing Director for the Asia and the Pacific region Rajan S. Narayan said at a programme organised in the capital on Wednesday.

“It will facilitate and simplify the overall trading and payment activities,” he said.

BPC-BT was established in 1995 and Imark has been its partner since 2007. Imark has supported about 70 per cent banks and financial institutions in Nepal to adopt the cashless technology.

We are collaborating with more than a dozen banks in the country and supporting them in digitalising the payment system, said Ram Prasad Dhungana, Managing Director of Imark.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 19 November 2018. 

Livestock conference on Thursday

Kathmandu, Nov. 28: To ensure that the research on livestock undertaken by the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Livestock Systems in Nepal, the organisation is organizing Innovation Platform Meeting on Thursday.

The meeting will be a multi-stakeholder forum for participatory priority development, dialogue, and research to development linkages.

“The purpose of this meeting is to share with the livestock sector stakeholders in Nepal the main findings of the completed projects and provide an update of ongoing project,” said Gbola (A.T.) Adesogan, Professor of Animal Sciences and Director of Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Livestock Systems.

In Nepal, the lab has been implementing four major projects since 2015 and planning to support three more in the coming years.

“Through these projects, the lab aims to improve the nutrition, health and incomes of the poor by sustainably increasing livestock productivity and marketing, and consumption of animal-source foods (ASF),” said Adesogan.

This aim will be achieved by introducing new location-appropriate technologies, by improving management practices, skills, knowledge, capacity and access to and quality of inputs across livestock value chains, and by supporting the development of a policy environment that fosters sustainable intensification and increased profitability of smallholder livestock systems, he said.

The lab is one of more than 20 Innovation Labs under the Feed the Future initiative of the U.S. Government, which aims to end world hunger by supporting developing countries to develop their agricultural sector to spur economic development.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 29 November 2018. 

FCAN objects IDP's move to bar Nepali contractors

Kathmandu, Nov. 27:

The Federation of Contractors’ Associations of Nepal (FCAN) has expressed strong objections on international development partners’ (IDPs) including the Asian Development Bank (ADB), move to bar Nepali contractors from participating in the tender process of the development projects undertaken by them.

“It’s unfair to outcast Nepali contractors from participating in the tender of large infrastructure projects of billions of rupees,” President of FCAN Rabi Sing said in a press meet organised on Tuesday.

He said that instead of involving Nepali contractors in the large projects so as to develop their capacity to participate in the international projects and increase their confidence, the IDPs are pushing the country in more international debt and causing outflow of capital.

According to him, the development partners have included some provisions which are beyond the standards of Nepali contractors. He criticised the IDPs for their deliberate move to exclude Nepali contractors even in the projects implemented in the country.

ADB has called for the bids to build 87-km Kanchanpur-Kamala road, a Rs. 18 billion project, barring Nepali contractors even with joint-venture partnerships with foreign construction companies.

Nepali companies were excluded from participating in the bidding process of the expansion Butwal-Narayangarh section of Mahendra Highway.

The FCAN has demanded a clarification from the concerned stakeholders regarding the new provisions.

Earlier, the IDP funded projects used to be divided into many small packages in order to promote the participation of Nepali contractors.

Singh said that the Nepali construction entrepreneurs would have the chance to enhance their capacity and transfer technology if they were allowed to participate in large projects with joint-venture partnership with the foreign firms.

He said that while Nepali contractors were doing well in some international projects, its unfortunate that they were not allowed to participate in construction of Nepali projects.

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 28 November 2018. 

NCC to organise Chamber Expo from Thursday

Kathmandu, Nov. 27:

Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) is organising Nepal Chamber Expo 2018 from November 29 to December 3 at the Bhrikutimandap Exhibition Centre.

This will be the fourth edition of the expo organised by the NCC in collaboration with the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies and Trade and Export Promotion Centre (TEPC).

Export promotion, attraction of foreign investment and participation in international economic and business organisations are the major objectives of economic diplomacy and the expo is also aiming for the same, President of NCC Rajesh Kazi Shrestha said at a press meet organised on Tuesday.

“We have given special emphasis on business interaction, exchange of information related with the products and their export and import, and marketing of Nepali products,” he said.

According to him, NCC wants to promote Nepali products in the international market, and the expo will be used as a platform to interact with the foreign business community in order to explore opportunities for the export of Nepali goods, technology transfer and attract investment.

This year, Myanmar is the partner country in the expo. Businessmen from Myanmar will exhibit products like foods, garments, automobile and precious stones.

Director General of Myanmar Trade Promotion Organisation Aung Soe said that the participation of Myanmar in the expo has opened up new avenues for trade and investment promotion between the two countries in the future.

He appreciated NCC and Nepali Embassy in Myanmar for their role in bringing them to Nepal.

Likewise, China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, South Korea, Japan and other countries will also participate in the fair.

The expo will feature automobile, electrical and electronics, flooring and furnishing, home appliances, fashion wear and accessories, mobile and gadgets and FMCG. There will be 190 stalls in the expo.

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 28 November 2018. 

Govt announces social security scheme

This will narrow down gap in society: PM Oli

Kathmandu, Nov. 27:

The government has announced contribution-based social security schemes for the workers of all organised sectors.

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on Tuesday announced the scheme at a function organised in the Capital and said that the country was ushered into a new era with the new system that guaranteed welfare to all workers even when they lost the job.

The new programme includes pension or gratuity, workplace accident insurance, health check-up, maternal security plan, and various facilities of the dependents of the worker.

“With the announcement of this social security programme, the government would like to give a message to all that the state is not only a controlling institution but also a guardian of its citizens. It gives you security in good and bad times and offers fair salary for your labour,” Said PM Oli.

As per the work procedure of the Social Security Work Procedure, 2018, employees will contribute 11 per cent from their salary to the Social Security Fund, and the employers will send money equal to 20 per cent to the fund.

So, money equal to 31 per cent of a worker’s salary will be deposited into the fund and all the social security functions will be covered by the money. If there is any shortage of money, the government will contribute in the fund through the budget announcement.

The contributory social security programme will boost the confidence in both the employers and employees.

The Prime Minister recalled that the first-ever communist government had announced senior citizen welfare programme for the first time in the country about two and a half decades ago.

“That was a initiative for a new social system. We had announced the welfare scheme amidst criticisms that the government was distributing the tax-payers money and not following economic discipline,” he said.

Answering to the questions of critics he said that the government was among the working people and working to make their future better.

According to him, the move was to correct the culture to provide respect and money to government employees and neglect the workers of private sectors.

He said that Nepali society had been cooperative and cordial traditionally and supported those who were in need. People developed trust, barter system, service committee and welfare societies to help each other.

“These mechanisms are pushed to the corner in modern times and joint-families are broken into many nuclear families. We are at modern social transition and this new scheme will bridge the gap that is seen in our society,” said Oli.

The state gives equal treatment to all its citizens but it may vary according to their age group since a child needs care, education and health, youth needs opportunity and employment as per their qualification and skills, and adults and senior citizens need respect and security.

“Social security is not about distributing the money from the state coffers but to contribute to the coffer and support each other. Even a small contribution from each of us turns into a large amount if we work united,” said PM Oli.

He said that the country was in people’s democracy and the system was not limited to political and liberal rights. It is expanded to political, economic, social, cultural and other sectors of social life.

We are for the democracy with social justice and equity, he said.

Minister for Labour, Employment and Social Security Gokarna Bista said that the new scheme had created an environment where workers could work efficiently without worrying about their future and families, and employers could invest confidently.

“It has paved way for the secure future for the workers. It will bring many positive changes in the country. It will contribute to the economic growth of the country,” he said.

According to him, the government will observe Mangsir 11 every year as the Social Security Day.

He said that the scheme was developed and being implemented in full coordination with the employers and experts.

The private sector welcomed the new initiative and said that the effective implementation of the scheme was challenging.

“The scheme has come as a beginning of social transformation and the mobilisation of the fund will help to make the labour market more dynamic and decent,” said Bhawani Rana, President of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI).

She said that the employers had an important role to make the programme a success and urged to focus on better implementation of it.

President of Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) Hari Bhakta Sharma said that it was a historic day and the scheme might contribute in increasing the productivity of the workers.

“In the coming 10 years, the Social Security Fund will be the largest fund in the country. So the government should give attention to utilising the money,” he said.

Vice-President of Nepal Chamber of Commerce Kamlesh Agrawal said that the fund could be mobilised in developing large infrastructure projects.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 28 November 2018. 

Dispute on temple style delays Ranipokhari reconstruction

Kathmandu, Nov. 25: Ranipokhari located at the centre of the capital city now looks like a pasture.

One of the most celebrated landmarks in the capital, the historic pond is still bearing a pathetic look even three and a half years after its destruction with half built white temple standing in its centre and grassy land on its bed.

While the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) Office, the Department of Archaeology (DoA) and locals are still trading arguments about the structure of the Balgopaleshwor Temple that stands at the centre of the Ranipokhari, the pond has remained without water for almost three years after the devastating Gorkha Earthquake in 2015.

The debate is about whether to build the temple in dome style or Granthakuta style – a variant of Shikhar style, said Bhishma Baskota, Archaeological Officer at the National Reconstruction Authority (NRA).  

The DoA was rebuilding the temple, which is opened only on Bhaitika day during Tihar festival, in dome style as it was before  the quake while the KMC and locals are demanding that the temple should be built as per its original Granthakuta style built by Pratap Malla.

Malla king Pratap Malla had built the Ranipokhari in 1670 to console his mourning queen  following the untimely demise of their son. The king had collected  water from 52 holy sites in Nepal and India and poured into the pond.  The Ranipokhari was built at the eastern side of the city which is known as the core city area in the capital.

The reconstruction of the temple was assigned to the KMC but as it faced obstacles while rebuilding the temple as per the design prescribed by the DoA, the latter took the responsibility of the job two years ago.

The DoA had said that the KMC did not adhere to the standards of heritage reconstruction.

Later when the KMC constructed concrete sidewalls in the pond, debate erupted again as the experts criticised the metropolis’ decision to use the modern construction material. It delayed the construction of both the temple and the sidewalls.

In the past two years, from October 2016 to 2018, multiple committees have been formed to study and prescribe the structure of the temple while multiple dialogues happened among the stakeholders, including the local residents and heritage conservationists, said Baskota.

The DoA had already tendered out the temple for reconstruction in dome style, but a committee formed by the NRA in the leadership of former DoA Chief Bishnu Raj Karki recommended Granthakuta style and also prescribed the architectural map of the temple.

The DOA is in a fix whether to demolish the half-built temple or continue with the previous design, he said.

Meanwhile, a meeting of Tourism Ministry, NRA, DoA and KMC last month had asked the DoA to review the architectural design of the temple.

Spokesperson of the DoA Ram Bahadur Kunwar said that the dispute on the architectural design of the temple had not been settled yet.

“The reconstruction has been delayed because of the design dispute. We are having discussion with the expert teams and hopefully it will be settled within a week or two. Then the reconstruction will move ahead,” Kunwar said.

According to Baskota, the temple was initially built in Granthakuta style which was rebuilt in another style by Junga Bahadur Rana. When it was destroyed in the 1933 earthquake, the then Prime Minister Juddha Shumsher rebuilt it in dome style.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 26 November 2018. 

Coop face challenges due to staff shortage

Kathmandu, Nov. 24: Local representatives of Province 3 have said that the shortage of staff at their offices had created constraints in regulation, monitoring and promotion of cooperatives.

Chairman of the Municipality Federation and Mayor of Dhulikhel Municipality of Kavrepalanchowk district Ashok Kumar Byanju said that the local representatives and employees needed a robust awareness about cooperatives, legal provisions and their functioning mechanism.

He expressed his views at the province-level meeting on ‘Role of provinces and local levels in promoting cooperatives’ organised by National Cooperatives Federation of Nepal (NCFN) in collaboration with the Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation (MoLMCP) and UNDP in Kathmandu.

 “There is a need to create a network of cooperatives at the local level and we need to create an environment where private sector businesses and cooperatives can move ahead hand in hand,” he said.

Chairman of Jugal Rural Municipality in Sindhupalchowk Hom Narayan Shrestha said that the Cooperatives Act 2017 was not as per the spirits of the constitution so it needed an immediate amendment.

According to him, the local governments are facing challenges in conducting day to day operations as the federal government has not sent skilled employees there. His office has received a document of cooperatives in Jugal Rural Municipality from the Division Cooperative Office but there was no one who can understand the issues well.

President of NCFN Keshav Badal said that the cooperatives had played a crucial role in developing and strengthening human resources and there was less poverty in the provinces and local bodies where cooperatives were active.

“Therefore, the federal government should inspire civil servants to join the local governments,” he said.

Vice-Chairman of the Planning Commission of the province Dr. Khimlal  Devkota said that the local bodies could create their own laws as per necessity but their journey to prosperity would begin with the appointment of the required workforce.

“The cooperatives should enter to the productive areas and an effective coordination between the local government and cooperatives in the respective local units is a must,” he said.

Secretary of the MoLMCP Gopi Nath Mainali presented a paper on ‘Cooperative friendly federal, provincial and local laws for the promotion of cooperatives sector’.

Finance Minister Dr. Yuba Raj Khatiwada had inaugurated the 2-day programme on Friday.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 26 November 2018. 

Construction expo draws 100,000 visitors

Kathmandu, Nov. 24:

The exhibition of all kinds of construction materials under a single roof in the capital will conclude on Sunday.

The Building and Construction Expo-2075 being organised at the Bhrikutimandap Exhibition Centre from November 22 has attracted about 100,000 visitors till Saturday.

The exhibition is being organised with the vision of bringing the industry stakeholders and consumers together under one roof and assist them in making informed decision about building and construction works, materials and designs.

“The expo has been useful in achieving our aim to provide up-to-date information about the building protocols to make our structure resilient to natural disasters and expanding the market for new entrepreneurs,” said the organisers.

The fair has become a destination for the people who are building their house or planning to build one since it also features necessary consultation for construction, said Mohan Gajurel, Chief Executive Officer of Brand Worth, a co-organiser of the event.

He said that the expo was used as a platform to assist in addressing the concerns of communities in building and construction. It is a platform to showcase available building materials and construction technologies and create awareness for their suitable and prudent application.

Kshmadevi Building Materials has offered to build a pre-fab house at Rs. 300,000. 

The fair has stalls of land and housing, cement, furniture and furnishing, pipe and fittings, electrical and electronics, iron and steel, bricks and marbles, paints, interior designers, roof and flooring, sanitary and tiles, home security system, solar, heavy equipment and prefab companies.

It also features earthquake resistance home, bank and insurance, vastu and contractors, developers, architect and engineers.

The event is supported by Nepal Engineers’ Association (NEA), Society of Nepalese Architects (SONA), Society of Consulting Architectural and Engineering Firm (SCAEF) and Brandworth Pvt. Ltd.

published in The Rising Nepal daily on 25 November 2018. 

UN to organise awareness on gender-based violence

Kathmandu, Nov. 24 :

 The United Nations Country Team of Nepal, together with the Gender Equality and Social Inclusion Working Group of the International Development Partners’ Group, in partnership with the Provincial Assemblies, is organising an awareness-raising event to kickstart the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign.

Seven Provincial Assembly buildings will be washed with orange lights on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.

This year’s theme of the campaign is “Orange the World: #HearMeToo’.

The unofficial translation of slogan from the Government of Nepal is “Gender-Based Violence and harassment is unacceptable to us”.

The UN Nepal office said that the speakers along with representatives from UN agencies and other development partners will speak about ending the gender-based violence.

The Provincial Assembly buildings will be lit up in orange, the official colour of the UNiTE campaign, symbolising hope and a country free of violence against women and girls.

The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence is an international campaign which takes place each year.

It commences on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, to 10 December, Human Rights Day. It was originated by activists at the first Women's Global Leadership Institute in 1991 and is coordinated each year by the Center for Women's Global Leadership.

It is used as an organizing strategy by individuals and organizations around the world to call for the prevention and elimination of violence against women and girls.

Japan positive towards hiring skilled workers

Kathmandu, Nov. 23:

Japan has responded positively to Nepal’s proposal to open the market for skilled and semi-skilled Nepali workers.

“I have urged the Japan government to accept Nepali workers. Japan is very positive about taking Nepali workers and there will be progress in that direction soon,” said Foreign Minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali upon his arrival at the Tribhuvan International Airport on Friday after concluding his 5-day Japan visit.

He said that a bill on opening Japan’s labour market for foreign workers was at the Parliament and after its approval from the legislative both the governments would have further dialogue in terms of taking Nepali skilled and semi-skilled workers in Japan.

The issue has become a public agenda for past many years, especially after South Korea opened its market for Nepali workers from 2008.

Nepal was recognised as the best worker supplying country for 2009 and 2011 by South Korea, and Nepali workers are appreciated in Malaysia, Qatar and elsewhere for their hard work and diligence.

Some of the Japanese organisations, such as Japan Agriculture Exchange Council had expressed their desire to take Nepali youth as trainee workers in the past.

Minister Gyawali said that Japan had also agreed to establish and run human resource training and skill development institution and programmes in Nepal.

According to him, he requested his Japanese counterpart Taro Kono to support Nepal in the development and modernisation of agriculture, energy generation, and infrastructure and tourism development as well. He also urged Kono to promote Japanese investment in Nepal and support in making the Visit Nepal Year 2020 successful.

“Japan is also positive to allow direct flight of Nepal Airlines from Kathmandu to the Japanese cities. It will also help in making the VNY 2020 successful,” said Gyawali.

Japan government also expressed its readiness in extending help in the areas of infrastructure development and network expansion, technology transfer, poverty alleviation, climate change, organic agriculture and disaster risk mitigation.

The government of Japan approved 350 million Japanese Yen support to Nepal’s Food Programme. Nepali Ambassador to Japan Prativa Rana and Japanese Ambassador to Nepal Masamichi Saigo signed the agreement on behalf their countries.

The Foreign Minister had presented keynote speech in Nepal Investment Seminar jointly organised by the Nepali Embassy in Japan, Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) and UNIDO, ITPO Japan where he updated on the recent political and economic development in Nepal and made a call to Japanese investors to invest in energy, infrastructure, information technology and service areas. 

Chief Executive Officer of the Investment Board of Nepal Maha Prasad Adhikari presented a paper on investment process in Nepal and potential projects that could be of the interest of foreign investors.

While returning, FM Gyawali spent a day in Thailand.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 24 November 2018. 

Aus Envoy bids farewell to Nepali students

Kathmandu, Nov. 23: Australian Ambassador to Nepal Peter Budd bid farewell to the recipients of the Australian Awards Scholarships for 2019 on Thursday.

Altogether 29 scholars, including 13 government officials, will travel to Australia to commence post graduate level study at the Australian universities.

This year’s ccholarships recipients include 17 females and 12 males. Three of the scholarships recipients are persons with disability, said the Embassy of Australia in Kathmandu.

These scholars will be studying a variety of courses under six priority sectors.

Three will be enrolled in Education, seven Economic Development, two will pursue degrees in Gender Inclusion and Disability, eight in Governance, six in Health and three in Water Resource Management.

All the priority sectors, where there is a recognised need for skilled workforce, were chosen in close consultation with the relevant stakeholders in Nepal.

For 2019, the Australian Government offered 3,186 Australia Awards scholarships, fellowships and short courses to individuals from over 55 developing countries with an aim to transfer high quality knowledge, skills and best-practice methodologies to equip them to directly contribute to both their workplaces and to the future development of their countries.

Addressing the ceremony, Foreign Secretary Shanker Das Bairagi stated that Australia has been the reliable development partner in the field of energy, education, livestock and forest management.

While expressing thanks to the Government of Australia for providing Australian Awards Scholarships to Nepali nationals, he expressed his belief that they would play a key role in Nepal's development upon their return.

Ambassador Budd said that the high-quality Australian education would assist students in positively supporting the future growth of Nepal.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 24 November 2018. 

PM expresses concerns over Climate Change effect

Kathmandu, Nov. 22: Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has expressed serious concerns over the deteriorating condition of the Himalayas due to the effect of climate change.

In a video address to the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) Virtual Summit 2018, he said that entire downstream was threatened as the mountains were impacted by the climate change.

He said that the adverse impact of climate change appeared more prominent in the entire Himalayan region and posed a serious threat to the ecological system of the mountains.

“High-altitude plants and animals are losing their habitat and are forced to move higher, some species have already been extinct.  Availability of fresh-water for natural systems and for human use has been affected,” said PM Oli.

He said that extreme events such as desertification, droughts and crop failure had become more frequent.

“The Himalayan Mountains are the source of major river basins that extend down to the ocean. When these mountains are affected by the climate change, the entire downstream suffers. It has posed existential threat to small island nations,” he said.

According to him, the adverse impact of climate change cannot be addressed without fully recognising the organic linkage between mountains and the oceans. Conservation of mountains remains critical for the sustenance of lives and livelihood downstream.

“Climate vulnerable countries in group record least greenhouse gas emissions. However, it is an unpleasant irony that they have been the victims of the catastrophes that they did not contribute for,” he said.

Prime Minister Oli said that Nepal’s joining of Virtual Forum was inspired by its desire to combat climate change together and to contribute to enhanced collaboration, coordination, advocacy and knowledge-sharing among developing countries.

He stressed the need for a robust and matching response at the global level.

According to him, climate action should be launched in a concerted manner to limit the rise of global warming to 1.5 degree Celsius as envisioned by the Paris Agreement and scientifically reinforced by the IPCC Special Report last month.

Stating that access to climate funds and affordable technology was the key to any climate action in the developing countries, the Prime Minister demanded that implementation guidelines, which are being elaborated in Katowice, should treat loss and damage in the same footing as mitigation.

He said that Nepal considered climate change as the defining development challenge of modern time.

“We are working towards streamlining policies, building institutions, and deploying targeted interventions to reduce emissions, preserve biodiversity, protect glacial lakes and river basins, invest in resilience and even put a price on carbon,” he said.

The CVF is a group of nation states represented by their respective government leaders from around the world who act together on the concerns each share as a result of human-induced global climate change.

Founded in 2009, the Forum currently has 48 member states.

Due to increased scientific evidence indicating plausible existential risks for a number of CVF member states to be incurred in the event of failure to achieve the long-term goal of the Paris Agreement to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius, a considerable global increase in national efforts as soon as possible, would be required to offer safeguard for the survival of most vulnerable nations.

The 2018 CVF Summit is organised as part of the Talanoa Dialogue, which serves as an agreed mechanism for the promotion of enhanced national action by all nations party to the Paris Agreement by 2020.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 23 November 2018. 

JICA sends new representative to Nepal

Kathmandu, Nov. 22: Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has appointed Yumiko Asakuma as the Chief Representative of its Nepal Office on Thursday.

She will take over Jun Sakuma who recently completed his tenure in Nepal. Asakuma was working as Director General in Yokohama Centre, JICA.

She began her career in JICA in 1993 in the Social Development Cooperation Department and diversified her work experience in various departments of JICA office which includes industrial and mining development study, grant aid cooperation, training group and representative of JICA India, said the organisation.

She also served as a Chief Representative of JICA Bhutan Office from 2012 to 2016. Asakuma is a graduate from Osaka Prefectural University, Department of Integrated Arts and Sciences.

She expressed her commitment to providing continued support to the people of Nepal and its government further towards development and prosperity. 

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 23 November 2019. 

PM directs ministers, secretaries to be result-oriented

Kathmandu, Nov. 21: Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on Wednesday warned that no minister and civil servant could escape from their duty to people and the country with ‘but, also and if’ rhetoric.

“We should not delay to fulfill our development duty and people’s expectation. The government must work according to public aspirations,” he said while addressing the budget review meeting for the first four-months of the fiscal year 2018/19.

The civil servants and elected leaders must understand the current status of the country, public expectation from us and our responsibility, he said.

He directed all the ministers and secretaries to work so as to show results so that people could feel the change.

“Don’t try to hide your weaknesses with arguments,” he said.

PM Oli expressed discontent over the traditional working style of government even after nine months of its formation.

“It takes many days to move a file from a table to another and months to deliver a letter from a ministry to another. We can make progress in such a scenario,” he said.

“If there has been delay in the part of the Cabinet of in the part of ministers and secretaries, let me know. If the interruption is caused by any existing laws and rules, do report. I will try to address such issues immediately. But, you have no luxury to dillydallying,” added PM Oli.

According to him, some elements are spearheaded to fail the democratic system and they have attacked the foundations of democracy in ugly way.

He said the leaders and officials should work to raise hope in people.

Secretary of the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport Madhu Sudan Adhikari, Secretary of the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology Mahendra Man Gurung, Secretaries of the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Sanjaya Sharma and Anup Kumar Upadhyaya, Secretaries of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development Yubak Dhoj GC, Secretaries of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies Yam Kumari Khatiwada and Chandra Ghimire, Secretary of the Ministry of Urban Development Ramesh Kumar Singh, and Secretary of the National Reconstruction Authority Arjun Karki presented the progress report of their respective ministry and agency.

The meeting will continue tomorrow.

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 22 November 2018.