Chandragiri adds hiking trail, cycle track to its tourism products

 Kathmandu, Oct. 29

Hiking and cycling enthusiasts in the Kathmandu Valley have new products ready in Chandragiri Municipality.

The city has recently developed a 1.5 kilometre hiking trail and 5 km cycling track in the jungle of Chandragiri hill.

The hiking trail begins at Matatirtha, a famous pilgrimage site to pay homage to mothers, and ends at the foothill about 300 metres away from Matatirtha, making a half circle in the jungle.

New hiking trail is fresh and organic. No concrete structures are used, only stones and wooden pieces are used to make stairs to develop the trail up the hill. One can enjoy the greenery, birds’ chirpings, cool breeze and a magnificent view of the Valley from the south-western side.

A landing area is constructed about half-way of the trail where hikers can enjoy a panoramic view of the Valley and snow-capped mountains in the north in a clear day. Ward Chairman of Chandragiri-6 Sanjaya Sigdel said that wooden waste baskets will soon be installed at various locations along the track.

The developers of the track have also designed a shrine at the highest point of the trail where a couple of stones are set as they would be in any Deurali, a point on the way after climbing a hill from where the trail goes down. There is a culture of installing stones at Deurali where travellers offer flowers in a wish to make their travel safe.

Although the initial climb is steep, the dense forest makes the journey refreshing. Since the length of the trail is just 1.5 km, it is perfectly suitable for family hiking or short time out from the bustling life of the city.

The cycle track also stretches along the jungle at the foot of the hill. Mohan Raj Khatri, Chairman of the Tourism Development Society in Chandragiri, said that the trail will be promoted as the adventure sports product. "We had organised a 22-km cycle rally in the past and we have applied the lessons learned in developing this track," he said.

Chandragiri Municipality has some of the most attractive tourist destinations and pilgrimage sites like the Chandragiri Cable Car, Bhaleshwor Mahadev Temple, Matatirtha, Indra Daha and Tribhuvan Park which attract hundreds of thousands domestic and international tourists.

Mayor Ghanashyam Giri informed that the new infrastructure will help in supporting the development in the community and municipality.

The cycle track and hiking trail are developed under the Sustainable Tourism for Livelihood Recovery Project (STLRP) jointly executed by the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). They have enrolled the Trekking Agencies' Association of Nepal (TAAN) as an implementation partner of the project. The programme aimed at employing 3,000 workers for 10-40 days in various infrastructure development and maintenance programmes.

The project aims at employing the tourism sector workers who lost their jobs and income due to the COVID-19 pandemic. National Programme Coordinator of the STLRP Mani R. Lamichhane said that the NTB and UNDP funded project plans to employ about 100,000 tourism workers.

Workers from the tourism sector are selected by TAAN in cooperation with the trade unions. Abhishek BK, a mountain guide from Solukhumbu who had been guiding tourists to the Everest Base Camp and Annapurna Base Camp, has worked for eight days in the construction of cycle track.

 "I was trained by National Academy of Tourism and Hospitality Management in 2012 and earning more than 250,000 in a season but for the last two years the income source is disturbed," he said.

However, BK has not lost hope and expected to be back in his job by the next season. 

  Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 30 October 2021.

PM Deuba leaves for London, Khand designated Acting PM

 Kathmandu, Oct. 29

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba left for London on Friday morning to participate in the World Leaders Summit at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow of Scotland.

He heft Kathmandu for London on a Qatar Airways' flight no. QR649 at 10:40 in the morning.

Ministers, party leaders and high level government employees saw off the Prime Minister at the VVIP Lounge of the Tribhuvan International Airport. 

Prime Minister Deuba will attend the official opening ceremony of the COP26 and deliver Nepal's national statement at the World Leaders' Summit. He is also scheduled to attend a reception to be hosted by the UK's Prime Minister Boris Johnson on November 1.

He will attend programmes organised by organisations like UK-Nepal Trade and Investment Forum and All-Party Parliamentary Group for Nepal and meet with the representative of the non-resident Nepalis in the UK and Britain-Nepal Society. 

He will return to Kathmandu on  November 4 on the same aircraft's flight no. 652 at 8:30.

Meanwhile, Minister for Home Affairs Bal Krishna Khand is given the responsibility of Acting Prime Minister.

President Bidya Devi Bhandari has designated him for the responsibility on the recommendation of Prime Minister Deuba.

  Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 30 October 2021.

Nepal's export relies on goods of imported raw materials

Kathmandu, Oct. 28

Export trade of Nepal in the first quarter of the current Fiscal Year 2021/22 has gone up by about 110 per cent compared to the same period last year.

It exported goods worth Rs. 65.05 billion in the first three months of this year while the export trade last year was worth Rs. 31.04 billion, according to the statistics of the Department of Customs (DoC). This is a significant growth compared to the data of the last several years. The export trade of Nepal had crossed the Rs. 100 billion mark in the last fiscal due to the high export of soybean oil.

This year too, soybean has lifted the trade with the export of 98,007 tonnes worth Rs. 22.02 billion. Other major exports are, palm oil, carpets and textiles, sunflower seed and oil, felt and cardamom.

Nepal exported palm oil worth Rs. 13.45 billion in the first quarter, carpets and textiles of Rs. 2.45 billion, sunflower seeds of 1.82 billion and felt 1.65 billion.

Palm oil was the highest exported commodity in the couple of years prior to the last fiscal. Raw materials for palm oil and soybean oil are not produced enough in Nepal. These exports are based on the imported raw materials and their exports depend on the Indian policy to import them.

Likewise, Nepal imported goods worth Rs. 478.5 billion which is 63.73 per cent larger compared to the last year when it brought in goods worth Rs. 292.2 billion. This sudden growth in the import has created pressure on the balance of payment.

Largest imports of the country are dominated by the fossil fuel, soybean oil, cellphones  and palm oil. Nepal imported diesel and petrol worth Rs. 23.3 billion, crude soybean oil Rs. 20.6 billion, mobile sets Rs. 17.17 billion, crude palm oil Rs. 13.04 billion and petrol Rs. 12.86 billion.

Likewise, it imported Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) worth Rs. 12.18 billion, gold worth Rs. 11 billion and silver Rs. 10.17 billion was imported.

However, the highest revenue is raised from diesel, petrol, vehicle, motorcycles, mobile phones  and LPG.

With significant growth in the export trade the import-export ratio has come down to 7.36 in the three months this year from last year's 9.41 ratio. Exports' share in the trade has increased by 11.97 per cent in this period which is a significant growth from 9.60 per cent last year.

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 29 October 2021.

 

 

PM Deuba's UK visit itinerary

Kathmandu, Oct. 27

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba is leaving for United Kingdom on 29 October leading the Nepali delegation to the World Leaders Summit of the 26th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 26) being held in Glasgow on 1-2 November.

On October 30, he will attend and address the welcome event being hosted by All-Party Parliamentary Group for Nepal (APPG-N) and UK-Nepal Trade and Investment Forum in London, informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) in a statement.

Likewise, PM Deuba will receive the representatives of Britain-Nepal Society, Non-Residential Nepali Association and representatives of Nepali community residing in the United Kingdom.

On October 31, the Prime Minister will attend a reception hosted in his honor by the Chargé d’affaires at the Embassy of Nepal in London. He is scheduled to meet with the representatives of Gurkha Veterans’ organizations, members of British Parliament and other members of Nepali diaspora.

Similarly, PM Deuba will attend the official opening ceremony of COP26 on November 1. He will deliver Nepal’s national statement at the World Leaders Summit.

In the evening of the same day, he will attend the reception to be hosted by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in honour of the participating heads of state and governments.

On the sidelines, he will hold bilateral meetings with heads of state and government and other dignitaries. Likewise, he is also scheduled to attend the breakfast reception to be hosted for selected delegates PM Johnson and First Minister of Scotland on November 2.

The Prime Minister is also scheduled to visit Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh on November 3 and address a gathering there. He will plant a sapling in the Nepali Garden.

PM Deuba will be accompanied by Ramsahay Prasad Yadav, Minister for Forests and Environment, as well as senior officials of the government.

The Prime Minister will return from the UK on November 3 and arrive in Kathmandu in the morning of the November 4.

The COP 26 is being held from 31 October to 12 November 2021 in Glasgow, UK. 

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 28 October 2021. 

ERC revises electricity tariff

Kathmandu, Oct. 27

The Electricity Regulatory Commission (ERC) has slashed the electricity tariff for consumers.

The rate for domestic consumers is cut down by 2.84 per cent on an average. According to the commission, domestic consumers of 5 Ampere, 15 Ampere and 30 Ampere who are using electricity from 151 units to 250 units in a month from the single-phase distribution lines will get Rs. 25 discount on the minimum tariff.

The new rates will be applicable from the Nepali month of Mangsir (mid-November to mid-December) and billing will start from the month of Poush, mid-December.

With the new rates, minimum charges for domestic consumers are set at Rs. 100, Rs. 125 and Rs. 150 respectively for 5, 15 and 25 Ampere per month. Likewise, charges for customers using more than 400 units in a month from the same setup are reduced by Rs. 25. After reduction in the tariff, new minimum charges per month are Rs. 150, Rs. 175, Rs. 200 and Rs. 250.  

"For deprived families using up to 20 units of electricity from 5 Ampere meter system, there would be no energy charges but only Rs. 30 minimum charges," said the commission.

Tariff for single-phase domestic consumers is reduced by 50 paisa per unit and brought down to Rs. 9.5 per unit while Rs. 1 is reduced for the customers using above 400 units of energy and set at Rs. 11 per unit.

"As per the policy of the government to promote higher consumption of electricity, the tariff for the domestic consumers using more than 151 units in a month is reduced to motivate them to use induction cooker and other electric devices," read a statement of the TRC.

Similarly, tariff for domestic consumers accessing electricity from three-phase lines is reduced by Rs. 1 in the dry season and Rs. 1.5 in wet season.

A significant announcement is made for the irrigation facility. With the aim of promoting agriculture and support farmers, the rate for electricity for tube-well and other irrigation facilities is reduced by 40.69 per cent.

Irrigation consumers accessing electricity through TOD meter from 33 KV supply lines need to pay Rs. 2 per unit if they use energy from 11:00 PM in the evening to 5:00 AM in the morning. 

Consumers for the same facility without a TOD meter need to pay Rs. 2.5 per unit.

The commission said that meter upgrading for the consumers accessing electricity from single-phase and three-phase will be done free of cost.

It has estimated that the income of Nepal Electricity Authority will be Rs. 94.72 billion in the current Fiscal Year 2021/22. 

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 28 October 2021. 

FNCCI not happy over hike in premium of non-life insurance

Kathmandu, Oct. 27

The Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FNCCI) is not happy with the increase in the minimum premium rate for Non-Tariff Insurance Business.

In a statement published on Wednesday, it said that its attention has been drawn to the Insurance Board of Nepal's decision to hike the minimum premium rates.

The insurance sector regulator had issued a directive on September 22 for the non-life insurance companies asking them to raise the minimum premium rates for non-tariff insurance business.

According to the directives, the hydroelectricity developers should pay 1.5 per cent of the total cost as the minimum premium of the project insurance for a four year period. Earlier, it was just 0.25 per cent of the total budget.

On an average, it costs Rs. 200 million to generate 1 megawatt hydroelectricity in Nepal and according to new rates the developers should pay Rs. 3 million in four years against Rs. 500,000 as per the earlier rates.

Power producers have been saying that it would increase the cost of the project and create pressure on the investors. They said that 0.25 per cent premium is the international standards in hydropower sector.

Saying that the step would increase the cost of the project it criticised the board's step was against the liberal market economy.

Stakeholders including Independent Power Producers' Association (IPPAN), Federation of Contractor Associations of Nepal (FCAN) and other businesses concerned with the construction and development have said that the directives of the Insurance Board have conditions that might bar entrepreneurs to get the claim paid even though they paid the premium.

"The directives will discourage the competition in the market so the Insurance Board should review it," read the statement. 

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 28 October 2021. 

Programme launched to enhance access of underprivileged to higher education

Kathmandu, Oct. 27  

The University Grants Commission (UGC), Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST), and the World Bank have jointly launched Nurturing Excellence in Higher Education Programme (NEHEP).

The five-year programme aims to improve the quality and labour market relevance of Nepal’s higher education, scale up collaborative research and online learning, and expand access to academic institutions for underprivileged and vulnerable students from disadvantages areas, they said in a statement on Wednesday.

“Investing in human capital from early childhood to higher education is key to helping young people in Nepal realize their development potential,” said Ram Prasad Thapaliya, Secretary of Education.

“This programme will help strengthen the higher education sector in collaboration with industries and ensure students across Nepal including those from disadvantaged groups have access to quality higher education,” he added.

The programmeme builds on the success of earlier higher education projects in Nepal to align its higher education sector with labour market needs, boost collaborative research and entrepreneurship, improve governance, and enhance access to quality higher education in general and especially for disadvantaged students.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created strong incentives to expand online platforms and blended learning, which the programme will help scale up across all universities in Nepal, the statement read.

“Building on the successful partnership with the World Bank in earlier projects that improved research and innovation, quality assurance and accreditation, and COVID response, the programme will further foster regional collaboration of higher education institutions across South Asia and beyond.” stated Prof. Bhim Prasad Subedi, Chairperson of the UGC.

According to him, it will help exploit the benefits of the knowledge economy and information era to increase participation, quality, and relevance of higher education programmemes.

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 28 October 2021. 

PM Deuba to fly to London on Friday

Kathmandu, Oct. 26

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba is leaving for Glasgow of Scotland to participate in the World Leaders Summit at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), on 29 October, Friday.

He will leave Kathmandu for London by a Qatar Airways flight QR649 at 10:40 in the morning, informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA).

Likewise, he will return to Kathmandu on 4 November by the same aircraft's flight 652 at 8:30.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 27 October 2021. 

IBN, FNCCI to jointly promote investment

Kathmandu, Oct. 26

The Investment Board of Nepal (IBN) and Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) have expressed commitment to jointly promote Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Nepal.

In a meeting between the two organisations Tuesday, Chief Executive Officer of the IBN Sushil Bhatta and President of the FNCCI Shekhar Golchha agreed to sign a memorandum of understanding for the same.

"The government and private sector both have the responsibility to fulfill the national aspiration of 'Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali'. Board is ever ready to collaborate with the private sector to achieve this goal," said Bhatta.

According to him, the IBN is moving ahead in cooperation and collaboration with the private sector in terms of policy reforms needed in order to attract investment in Nepal.

Stating that the country needs to diversify its investment sectors, he said, "We have lots of investment potential so we need to promote multiple sectors for investment. For this, IBN and private sector need to cooperate," Bhatta said.

Likewise, Golchha said that the FNCCI is a capable and responsible body to hold discussions with the domestic and foreign investors. According to him, both the organisations should join hands to reach the foreign investors.

"We have an active network at the national and international level. We can easily reach the investors through that network and attract investment to Nepal," he said.

Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, Dr. Narayan Regmi, said that there was a wide mismatch in the investment commitment and its realization and stressed on an additional study on the matter.

He expressed commitment of the ministry in policy and other reforms essential to make the investment climate better.

Senior Vice President of the FNCCI, Chandra Dhakal, Chairman of the International Investment Promotion Committee, Anand Bagaria and Under Secretary of the IBN Ramesh Adhikari had also stressed on the public-private partnership for the promotion of investment. 

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 27 October 2021. 

ABN publishes draft of Advertising Code of Conduct

Kathmandu, Oct. 25

The Advertising Board of Nepal (ABN) has published a draft of the code of conduct for the advertising sector.

In a programme organised on Monday in the Capital to celebrate the completion of two years since the establishment of the board, it said that feedbacks and suggestions from the stakeholders and experts would be sought for a month before giving the document a final shape.

A stakeholder discussion on the draft was held on the same day to solicit suggestions on it where representatives of the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology, Advertising Association of Nepal (AAN), Department of Information, Federation of Nepalese Journalists, Press Council Nepal, Media Alliance, Media Society, Association of Community Radio Broadcasters, and various media houses deliberated on the provisions of the code of conduct.

The Government of Nepal and AAN had prepared a draft of Advertising Code of Conduct about a decade ago but it couldn't be finalised and implemented due to the lack of commitment on the part of both the stakeholders.

Laxman Humagain, Executive Chairman of the Advertising Board, said that the board had put its efforts in the past two years in creating policy foundations for the advertising sector and code of conduct was a part of that initiative.

Informing that the national policy for the advertising sector would be formulated within a year, he said that the board had finalised the standards for welfare advertising which will be extended to the online news media as well.

Due to the lack of accurate data of media reach and access, advertisers are confused and advertising has not been effective. The board is also set to create policy and technical environment to collect such statistics. It also aims to address the concerns about growing advertising on social media and decreasing trend in traditional mass media.

 

Refrain from fake claims: Minister Karki

Minister for Communication and Information Technology, Gyanendra Bahadur Karki, said that the language, style and expressions in advertising make impact on people so it should be kept simple, mature and fair.

He suggested the advertising agencies and media to refrain from fake claims and misleading information about the product.

"Advertising agencies should be aware of the laws and standards of advertising and must not violate the current laws and regulations," said Minister Karki.

He expressed the government's commitment to make advertising decent and fair and said that welfare advertising by the government had helped to expand the advertising market and support media entrepreneurs.

Shekhar Golchha, President of Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), said that the contribution made by the clean feed policy on advertising and media was not visible yet so ABN should pay enough attention to this.

"Advertising sector witnessed a loss of about Rs. 6 billion in revenue during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, in line with media, advertising should also be identified as the most-affected sector," he said.

There should be a cooperation between the ABN and advertising entrepreneurs to promote Nepal's tourism attractions in the international market, he stated.

 

Proportional advertising not good

Bhaskar Raj Rajkarnikar, President of Media Alliance, criticised the government's policy to distribute advertising in a proportional manner.

"Advertising should not be distributed on a proportional basis. Rather, it should be done through the media that have wider reach and access. Advertising is meant for brand building and promotion of products, so it must yield results in sales," he said.

According to him, advertising of the multinational companies must be developed in local language, only then will it support in the growth of the advertising market in Nepal.

Stakeholders also voiced their concerns to make the transaction between the media, advertising agencies and advertisers transparent. Payment to the advertising on social media channels like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube is illegally made, this should be regulated, they said.  

Dr. Baikuntha Aryal, Secretary of the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology, suggested the board to find out illegal transactions made for advertising in the foreign media and social media.

Likewise, misleading advertising should be curbed for the greater public interest and stakeholders should come together in checking this practice, he stated.

He urged the advertising agencies and media to maintain self-regulation for fair content and fair business.

 

Clean feed expands ad market by Rs. 2 billion

Som Prasad Dhital, President of Advertising Association of Nepal, said that there was a growth of about Rs. 2 billion following the implementation of clean feed a year ago.

According to him, had the pandemic not occurred, the policy would contribute to the growth of about Rs. 8 billion. With this, the size of advertising market has reached over Rs. 14 billion. Dhital also claimed that the transaction of about Rs. 5 billion was made illegally for social media advertising to the foreign parties.

"We have urged the government to announce a policy to force the foreign brands to spend at least 5 per cent of their total income here in Nepal in advertising and promotion," he said.

According to AAN, Nepal advertising market includes Rs. 3.35 billion for print, Rs. 2.77 billion for TV, Rs. 1.33 billion for radio, Rs. 1.65 billion for outdoor, Rs. 2.55 billion for online news portals and Rs. 2.37 billion for social media.

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 26 October 2021. 

Nepal can export HR, garments to Malta: Ambassador Gauci

 Reuben Gauci is non-residential Ambassador of Malta to Nepal who is stationed in New Delhi, India. Modnath Dhakal of The Rising Nepal had a brief talk with him when he was in Kathmandu to submit the letter of credence to President Bidya Devi Bhandari on Thursday. Excerpts:

 

How did you find Nepal during your first visit?

I am impressed by the hospitality of Nepali people. I am honoured to present my credentials to Honourable President Bidya Devi Bhandari the other day. I feel very happy, hounoured and fulfilled that my country has appointed me as its ambassador to this country. I would like to tell you that though Nepal is new for me, Nepali people are not, a few Nepalis are employed at our office in India.

 

Nepal and Malta enjoy friendly relations. What possible areas of cooperation do you see between them?

The two countries established diplomatic relations on 25 September 1983. Although they do not have particular agreement so far and trade between them is not very large, we have increasing Nepali community in Malta which has reached about 2,200. Given half a million population of Malta, this is a significant number. To compare another way, there are only 5,000 Indians. We issue working visa for Nepalis from Maltese High Commission in India. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19 pandemic, the service was disrupted for quite some time. I am sure that the increasing Nepali community in Malta will undoubtedly make our bilateral relations closer. Nepali community there is expanded in the last five years before COVID-19 pandemic. This may pave the way to make agreements between the two countries in future, hopefully, since it will also increase trade and tourism activities and other exchanges.

 

What environment does your country offer to Nepali migrant workers?

Workers from the European Union can move freely as it is a member of that body. But for the workers out of the EU, they should obtain the work permit from their employer in Malta. Then they can apply for visa at the High Commission in New Delhi. However, during COVID-19 period there could be various restrictions and provision of quarantine. There is a demand for Nepali workers in Malta. We are receiving emails and messages enquiring about the opening of visa from Nepali people as well as Maltese people. South Asia is one of our major sources for workers.

 

Despite its small geographical size, Malta's exports are four-fold larger than that of Nepal. What specialty of Malta helps to create flourishing export business?

We are the member of the EU which is a large market for us. Although Malta's population is just half a million we have a market of 450 million people. The good thing about the EU is that it also attracts investments to Malta. If you produce goods in any EU country that product could be sold unhindered in other member countries. It is also good for investors abroad as well. Even Nepali investors can enjoy this facility. Regarding the exports, Malta is renowned for micro-chips and we want to attract more investment in this sector. Other sector is pharmaceuticals. Since Malta is a small country with limited land and can't afford to develop large industrial base, we can't invite investments in areas like car assembly plants. Our priority areas are the business of the future.

 

Tourism is another pillar of Maltese economy. What would you suggest Nepal to boost its tourism market?

When I arrived in Kathmandu, I found that Nepalis know much about tourism and hospitality. Nepalis and Indians are the favourites of Maltese tourism entrepreneurs because of their nice service delivery. Malta offers sea and Nepal offers mountains so products might be different, the service need to be of high quality. Nepal can be a good tourism destination for Maltese people as we do not have mountains there. Every country should focus on what they could offer like the mountains in Nepal and hospitality should be of high quality. They should discover their own tourism potentials while taking care of their culture. They must not be ruined while developing as a tourism product, originality must not be lost.

 

You are also holding an interaction with Nepali business people. What do you tell them about the products Nepal could export to Malta?

Well, Nepal is already exporting its human resources to Malta. Apart from that, Nepali garments could be another item to send there. Since Malta is a small country, you must be very specific about the things trading with it. Enlarging Nepali community itself will start creating its own market for certain foods, garments and other items.

 

Has there been any cooperation between Nepal and Malta in international forums like the United Nations?

Yes. That is the area where we cooperate the most. At the UN we have cooperated in the laws of sea. Although Nepal is a landlocked country, it has its right to access and operation in the sea. Likewise, Nepal has voted for our number of candidatures.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 25 October 2021. 

Malta and Nepal to organise business exchanges

Kathmandu, Oct. 23

Ambassador of Malta to Nepal, Reuben Gauci, said that arrangement would be made for the visit of Nepali business delegation to Malta to provide an opportunity for them to observe the possible business opportunity.

Similarly, programme would also be organised to bring the Maltese private sector representatives to Nepal, he added. "Such activities will increase interaction between the businesspeople of the two countries and provide opportunity to make investment and conduct trade between them," he said while interacting with Nepali private sector representatives in Kathmandu on the occasion of Launch Reception organised by Honorary Consul of Malta for Nepal, Dinesh Shrestha, on Saturday.

According to him, since the government has the responsibility to regulate and support the private sector, it’s the business community that should search for the opportunity and exploit it.

Strategically located in the Mediterranean Sea, Malta is a gateway to the European Union and Africa. Gauci also said that the country could also be an administrative hub for business those who want to expand their business in the EU and Africa.

"Malta can be a good destination for Nepali garment and handicraft products. An increasing number of Nepalis there will also increase the markets," said Gauci.

Speaking on the occasion, Shrestha said that Nepal has many things to learn from Malta. "Although it is small in size it has significant international trade and tourist arrivals. We need to increase exchange and interaction between the two countries so that we could learn from Malta," he said.

Shrestha honoured Gauci and his spouse Olga V. Gauci on the occasion with traditional khada and souvenir.

Since the establishment of the bilateral relations between Nepal and Malta in 1983, various interactions between the two countries have been made. Currently, 2,200 Nepalis are in Malta for work and study while some are involved in business and hospitality.

In the last fiscal year 2020/21, Nepal imported goods worth Rs. 19.36 million from Malta and exported goods worth Rs. 1.27 million. 

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 24 October 2021. 

Central bank assures private sector of low interest rates on investment

Kathmandu, Oct. 22

Governor of the Nepal Rastra Bank, Maha Prasad Adhikari, has assured the private sector that interest rate on investment will not increase immediately.

In a meeting with a delegation of the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) on the eve of the first quarterly review of the monetary policy for the current fiscal year 2021/22, he said that policy arrangements would be made to keep the interest rate stable in order to promote industrialisation.

Governor Adhikari said that the NRB had always been vigilant in keeping the interest rates of banks and financial institutions (BFIs) within the required limits.

He also mentioned that the NRB had issued new directives to check the unhealthy competition in the market. “The NRB expects that the interest rate of investment will be stable from this step”, he said.

President of the CNI Vishnu Kumar Agrawal said that the liquidity pressure in the market was increasing and banks were raising interest rates on deposits and this would further increase interest rates on loans in the coming days.

The CNI has also urged the NRB to allow the banks to calculate the deposits of the local governments in the BFIs in the loan-to-deposit ratio for a certain period of time to reduce the liquidity pressure.

Through the current monetary policy, the NRB has introduced a rule that commercial banks should maintain credit-deposit (CD) ratio of 90 percent when disbursing loans. Since the liquidity is less than estimated, the rule should be changed to 95 percent CD ratio by mid-January and 90 per cent by mid-July, CNI urged the central bank.

Chairman of the CNI's Banks and Financial Institutions Committee, Anil Raj Bhattarai, urged the NRB to calculate the deposits and loans in foreign currency separately in order to add some liquidity to the market.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 23 October 2021. 

Preparations for ICNR 2021 at final stage

Kathmandu, Oct. 22

The National Reconstruction Authority (NRA) said that preparations for the International Conference on Nepal's Reconstruction (ICNR), 2021 has reached the final stage.

On Friday, it launched a webpage (www.icnr.nra.gov.np) dedicated for the conference.

Dr. Chandra Bahadur Shrestha, Member of the NRA's Steering Committee and Coordinator of the ICNR 2021, said that it was challenging to carry out the reconstruction at a mega scale in a country like Nepal.

"We would like to tell the success story to the world as well as the future generations. Objectives of the conference are to record and disseminate learned lessons and best practices for Nepal's future generations and international community," he said.

The conference also aims at strengthening relationship between government and multilateral agencies, bilateral agencies and civil society considering way forward on resilient Nepal, and inform the government about the disaster-related laws and policies.

Chief Executive Officer of the NRA Sushil Gyawali said that the reconstruction body had handed over the responsibilities of the remaining rebuilding works to the other concerned government agencies.

International community and stakeholders had suggested us to organise an event to share the experiences and learning in the post-quake reconstruction, he shared.

He said that the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority would act as the successor of the reconstruction body. "By 2030, Nepal has aimed to create disaster-resilient Nepal. Planning and programmes are being devised for the same," said Gyawali.

However, he said that the greatest achievement made in the past six years was the awareness about the quake-resilient construction on the part of people.

Meanwhile, integrated settlement programmes in core city areas in the Kathmandu Valley could not be implemented as planned.  

"We had selected some areas for urban revival programmes – Khokana, Bungmati and Sankhu. Changes are visible in Bungmati, the city is gradually having the traditional look," said Gyawali.

However, house pooling could not be materialised as planned. A programme for the traditional city revival is decided by the Steering Committee of the NRA.

 

Three-day conference

The international conference is slated for December 7-9. Delegates will arrive on December 7 and there will be site visits and welcome dinner for the VVIP guests, said Dr. Shrestha.

The conference will begin on December 8. There will be separate sessions for political parties, journalists, non-government organisations, private sector and other stakeholders.

Leaders from the reconstruction bodies in New Zealand, Pakistan, India, France, Japan, Switzerland, Canada, and the United Kingdom will participate in the deliberations during the conference. It will be attended by the representatives of the bilateral and multilateral agencies.

It has been a year since the NRA began preparations for the ICNR and it has organised seminars, workshops, published research articles in international journals, created a mobile app, and managed the logistics for the conference.

 

Second edition

This conference is the continuation or conclusion of the first ICNR organised in the immediate aftermath of the devastating Gorkha Earthquake 2015. The first conference had been instrumental in managing resources needed for the post-quake reconstruction, primarily the rebuilding of the private houses.

Donors and friendly countries had expressed commitment of Rs. 410 billion for the rebuilding, of which Rs. 89 billion was spent on rescue and relief operations and other development activities.

According to the NRA, it had signed agreement for Rs. 313 billion with the donors which is 97.5 per cent of the actual commitment for the support. "The support we received during the difficult times following the earthquake is significant even in comparison with the other countries facing the same difficulties," said Gyawali.

The tremors had killed 8,970 people and damaged more than 800,000 houses across 32 districts in mid and eastern hills and mountains.

The government had enacted the NRA as an agency to carry out reconstruction of the private houses, health and education facilities and other infrastructure with a five-year term. Its tenure was extended by a year through a Cabinet decision last year.

More than 700,000 earthquake-resilient houses have been built since then. Cultural and historical heritages like Ranipokhari, Dharhara, palaces, temples and monasteries have been rebuilt.

The NRA will cease to exist from 24 January, 2022. 

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 23 October 2021. 

Minister Jhankri commits to construction-friendly laws

Kathmandu, Oct. 21

Minister for Urban Development Ram Kumari Jhankri has said that the Public Procurement Act and the Construction Business Act should be revised in a timely manner to help in the development of physical infrastructure.

She is for enacting laws that would promote construction business so that it could support in the development of the country, said the Federation of Contractors Association of Nepal (FCAN) in a statement issued on Thursday.

A delegation of the FCAN had called on Minister Jhankri on Thursday where she expressed her commitment to assisting in the formulation of construction business friendly laws.

Stating that the Construction Business Development Council should be made active by making programmes for the development and promotion of the construction industry, Minister Jhankri stressed on the quality construction work.

She said that there was a problem in the construction industry due to low bidding even though the construction entrepreneurs should do the quality work. According to her, the contractors should enhance their capacity and learn about new technology and construction modalities emulating practices developed countries.

The delegation led by FCAN President Ravi Singh has submitted written suggestions to Minister Jhankri about the problems and solutions of the construction industry.

The suggestions incude the issue like refund of deposit, cancellation of bank credit line and increase in insurance fee.

Likewise, Minister Jhankri's attention was also drawn to the issues including exemption in income tax, value added tax, free renewal of bank guarantee, free renewal of insurance, provision of refinancing, bidding criteria, and amendment to existing laws and regulations.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 22 October 2021. 

DoI gives a month to obtain approvals

Kathmandu, Oct. 20

The Department of Industry (DoI) has offered a month’s additional period for the businesses and industries to obtain various approvals required to renew and operate them.

It has informed that the businesses that could not apply for the services of the department since the implementation of the second lockdown on April 29 this year can avail the services for the month of Kartik (18 October to 16 November).

They can utilise the period to get the approval for the action plan of Foreign Direct Investment if the enterprise had already got approval for the FDI but not brought in the proposed money.

Likewise, renewal of patent, design and trademark certificates, and private firm can be done in the stipulated period.

Deadline for the operation of industry, commercial production and commencement of transaction can also be reported and application can be submitted to claim the cash subsidy on the exports made during the period. 

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 21 October 2021. 

Gem entrepreneur Maharjan dies

Kathmandu, Oct. 18

President of Federation of Nepal Gold, Silver, Gem and Jewellery Associations Ramesh Maharjan died of COVID-19 on Monday. He had founded R. B. Diamond Jewellers about 24 years ago.

He was tested COVID-19 positive last week and admitted to Mediciti Hospital in Lalitpur. He succumbed to the disease on Monday at 11:00 AM.

Other members of his family were also tested COVID-19 positive and recovered from it.

Maharjan was also the Central Committee Member of Sajha Party and fought the last local level election for the post of Mayor of Lalitpur Metropolitan City. Likewise, he was serving as the President of Nepal Sri Lanka Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

R.B. Diamond had sponsored the recent fashion show at the foothills of Sagrmatha.

Maharjan’s last rites will be performed on Tuesday. He is survived by a son and two daughters. 

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 19 October 2021. 

GIBL launches 3 new branchless banking

Kathmandu, Oct. 17

Global IME Bank Limited has opened three new branchless banking service centre in Panchami Bazaar, Ilam, Sardewa in Palpa and Naya Bazaar in Morang districts.

With this GIBL’s number of branchless banking centre has reached 260.

According to a statement of the bank published on Sunday, the new centres are launched in Panchami Bazaar, Khandrung of Deumai Municipality-7 in Ilam, Sardewa of Rainadevi Chhahara Rural Municipality-2 in Palpa and Naya Bazaar of Katahari Rural Municipality-4 in Morang.

Umakanta Khanal, Bimala Tandon and Dipendra Kumar Sardar are representatives of the centres in Panchami Bazaar, Sardewa and Naya Bazaar respectively.

People in the locality can obtain banking facility from these representatives of the bank. These centres can provide facilities like opening bank account, deposit and withdraw certain amount of money, get the information about deposit, repay the loan of the interest, obtain remittance facility, mobile recharge and pay the utility bills like cable television and telecommunication services.

GIBL is currently serving about 2.6 million customers through 280 branches, 250 ATMs, 260 branchless banking, 47 extension counters and three international representative offices. 

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 18 October 2021. 

Cooperatives sector regulator needed: FM Sharma

Kathmandu, Oct. 7

Finance Minister Janardan Sharma said that Nepal needed a regulator for the cooperatives sector.

“There are embezzlements of funds in the cooperatives but the sector lacks a regulator,” he said while addressing the 15^th anniversary programme of Syuchatar Saving and Credit Cooperative Organisation on Thursday.

Minister Sharma expressed concerns over the misappropriation of funds in cooperatives. “I have heard about the embezzlement of the hard-earned money of people including senior citizens who have been depositing their allowances in the cooperatives,” he said.

He also stated that the government had started discussions about creating an agency to regulate the sector.

Minister Sharma said that cooperatives are representing the community in the national economy.

“Country’s economy will prosper in collaboration of the public, private and cooperative sector,” he said.

According to him, community is the primary player in development and prosperity, and leads all other sectors. So, it should be connected with the production and help in employment generation.

He stated that the government would play a coordinating role, adding it wouldn’t invest but manage economic affairs.

“Every person has more or less money with them which makes a large sum collectively. We have to create an environment to collect that scattered money to invest in productive sectors,” FM Sharma said, adding cooperatives can make a significant contribution in this regard.

While there is a distance between the large commercial banks and common people and there is poor direct communication between them. But cooperatives are in direct link with the community, so they can collect money, mobilise it and involve in production of goods and services to bring prosperity in the society, said the Minister.

He maintained that the country needs employment and self-employment where cooperatives have an important role to play.

“This is the reason we have considered cooperatives as one of the pillars of the economy. To make the economy strong, each pillar should be strong,” he said.

Likewise, FM Sharma said that only economic development is not enough for social transformation, there should be cultural revolution as well and both of them should move further simultaneously.

According to him, since a policy to allow cooperatives to run a separate company to invest the capital is passed, they should invest their funds in productive sector.

“Investment made in the productive sector will help in the prosperity of community and the nation. It will help in reducing our dependency to foreign country as well,” he said. 

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 8 October 2021. 

Private Sector wants MCC project to implement immediately

 Kathmandu, Oct. 6

Nepali private sector has urged the government, political parties and other stakeholders to immediately pass the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC)’s Nepal Compact Project immediately.

Three umbrella organisations of the private sector – Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) and Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) – issued a joint statement on Wednesday to pass the project ensuring the national interest of the country.

“MCC project will ensure timely construction of transmission line and maintenance of strategic road and support in high economic growth,” read the statement. “In the post COVID-19 pandemic scenario, Nepal needs a huge investment to take the battered economy back to track while the MCC project will create electricity export base in the long run and transfer modern technology.”

The private sector associations said that pandemic has caused a shrink in internal resources while foreign support has not been increased. In the first month of the current fiscal year 2021/22, foreign investment is reduced by 49 per cent. In this scenario, US$ 500 million grant support is crucial for Nepal, they said.

In absence of high-capacity cross-border transmission lines, a significant amounf of energy is being wasted during wet season. If the country couldn’t incrase the per capita electricity consumption, energy will be wasted in the dry season as well within a few years.

“At the same time, poor road infrastructure has resulted in increased cost of industry and business. It has weakened Nepal’s competitive capacity,” read the statement signed by the presidents of FNCCI, CNI and NCC – Shekhar Golchha, Vishnu Kumar Agrawal and Rajendra Malla respectively.

Nepal and MCC signed an agreement in September 2017 for a USD 630 million project to construct large transmission lines, including Butwal-Gorakhpur cross-border transmission facility, and rehabilitate strategic roads.

The Electricity Transmission Project will build 312 km of 400 kV electricity transmission lines and three substations and provide technical assistance for the power sector in Nepal.

The 312 km of transmission line will pass through 30 municipalities of 10 districts. Altogether 856 towers will be installed to support the transmission lines.

The locations for the three substations are in Ratmate, Damauli and New Butwal.

Likewise, the Road Maintenance Project aims to enhance current practices in the maintenance of Nepal’s strategic roads network and will provide technical assistance to the Department of Roads (DoR) and Roads Board Nepal.

Maintenance interventions will include pavement improvement techniques and include safety enhancement features. New pavement improvement technology adopted are Full Depth Recycling (FDR) and superpave asphalt concrete which follows the principle of recycling existing pavement material.

As per the agreement the project should be completed within five years and in case of incompletion, the remaining budget would be routed back to the MCC, United States of America. The project was supposed to be kicked off on 30 June 2020.

Nepal is divided in the retification of the agreement by the parliament and rumours had created suspicion in the part of people about the project.

Private sector said that due to the time limit, this project could be a model for development governance. MCC is in implementation in about 30 countries across the world.

Earlier in September, Vice President of Compact Operations of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Fatema Z. Sumar had visited Nepal to facilitate the implementation of MCC – Nepal Programme.

She hold meetings with Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, former PM and Chiarman of CPN (UML) KP Sharma Oli, former PM and Chairman of CPN (MC) Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda, former PM and Chairman of CPN (US) Madhav Kumar Nepal, Finance Minister Janardan Sharma and other leaders.

However, her visit couldn’t bring immediate results. 

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 7 October 2021. 

Xiaomi launches 11 Lite in Nepal

Kathmandu, Oct. 6

Xiaomi Nepal has launched Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G smartphone in the Nepali market.

"This phone offers a global 5G experience with 125G bands support. It comes with Qualcomm Snapdragon778G and an improved software experience for exceptional performance," the company said in its statement on Tuesday.

Sourabh Kothari, Country General Manager of Xiaomi Nepal,said that delivering on the company's promise of introducing a 5G variant, i 11 Lite NE 5G was launched.

Continuing the legacy of its predecessor, Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G is 6.81mm slim and weighs just 158gm, making this one of the slimmest and lightest 5G smartphone of 2021. Rendering a clean and fresh look, Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G comes with a smooth anti-glare matte-finish frosted glass that helps minimise fingerprint smudges.

The phone sports the latest 6.55” FHD AMOLED dot display for an immersive viewing experience. Combination of its 90Hz refresh rate and 240Hz touch sampling rate registers a faster device usage experience, without any lags or stutters, read the statement.

The new phone features a 64MP primary camera, complemented by an 8MP ultra-wide-angle and 5MP tele-macro camera.

Its 8GB plus 256 GB product comes at Rs. 48,999 and 8GB plus 128 GB costs Rs. 45,999.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 7 October 2021. 

NRB allows banks to issue SBLC of up to $5 million

Kathmandu, Oct. 5

Commercial banks and national level development banks in Nepal can now issue Standby Letter of Credit (SBLC) to any firm, organisation or agency to run business activities and obtain loan in foreign countries.

The Nepal Rastra Bank has enacted this facility for the first time by amending its Unified Directives, 2019's circular 14/2019, said Dev Kumar Dhakal, Spokesperson for the central bank.

Foreign Exchange Management Department of the central bank informed in a notice published on Tuesday that any company, firm, organisation or agency that has earned foreign currency and wants to operate its business in other countries can obtain the bank guarantee or SBLC from the banks and financial institutions (BFIs) in Nepal.

An SBLC guarantees a bank's commitment of payment to seller in the event that the buyer or the bank’s client defaults on the agreement, according to Investopedia.

It will be particularly effective in facilitating trade between two international parties that don't know each other or function in different legal regimes.

SBLC is different from Letter of Credit or LC as the former pays the party when conditions have not been fulfilled and the latter makes payment when the conditions are fulfilled.

As per the new provision, Nepali producers and exporters of goods and services can obtain bank guarantee like bid bond and performance bond or SBLC for advance payment from the companies in other countries to provide goods or services export from Nepal.

Companies that require such service need to submit authentic relevant documents to the banks. Banks will be responsible for all the liability created after the issuance of SBLC, stated the NRB. It also said that SBLC can't be issued to obtain loan in foreign land.

Amount of such guarantee or SBLC will be US$5 million or equivalent other foreign currency, and such amount should not exceed the income of foreign currency of the applicant company in the last five consecutive years.

According to the central bank, the applicant should submit documents showing the need of the SBLC, tax clearance, latest audit report, decision of the board of directors of the company to that effect, evidence of the income of foreign currency, and action plan to bring in additional foreign currency to Nepal.

 Bharat Raj Acharya, Chairman of Industry Committee at the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), said that the new provision would benefit the services exporters like computer software and entertainment product.

"This will immediately help the software developers and exporters to further expand their markets in other countries. It will increase the company's reliability and help in business development," he said.

However, goods export will be less likely to benefit from the provision although handicraft exporters could reap benefit to some extent.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 6 October 2021.