Project bank expected to address development downsides

Kathmandu, Feb. 27

About 19 airports in Nepal are out of operation. Some are constructed in the interest of powerful leaders with an intention of swaying public support. People prefer road travel to air journey due to uncertainty in the latter because of difficult terrain and weather conditions.

Babai Irrigation Project is running in 34^th year of implementation while Melamchi Water Supply Project is under construction for about two decades and just recently moving towards completion. West Seti Hydropower Project has not taken off since its inception about 23 years ago while Budhi Gandaki Hydropower Project is yet to complete land acquisition in about a decade.

This lackluster development scenario is expected to change with the implementation of National Project Bank (NPB) created at the National Planning Commission (NPC).

Creation of this mammoth project database has set criteria for any project to be listed in the project bank as well as in the budget programmes to ensure better implementation and monitoring and maintain fiscal discipline.

Spokesperson of the NPC Min Bahadur Shahi said that it was an effort to reform the overall project governance which has been awful in the past few decades with a few exceptions.

"The culture to announce and launch development project in the interest of some political leaders should come to an end. No project can move ahead without feasibility study, Detailed Project Report, Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) and cost estimation," he said.

Through the NPB

The number of sick projects has increased significantly which has drawn widespread criticism from various quarters including the anti-graft body, the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority, that stated two years ago that about 1,032 development projects were facing time and cost overrun.

The NPC, Ministry of Finance and line ministries every year receive requests for inclusion of hundreds of new projects in the annual budget programme of the government. But with the implementation of the project bank, they have to get the project listed in the bank before asking for any budget for its development.

The country has limited resources to fund the development projects but is under pressure to meet the development aspiration of the people. It needs to invest about US$ 97 billion in infrastructure by 2030 to be able to become a middle-income country.

Likewise, unbalanced distribution of development to the regions like Karnali, Province 2 and mid-hills has necessitated a new approach in development and construction of public infrastructure. According to the Vice President of the NPC, Prof. Dr. Pushpa Raj Kandel, the NPB has paid enough attention in maintaining geographical balance for the fair distribution of resources.

Provincial Project Bank

To meet this goal, the NPC is mulling to set up separate project banks for the provinces and wants the local bodies to create a list of projects of their priority.

The planning body will consider factors like Human Development Index and Social Development Index as well as multidimensional poverty of respective regions while including the projects in the bank.

Shahi said that there was a need to interfere in the social development sector like education, health and social security.

"NPC will run capacity building programmes for the local bodies to enhance their knowledge and skill in identifying and selecting the projects," he said.

 

6512 projects

The project bank has 6,512 projects of which 5,347 are ongoing and 1,165 are future programmes.

About 284 projects have already been appraised by the government.

Total cost of all the projects is Rs. 7,714.14 billion – about double of the size of Nepal's economy in 2020. About Rs. 620.8 billion is estimated to be allocated for the development of ongoing projects in the next fiscal year's budget.

According to the NPC, of the total projects included in the bank, 3,893 related to physical infrastructure, 1,507 urban development, 443 energy and water resources, 353 water supply and 85 home affairs.

Top five priority areas include infrastructure, social, governance, agriculture and economic development with 4,584; 196; 147; 129 and 118 projects respectively.

 

Benefits of the NPB

According to 'NPB guidelines for identification, appraisal, selection and prioritisation of projects', the bank is expected to  increase the practice of evidence-based planning which will help in completing the projects within the stipulated  time,  allocated budget and with set quality indicators.

It will provide readily and thoroughly analysed projects of diverse sectors for execution which will help in effective management and optimal utilisation of the available resources.

Likewise, the bank will help in the integration of projects for development effectiveness and facilitate their monitoring and evaluation.

 

Project approval process

Approval process of any project begins with the acceptance of Project Concept Note prepared by a competent authority. Second step is the creation of feasibility study and its approval while complex projects need a DPR as well.

After the approval of the feasibility study or DPR, projects are selected and prioritised in the NPB. Funding is released only after completing a phase in the approval process. After getting the approval from the NPB, the project is included in the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and funding arrangement is made in coordination with the Finance Ministry.

"In case of ongoing projects, if it is not progressing according to the implementation plan or if the project priorities have changed, the approval process and protocol should allow the approving authority to adjust or terminate the project," reads the document. However, such termination should be for better utilisation of scarce resources.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 28 February 2021. 

Govt plans to cut internet price

Kathmandu, Feb. 27

The government is planning to bring down the price of internet.

Minister for Communication and Information Technology Parbat Gurung said that the government was looking for options to reduce the internet cost and very soon it would be implemented.

"Internet service is expensive and of poor quality. We get many complaints as well as recommendations to reconsider the price and enhance the quality," he said while addressing the 27^th Annual General Assembly of the Computer Association Nepal (CAN) Federation on Saturday in the Capital.

Minister Gurung said that the government wanted paperless office and faceless service for which quality internet and telecommunication are the key. The government had launched the Digital Nepal Framework for the holistic development of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector including e-commerce, e-education, e-health.

According to the minister, the Nagarik App is another step towards the implementation of the framework while the local bodies have their own websites and apps which will expedite the digital development.

He said that the government had given priority to infrastructure development in the IT sector. "We have just made a policy decision to expand the optical fiber to all remote districts. Each ward office, school, health post and community centre would be connected to the internet. It will open new avenues of investment and business expansion in those areas," said Minister Gurung.

He urged CAN Federation to raise the issues of people as well and said that people blame the technology when the service is poor but actual fault lies in the service providers.

President of CAN Federation said that although the COVID-19 pandemic badly affected public life and businesses, it opened new avenues for the ICT business.

"We have witnessed growth and development in ICT sector that never happened before, so I urge the government to invest in creating strong and modern infrastructure for the development of this sector," he said.

He suggested the government to completely digitalise banking, transportation and revenue sector in the first phase in order to facilitate people and check corruption.

According to him, the pandemic affected the organisation of CAN Info-Tech, the largest information and communication technology fair, and it was pushed ahead for about three months while its provincial versions were cancelled for this year.

Speaking on the occasion, Senior Vice President of Nepal Chamber of Commerce Rajendra Malla said that without proper development of ICT sector, other businesses and services would not speed up.

"Digital payment is the primary need for the time being for which the government must bring new policies," he said.

Likewise, Vice President of Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Anjan Shrestha said that it was unfortunate that the ICT was still not in the priority list of the government.

Managing Director of Nepal Telecom Dilli Adhikari said that ICT companies should collaborate with the local governments in their respective locality for rapid development of the business.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 28 February 2021. 

One door system for farmers in the offing

Kathmandu, Feb. 26

The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development is all set to establish a one-door system to manage agriculture-related information through the Farmers' Centre (Kisan Centre) and facilitate in technology transfer.

"Preparations are underway to establish Farmers' Centre that will work as a one-door information system to facilitate farmers' access to technology and information," Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Development Padma Kumari Aryal said at an interaction with journalists at her office in Singha Durbar.

This is an effort to manage agriculture and livestock related information. Technology transfer and diffusion are important aspects of development but only 20 per cent farmers in Nepal use technology.

“We need to increase farm workers' access to the appropriate technology in order to revolutionise the sector that has high potential,” said Minister Aryal.

She expressed her determination to break the maladies like syndicate in contract in agriculture and misappropriation of grant. "There is a practice of awarding a grant to the farmers only after ensuring certain portion of the amount goes to the awarding officer(s). We will break this network," she said.

The ministry has already prepared a procedure to crack the misconduct ongoing at the Kalimati Fruits and Vegetables Market. "The ministry will implement a system to manage the garbage, stall and vehicles at Kalimati market. You will see a different Kalimati soon," said Aryal.

According to her, she had to find solutions to the maladies of the sugarcane farmers who were not getting the payment of their produces for the past couple of years, and the MoALD found solutions within a 3-day period even though it was not directly concerned to the industrial issue. Many of the farmers have received the payment of their produce sold to the sugar mills, she said.

Likewise, she said that a long-term solution was being sought to resolve the fertilisers issue. "Efforts are being made to solve the fertilisers crisis forever," she said.

The government has decided to establish storage for chemical fertilisers in all provinces, manage the import and check the malpractice created by the smuggled fertilisers.

Similarly, the ministry has signed an agreement with the Government of Israel to transfer agriculture technology to Nepal. A technical committee has already been formed and the programme will be implemented in a province this year, and gradually be expanded to all provinces.

Likewise, it is in the stage to announce the country's self-reliance in egg and meat while dairy sector is also doing well.

Speaking on the occasion, Secretary at the MoALD, Pem Narayan Kandel said that the ministry would soon publish the achievements of the first three months since Minister Aryal assumed her office.  

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 27 February 2021. 

NIBL celebrates 35th anniversary

Kathmandu, Feb. 26

Nepal Investment Bank Ltd. (NIBL) has completed 35 years in operation.

The bank is expanded to 87 branches, 30 extension counters, 59 branchless banking centers and 130 ATMs across seven provinces.

Over the course of 35 years with the Capital Base of Rs. 29 billion, the bank has served over 1.2 million customers ranging from corporate, SMEs and individuals and has been able to meet deposit of Rs. 169 billion and maintain credit portfolio of Rs. 155 billion, said the bank in a statement on Friday.

The bank has provided small loans of over Rs. 5 billion directly to more than 30,000 individuals.

On the occasion, the bank organised 'Samman Rally' to express solidarity with medical personnel and frontline workers for their contribution during the global pandemic COVID-19.

It has launched promotional loan offer for the health workers at reasonable interest rates. It has also offered discount of 65 per cent on banking services like debit cards, credit cards including EMI, locker, E-COM/online payments and SME/retail loans.

Likewise, it launched its third comic book named 'Hamro Sukha Dukha Ka Sathi, Bank Kati Jaati' to promote financial literacy.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 27 February 2021. 

FNCCI and NBA collaborate to support MSMEs

 Kathmandu, Feb. 25

Federations of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) and Nepal Bankers Association (NBA) have entered an agreement to protect and promote micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Both the organisation signed a memorandum of understanding on Thursday with the aim of facilitating the MSMEs with financial services. FNCCI President Shekhar Golchha and NBA President Bhuvan Kumar Dahal signed the MoU at a programme organised at the FNCCI secretariat.

As per the agreement, challenges in mobilising loan to MSMEs from commercial banks should be addressed through combined efforts and riskless business environment could be created.

It aims at forming joint task force at the central and federal level, formulating policy recommendations to facilitate financial service delivery, cooridinating with the respective agencies and requesting for the policy implementation, and running province-level financial literacy programmes.

Speaking at the programme, Golchha termed the agreement as a milestone in promoting the MSMEs in Nepal.

“We have trodden on a new route of cooperation. It will definitely resolve the constraints the MSMEs facing in obtaining loans from the banks,” he said.

Dahal said that the cooperation between the two organisations would be taken down to the provincial level.

Stating that the banking services have reached 749 local units, he maintained that the cooperation between the two organisations would benefit the MSMEs at the local level, ultimately.

Chairman of the Cottage and Small Enterprise Committee under the FNCCI, D. B. Basnet, another meeting would soon be organised where International Labour Organisation would also be invited to facilitate the implementation of the new plan.

Prakash Sharma, Senior Officer at the ILO, said that 80 per cent MSMEs were facing challenge to access to finance.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 26 February 2021. 

IBN begins evaluation of four infra projects worth Rs. 137 billion

Kathmandu, Feb. 25

Four large infrastructure projects – Muktinath Cable Car, Damak Industrial Park, Private Freight Terminal and Bulk Handling Facilities in Birgunj and Bhairahawa, and Multimodel Logistics Park in Biratnagar – have entered the evaluation process at the Investment Board of Nepal (IBN).

The projects will have a combined investment of Rs. 137.2 billion.

The board has begun the evaluation process after the developers of the projects, being facilitated by the IBN, submitted the Detailed Feasibility Study Reports (DFSRs) and Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) of the respective projects.

Internal technical committee of the board has recently prepared the draft DPR of Muktinath Cable Car, the longest cable car project in Nepal to connect Bire Thanti of Kaski district to Muktinath, in Mustang district.

Bire Thanti is one of the entry-points to the Annapurna Conservation Area while Muktinath Temple is situated at about 3,800-metre altitude.

The report is being evaluated by the evaluation committee of the board, said Ramesh Adhikari, under-secretary of the IBN. The developer had submitted the DPR of the project on 29 November 2020.

Muktinath Darshan Pvt. Ltd. had signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the board on 12 September 2018 to develop and operate the 83.6 km long cable car to one of the holiest shrines for Hindus and Buddhists.

The project would be developed with the investment of Rs. 53 billion. The cable car will have stations at Bire Thanti, Ghorepani, Tatopani, Lete Marpha, Jomsom, Kagbeni and Muktinath.

Likewise, Damak Industrial Park is in the process of land acquisition. The IBN will sign Project Development Agreement (PDA) with the developer company Damak Clean Industrial Park Pvt. Ltd. following the land management, said Adhikari.

The high-tech industrial infrastructure would be developed in 1,600 hectares of land at a cost of Rs. 113 billion. However, it will be developed in four phases and the IBN had approved the investment of US$ 586 million in the first phase. First phase will be completed in three years.

The park is expected to boost the export of made in Nepal goods particularly non-traditional exports, introduce new technology and transfer new skills and expertise to local manpower. It will have 491 industrial plots that will house white goods (electronic) industrial park, transportation equipment industrial park, textile and garments industrial park, food processing industrial park, electronic information industrial park.

The park, with the investment from Lhasa Economic and Technological Development Zone, Jing-Ping Joint Creation Construction Project Development Co. Ltd., will also have logistic park, and scientific and technical innovation and training park as the supporting industry.

Similarly, Private Freight Terminal and Bulk Handling Facilities in Birgunj and Bhairahawa are being developed by the consortium of Flash Freight Logistics and International Cargo Terminal and Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd.

The Board had signed an MoU with the developer in November 2019. The Rs. 10 billion project is expected to bring down travel time and transportation costs.

CG Logistics Pvt. Ltd. and Sharaf Group have also submitted the DFSR of the Multi-model Logistics Park Project to be constructed in Biratnagar. The Board had signed an MoU with them in June 2019.

The Rs. 7.18 billion project will feature railway terminal, inland container depot/dry port, warehouse, steel stockyard, steel service centre, clinker handling – wagon tippler, tank farms – liquid cargo and auto hub.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 26 February 2021. 

Nepali, Indian companies sign agreement for cooperation

Kathmandu, Feb. 25

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Vertex Global Services India with Sparsh Edcation Foundation and IT-ITes Skills Sector Council and AIDA Consulting, Kathmandu Institute of Technology and Team Vertex Business Service Nepal.

The MoU signing, facilitated by Nepal India Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NICCI), held at a programme organised in the capital on Wednesday.

President of NICCI Shreejana Rana expressed hope that this venture could help provide opportunities to the companies and take Nepal India relations to a new height.

She said that Indian companies have expertise which could be instrumental in supporting Nepali companies in upscaling and upgrading. The MoU will facilitate technology transfer.

As per the MoU, Vertex Global Services India will provide world-class training to Nepali youth working in the information technology sector as well as help in job placement at the international level.

"The objective of focusing on the relationship between academia and the industry is to develop 'youth for industry' where skills and training are provided as per the international norms with focus on it being industry led, knowledge sharing and support," she said.

Dr. Sanjay Sharma, Secretary at the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, said that bringing academia and business together could be instrumental in creating skilled human resources that fit the market requirement. "We need to bridge the gap between entrepreneurship and skill development," he said.

According to him, for education to be productive, there must be a strong tie with industry. There is a big gap in skill amongst the students.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 26 February 2021. 

Govt launches Digital Soil Map

Kathmandu, Feb. 24

The government has launched the Digital Soil Map (DSM) – a digital platform designed to give information on soil properties of Nepal on Wednesday.

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli officially launched the platform developed by the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC)'s National Soil Science Research Centre in collaboration with USAID's Nepal Seed and Fertiliser Project.

The DSM provides access to location-specific information on soil properties, including soil texture, soil pH, organic matter, nitrogen, available phosphorus and potassium, and micronutrients zinc and boron across Nepal's arable land.

The web portal of the soil map allows the users, including farmers themselves, to identify a domain with similar soil properties and look at their soil fertility status, said Deepak Bhandari, Executive Director of NARC. "It is a milestone which is a combination of the latest research information and digital technology," he said.

With a single click, the web portal of the map will allow the users to get information on soil for any province, district, municipality or a particular area of interest and download the results in a map or tabular format, said NARC in its statement.

The DSM will also be useful to make new crop and site specific fertiliser recommendations for the country. Using these recommendations, farmers can increase crop production by applying the right type of fertilisers in the required doses at the appropriate time.

"The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development (MoALD) can use the map to make more efficient management decisions on import distribution and recommendation of appropriate fertiliser types, including blended fertilisers. The same information will also support provincial governments to select suitable crops and design extension programs for improving soil health," said Padma Kumari Aryal, Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Development.

According to her, private sectors can utilise the acquired soil information to build interactive and user-friendly mobile apps that can provide soil properties and fertiliser related information to farmers as part of commercial agri-advisory extension services.

She said that the DSM facilitates the farmers and other concerned people to acquire the data and information of the soil type, quality and fertility from anywhere, even while working in their farm.

The DSM was prepared using soil information based on analysis results of 23,273 soil samples, from 56 districts, collected by the National Land Use Project, Central Agricultural Laboratory and Nepal Agricultural Research Council.

These soil properties were combined with environmental covariates (soil forming factors) derived from satellite data and spatial predictions of soil properties were generated using advanced machine learning tools and methods.

"This is an exemplary work in South Asia and will help in maintaining soil nutrient for increasing crop productivity leading to food security, said Secretary of MoALD Dr. Yogendra Kumar Karki.

USAID Nepal's Mission Director Sepideh Keyvanshad said the map is an innovative tool, which is just the beginning. "Soil fertility management, proper management will result in high productivity that will benefit the farmers. It will also help the private sector to anticipate the fertiliser demand and make their timely supply," she said.

 

 

New era in agricultural development: PM Oli

Launching the national Digital Soil Map (DSM), Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli said that it heralded a new age in agricultural development.

"Farmers or concerned people can access the DSM from their mobile device and know the quality of their soil. Those, who face difficulty in accessing the technology and information, can visit the nearest agricultural service centre or call the office to acquire the information," he said while maintaining that the project was aimed to support farmers and increase the farm productivity.

This is an important step towards the implementation of Digital Nepal Framework, he said.

Stating that 65 per cent people's engagement results only 27 per cent contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Prime Minister Oli stated that the government aimed at reducing people's involvement in agriculture.

"Agriculture should be modernised, mechanised and commercialised so that a small number of people can produce large amount of food and other items. We need to create opportunities in other sector as the same time to absorb the population from agriculture," he said.

He said that there was 11.9 per cent increment in agricultural productivity against an average of 3 per cent about three years ago. Likewise, there was 20 per cent increase in meat production, 19 per cent in dairy and 9 per cent in vegetable production.

Speaking about the recent political development, he said that the Nepal-Prachanda faction of the NCP would begin to demand his resignation from tomorrow.

"What would another faction of NCP gained from the court decision? There is the government and it will remain, and will move on with greater speed for development," he said.

He said that there would not be any deviation in his aspiration to develop the nation.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 25 February 2021. 

Private sector wants a new copyright law

Kathmandu, Feb. 23

Private sector business and stakeholders had demanded change in the existing copyright law.

Speaking at an interaction on Copyright: Legal Provisions and Challenges organised by the Federtion of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) on Tuesday, they said that the Copyright Act, 2002 and Copyright Bylaws, 2004 should be amended to address the demands created by the digitalisaton.

They said that the present legal framework for the intellectual property is ad hoc and inadequate. "The law that was formulated in the age of manual creation cannot address the need of the digital age," they said while suggesting that the Office of the Copyright Registrar to initiate the creation of new laws and policies.

Other recommendations were about increasing the role, rights and responsibilities of the registrar, launching copyright promotion programmes, equipping the OCR with the required resources and technology, and organising discussions among the stakeholders. 

Businesspersons and artistes demanded that the government should help in establishing server-centre to develop the music, film and other art professions.

Likewise, the role of Royalty Collection Society should be strengthened and the government should support the society until it becomes able to handle all royalties, they said.

Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Bhanubhakta Dhakal expressed his commitment to bringing in a new law to address the shortcomings in the existing copyright law and urged the FNCCI to submit the recommendations to the Ministry.

He assured that the government would offer required support in the timely amendment to the Copy Right Law.

Senior Vice president of the FNCCI Chandra Prasad Dhakal said that an effective legal instrument in the copyright sector would be instrumental in promoting Nepali music and film as well as attracting foreign investment.

Copyright Registrar Bishnu Kumari Bhattarai said that the existing copyright laws needed changes and her office was working for the amendment.

Chairman of the Film and Entertainment Forum at the FNCCI Akash Adhikari said that a concrete set of recommendations would be sent to the government soon.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 24 February 2021. 

Laxmi & Machhapuchchhre to finance Piluwa Khola hydel

Kathmandu, Feb. 23

A consortium of two commercial banks led by Laxmi Bank has signed agreement with Mabilung Energy Ltd. on Monday to finance Upper Piluwa Khola-3 Hydropower Project.

The 4.95 MW run of the river project is being constructed at Piluwa River and Sikhuwa River of Sankhuwasabha district. It is being built at a cost of around Rs. 937 million.

Mabilung Energy had signed the Power Purchase Agreement with Nepal Electricity Authority in March 2019 and the project received Generation License from the Ministry of Energy in July, 2020.

The company is promoted by Asian Life Insurance Co. Ltd., Guheswori Merchant Banking and Finance Ltd. along with individual promoters. Rajesh Lal Shrestha leads the company.

The banks have committed to financing 70 per cent of the project cost (Rs. 655.90 million) with the remaining 30 per cent to be invested through equity. The project finance (term loan) commitments from Laxmi Bank is Rs. 399.90 million and from Machhapuchchhre Bank Rs. 256 million.

Mabilung Energy expects to contribute around 28.417 GWh of power annually for the nation and it is expected to come into operation in February 2022, said the company in a statement on Tuesday.

According to NEA’s review report for FY 2019/20, a total of 15 new projects developed by the Independent Power Producers (IPPs) with a combined installed capacity of 135.39 MW were commissioned in the FY 2019/20.

This has increased the total number of IPP-owned projects in operation to 98 with a combined installed capacity of 696.17 MW.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 24 February 2021. 

How long the bull will rein in share market?

Kathmandu, Feb. 21

Share market in Nepal has continued to make records in terms of rise in the index as well as transaction amount but many still worry whether the bullish trend would continue for a foreseeable future.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) index reached 2640.34 points on Sunday making an all-time record. By the end of the previous fiscal year 2019/20 in mid-July, the index was at 1362.4. It was the time when the market was gradually opening and investors began to make securities transaction in an online system.

The market had got a correction in pre-coronavirus period when it had reached 1881 points and witnessed a bearish trend to lose more than 500 points.

In less than eight months' period, the share market index has almost doubled. And experts say this bullish trend would continue in the days to come.

Reasons – low interest rate in margin lending, disposable liquidity with the investors as well as the new entrants of the share markets and political uncertainty.

The government and regulators of the financial markets – the Nepal Rastra Bank and Securities Board of Nepal, and other concerned bodies generally do not make significant policy correction during transition period. As the country is in confusion about the election for the House of Representatives of the Federal Parliament, investors are confident that there would not be any untoward action or policy backlash on the capital market.

This time, the market was not just gone up on the whims of a handful investors but is witnessing a growth on solid grounds of technological advancement, market expansion, liquidity and investors' awareness, said Prakash Tiwari, a stock market analyst.

According to him, the share market has made bounds after political turmoil or disasters like the Royal Palace Massacre, civil war and coronavirus pandemic. The post-COVID bullish performance can be attributed to the trend.

"Meanwhile, the capital market in the country had undergone a massive automation. The online share transaction platform and electronic payment system had proved a massive incentive to the share market investors," said Tiwari.

Electronic demat registration and share transaction increased the access of people from the remote areas to the share market. As a result, the Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) that announced after the COVID-19 lockdown had witnessed massive application. For instance, Nepal Infrastructure Bank's IPO was applied by more than 1.47 million applicants for 167.21 million units of shares.

Recent IPO of Mahila Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha, a class 'D' microfinance institution, was oversubscribed by 62 times. About 1.57 million applicants applied for 24.61 million units of shares while the company had issued just 400,000 units of shares.

Former Chairman of Investors' Forum Raj Kumar Timilsina said that the comfortable interest rate and possibly growing liquidity due to the election would hold the market at least to the position it is at now.

"The market will not immediately go down. Investors gained more confident as the central bank did not review the interest rate in the mid-term review of the monetary policy," he said.

Meanwhile, more people were attracted to the stock market as many people earned a good amount of money after investing in both the primary and secondary market.

The trend is expected for another year, according to the investors and stock market experts. They say that Nepal's share market makes bullish to bearish trend and vice-versa in about three and a half years.

However, Tiwari and Timilsina both recommend the investors to apply cautions while selecting a company to buy its equity at the secondary market.

Anomalies like insider trading must be curbed, there should be more supervision in the share market, said Tiwari.

According to him, inactivity in the part of the regulators and the government might result in accident and small investors would lose a huge amount of money.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 22 February 2021. 

NSBL provides support to Manavsewa Ashram

Kathmandu, Feb. 21

 Nepal SBI Bank Limited has provided solar water heater, 10 double decor beds, sanitizers and masks to Manavsewa Ashram, Pokhara.

The bank has supported the social welfare organisation as per its corporate social responsibility initiative.

The Ashram was established in 2018 with an objective of rescuing, rehabilitating and providing shelter to the physically and mentally disabled people who are living in the street and to make Nepal free from street dependent, homeless and helpless people within 2022.

The organisation with its head office in Hetauda, Makwanpur is providing its services from 17 centres located at all seven provinces of Nepal.

The items were given to Homnath Timilsina, Gandaki Province of the Ashram and Rajan Sapkota, District Coordinator and Head, Manavsewa Ashram, Pokhara by Venkat Nageswar Chalasani, Deputy Managing Director, International Banking Group, State Bank of India and Soma Sankara Prasad, Deputy Managing Director & Group Compliance Officer, State Bank of India. Dipak Kumar De, Managing Director and CEO of Nepal SBI Bank Ltd and other high ranking officials of the bank were present at the item handover programme.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 22 February 2021. 

No new pride projects on horizon

Kathmandu, Feb. 20

The government has no plan to immediately add any new development and infrastructure projects in the list of ‘national pride projects’.

Given the sluggish progress and woeful state of the ongoing pride projects, the Ministry of Finance and National Planning Commission are not in the favour of extending the list any time soon.

"There is no intention or discussion to add pride projects. The government is now focused to complete the ongoing projects rather than adding up new ones," said Min Bahadur Shahi, member and spokesperson of the NPC.

Dr. Baburam Bhattarai-led government about nine years ago had announced 17 large infrastructure projects as ‘national pride projects’ in order to provide them special treatment in terms of financial, technical and policy facilitation. The list now has 25 projects with the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) being the latest one.

However, not a single project tagged as 'pride' is completed yet. It's not that the projects are not completed in the past nine years after the government announcement but some of the projects are in the execution process for more than two decades. To take an example, it's been about 22 years since the Melamchi Water Supply Project was announced and 19 years since it went into execution.

Likewise, Sikta Irrigation Project is in development process for the past 19 years and its cost estimate has doubled to Rs. 25.2 billion from the initial Rs. 12.8 billion. Babai Irrigation

Project is another sick project that is running in 32 years since its initiation and its cost has gone up to Rs. 18.9 billion from Rs. 2.8 billion.

According to Shahi, some of the projects included in the pride list had problems right from their conceptualisation.

 

Three to be completed this year

However, the NPC said that at least three pride projects – Upper Tamakoshi Hydropower Project, Gautam Buddha International Airport in Bhairahawa and Melamchi - would be completed by the end of this fiscal year 2020/21.

Tamakoshi is in the final phase of adjustment and at least one turbine will come into operation by the end of this year while GBIA is undergoing some remaining works which were affected due to the supply side constraints during the coronavirus lockdown, said NPC spokesperson Shahi.

Melamchi was mired in controversy and uncertainty when its Italian contractor CMC left the project in the middle and fled the country in December 2018.

He said that many projects would be completed within next two years. "Airports in Bhairahawa and Pokhara, Kathmandu-Terai Fast Track, Mid-Hill Highway and North-South Corridors are moving forward smoothly at satisfactory speed," said shahi.

Projects of physical infrastructure like energy, road, rail, irrigation, water supply, and tourism and forests are included in the pride list. The government has allocated Rs. 92.6 billion to these projects for this year but only 15.19 per cent (Rs. 13.9 billion) is utilised in the first six months.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 21 February 2021. 

IBN seeks support of missions to reach investors

Kathmandu, Feb. 19

Targeting the investors that pledged to bring in a huge amount of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), the Investment Board of Nepal is planning to get the support from the diplomatic missions and development partners.

It is roping in the missions and international development partners to reach the investors that had expressed commitment to investment in large infrastructure and industrial projects in Nepal during the Nepal Investment Summit organised in March 2019 but could not bring in investment to Nepal due to the COVID-19 pandemic that affected the world for the past one year.

When the pandemic began to force the governments to announce restriction on movement and lockdown, the IBN was in the process to finalise the FDI deal with the foreign and domestic investors.

"The board was in communication with the foreign investors even during the pandemic. Currently, discussions are underway to create connections with the investors through the missions and development partners," said Ramesh Adhikari, under-secretary of IBN.

However, the pandemic delayed the project screening and application evaluation process as well as the approval of the investment and project implementation.

At the same time, the one-window institution for large investment is also set to interact with the investors of the projects that are under implementation. Adhikari said that the IBN wants to get the updates from them and hear their grievances, if any, in order to address them.  

Recently, it conducted stakeholders meeting with the key agencies concerned to the investment approval and facilitation including the Department of Industry, Inland Revenue Office, Company Registrar's Office and Nepal Rastra Bank.

Since there is still confusion about the one-spot solution and investors had to undergo various bureaucratic hurdles, the board wants to offer on the spot solutions to the projects and provide prompt response to their needs.

Despite multiple efforts, the inter-agency coordination is not happening smoothly, this is what investors had told the IBN.

This has demanded further strengthening the institutional structure of the board so that it could have the say on financial and human resources and implement better facilitation and monitoring of the on-going projects, said Adhikari.

Although the board is chaired by the Prime Minister, other concerned agencies had responded to the FDI rather weakly.

Meanwhile, the IBN is preparing project note and project bank of the Public-Private-Partnership and Private-Investment projects. The complete details of the projects would be collected within a year. The projects include those that were showcased at the investment summit.

About 77 projects, 50 government and 27 from the private sector, were showcased at the summit of which 17 from transport, energy, agriculture, education and health, and logistic infrastructure sectors received application during the summit. The summit was attended by 700 delegates from 40 countries and more than 300 companies.

By July 2019, the IBN had received 71 applications for 31 projects. Till now, the board has approved large infrastructure projects--Freight Station Bulk Handling Terminal in Butwal and Birgunj, World Buddhist Exhibition Park in Lumbini, 550 MW solar projects in seven provinces, China-Nepal Friendship Industrial Park in Damak, Jhapa, Muktinath Cable Car, Multimodal Logistics Park in Biratnagar, and Railway Linked Private Freight Terminal Project in Janakpur.

Likewise, other IBN facilitated projects are Arun III Hydroelectricity Project, Hongsi Shivam Cement, Upper Karnali Hydropower Proejct, Venture Waste to Energy, Huaxin Narayani Cement, Samrat Cement and Dang Cement. It is also facilitating in the large infrastructure projects like the Nijgadh International Airport.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 20 February 2021. 

JICA to support in developing integrated power system

Kathmandu, Feb. 19

The Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation (MoEWRI) has signed an agreeement with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for a new technical cooperation project – Integrated Power System Development Plan of Nepal.

The project will contribute to the acheivement of SDGs 7, ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all', JICA said in a statement on Friday.

The project aims to develop the capacity of the policy and organisational entities necessary for smooth and sustainabe export  of the electricity generated by domestic hydropower producers to the neighbouring countries.

"The project will also harmonise the existing Transmission Master Plan and other  plans on distribution and generation based on the prospective project for domestic and international market targetted to the year 2040," read the statement.

The project will serve as a catalyst for incentivising private sector and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) by analysing the demand and supply forcast at different economic growth rate and probable demand at the neighbouring market for effective investment.

It also aims at enforcing  the rules and regulation, and implementation of the development plan in harmonized manner with respect to formulate the governance mechanism, vision and guiding principle for power sector development.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 20 February 2021. 

A window to know your country

Book: Nepal Bidya: Siddanta ra Prayog by Kedar Bashistha. Publisher: Bidyarthi Pustak Bhandar, Kathmandu. ISBN: 978-9937-739-24-5. Pages: 418. Price: Rs. 650.

 

Lumbini, the birthplace of Gautam Buddha, is not just a geographical location or a faith of about 10 per cent of the world population, it has also been a subject of politics and economy. Lumbini was marked by a pillar erected by Ashoka, a Mouryan Emperor in the third century in Nepal’s Rupandehi district. Although archaeological evidences and religious scriptures clearly declared that the birthplace of Lord Buddha is in Nepal, immediate neighbor India knowingly denied the fact for centuries and tried to establish a duplicate Lumbini in its territory. 

India was forced to come out of the British-era colonial mindset when the UNESCO declared Lumbini a world heritage site in 1997 recognising its religious, cultural, spiritual and archaeological values for the world. India is also claiming that Kapilvastu is in its territory nearby Nepal-India border.

The spiritual heritage was pushed to the controversy by Indian government and British scholars and archaeologists but their vested interests couldn’t be fulfilled. It has long been a political issue. Millions of tourists reach Lumbini to have spiritual blessings. It is not only helping to create Nepal’s image as a ‘peace zone’ but also attracting a large number of foreign tourists and pilgrims to Nepal. 

So, it is an economic issue. What India wanted was to have all four important locations – Lumbini (birth), Bodh Gaya (enlightenment), Sarnath (sermon) and Kushinagar (parinirvana) – of Buddha’s life in its own map so that it could attract more pilgrims and tourists.

Nepal and Israel are perhaps the two countries that had the origins of two of the world’s great religions but have very few followers of these faith. There are only 9 per cent Buddhists in Nepal. However, most of the Nepali people worship Lord Buddha while the region’s largest religion Hinduism considers him the ninth incarnation of Lord Bishnu. Therefore, Lumbini is a faith and sentiment for Nepalis who are doomed to repeatedly shout out and present the proof that the birthplace of Lord Buddha is in Nepal.

This is what ‘Nepal Bidya: Siddanta ra Prayog’ establishes through an extensive study of national and international literature and historical artifacts. Author Kedar Bashistha answers a hunting question – Why the southern neighbor keeps trying to push the ‘holy place’ into controversy and wanted have it within its territory? He also analyses the politics and business in the name of Buddha.

Bashistha presents the chronological developments in finding Lumbini from Mouryan Emperor Ashoka to German Indologist Dr. Alois Anton Fuhrer and Khadga Shumsher Rana to present day. He sheds light on the historical facts distorted by India and British archaeologists and unhealthy competition between the German Fuhrer and British L. A. Waddell and V. A. Smith.

However, the book is not about the history of Lumbini. It is a volume on ‘Nepalology’ or knowledge about the ‘country’ Nepal. It tries to bring forth the importance of that knowledge on society, economy, history, geography, commerce, culture and other relevant areas. 

Bashistha traces the entire history and practice of ‘Nepalology’ in and out of Nepal and excavates interesting facts from ancient scriptures like Vedas and ancient civilisations like Greek and Roman. The historical analysis of Lumbini is made to solidify the knowledge of Nepal since an impressive amount of literature about Nepal that exists globally is about the Buddha’s birthplace.

The second section of the book is dedicated to the existence of Nepali language. In this section, the author vigorously discusses about how the country got its name while discussing about various cultures, languages and human mobility in Eurasian region. Readers will be amazed to see their language that originated from Sanskrit is an amalgamation of other rich languages like Latin, Arabic, Armenian, Persian and English.

The author says that Nepal is not poor in society, civilization, culture and heritage but is poor in investigation, research, analysis and use of those treasures. “Many others have benefitted from our wealth but we are lagging behind them and have been fence sitters for long. We should be a guide, and this is not impossible,” says Bashistha.

The 418 pages text-book size volume has more than 1450 citations of various book, scholarly articles, historical letters, documents and artifacts including stone inscriptions. General readers might find the first unit of the book more academic and less interesting but it clearly establishes the need for the education about Nepal. The language is repetitive occasionally which should be improved in the future edition of the book. 

However, the second and third unit on Lumbini and Language are written in a lucid narrative that will hold the readers’ attention. There is no doubt that you will appreciate the efforts of the author and the way he tells the story of your language and history. At the same time, you would realise the richness of Nepal’s history, culture and language, and feel pride in it. ‘Nepal Bidya’ is a treasure Bashistha has given to the academia, people and the country.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 8 January 2021.