Infrastructure Summit today, provinces to present 54 projects

Kathmandu, Sept. 10

The Infrastructure Summit 2019 will begin from Wednesday in the capital. Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli is scheduled to address the opening plenary in the summit.

Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport (MoPIT), and Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) are orgnising the third edition of the event. Office of the Investment Board and Youth Community for Nepalese Contractors (YCNC) are supporting the event that is being organised with the theme of 'Resilient Infrastructure for sustainable growth'.

The summit aims at attracting large scale private investment in the areas of the country's core needs and strength, forging stronger networks and alliances in the region for seamless connectivity and shared growth, and prioritise the delivery of green, climate-resilient infrastructure projects that help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

According to the CNI, the two-day conference will witness a participation of 500 experts and leaders of the sectors.

Chief Ministers of all seven provinces will discuss about infrastructure development in their respective provinces. They will present altogether 54 projects in the summit.

The organisers are also hoping that the summit will help in finding investment for the projects showcased in the Nepal Investment Summit organised earlier this year.

"It will focus on the global and regional megatrends, including climate change and their relevance to the local context, issues surrounding infrastructure project delivery, financing modalities and opportunities for cross-border economic cooperation and investments," said Satish Kumar More, President of CNI.

It will deliberate on issues that shape incentives for investment and enable the private sector to partner for sustainable prosperity.

The summit is also expected to assess the achievements of the earlier two summits held in 2014 and 2017.

More said that the country must attract private investment in the infrastructure and forge Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) to meet the investment gap in the sector.

According to CNI estimate, despite the increased public funding of capital projects, a huge gap between US $77 billion and $136 billion remains until 2030 in just four priority sectors- energy, transport, urban development, and water and sanitation.

"To fill this gap, there is a need to expedite PPP at home and attract investments from abroad. Currently, available financial instruments and modalities for investment in infrastructure are not adequate," said CNI.

Former Prime Minister of South Korea Han Seung-soo will be the special guest of the programme. Likewise, Union State Minister at the Ministry of Power and Ministry of New and Renewable Energy India Raj Kumar Singh, Former Thai Foreign Affairs Minister Dr. Subin Pinkayan, Vice-President of the World Bank Jingdong Hua and Director General of Asian Development Bank Woochong Um will the guests and keynote speakers.

Similarly, chair of Nepal Communist Party (NCP) Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda Speaker of the House of Representative Krishna Bahadur Mahara, Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Barsha Man Pun, Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport Raghubir Mahaseth, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Matrika Yadav, Minister for Finance Dr. Yubaraj Khatiwada, former PM Dr. Baburam Bhattarai and Vice-Chairman of National Planning Commission Dr. Pushpa Raj Kandel are other prominent speakers in the summit.

Likewise, President Emeritus of CNI Binod Chaudhary, Chief Executive Officer of IBN Maha Prasad Adhikari, Former Vice President of ADB Bindu N. Lohani and former VC of NPC Dr. Swarnim Wagle are also the keynote speakers of the summit.

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 11 September 2019.