Kathmandu, Nov. 24
Businesspersons have urged the government to
make concrete reforms to lead the country on the path of economic development
and support business rehabilitation.
“Slogans don’t attract investment, we need to
create better policy environment and address the challenges that obstruct the
growth of business and industry,” they said univocally at a dialogue
programme organised by the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and
Industry (FNCCI) on Wednesday on the occasion of National Industry Day.
The seventh National
Industry Day is being celebrated on Thursday, Mangsir 9 of the Nepali calendar.
“Increasing
trade deficit is the single largest challenge of the economy,” said President
of FNCCI Shekhar Golchha, “Until we make value addition in Nepal and create
employment by promoting enterprise development, there wouldn't be a positive
change in the economy and development.”
According to
him, procedural reforms should be made immediately. “Cost of doing business is
very high and import of raw materials is troubled by high logistic cost,” said
Golchha.
The business
community also stated that the bank interest rates and energy expenses are very
high.
There is
30-40 per cent fluctuation in interest rates which makes investment environment
unpredictable in Nepal and no one wants to take risks in such a situation, he
said.
The private
sector has demanded with the Nepal Electricity Authority to provide them
electricity at the rates the power authority is exporting it to India.
Bharat Raj
Acharya, Chair of Industry Committee at the FNCCI, said that liquidity crisis
and poor credit flow has stagnated the entire entrepreneurial ecosystem.
“There
should be a provision for maintaining liquidity to mobilise finances to
industrial sector. Likewise, project financing should be implemented in real
sense to promote start-ups and innovation,” he said.
According to
him, there are 14 industrial and business related acts which have several provisions
to hamper the growth of business.
Businesspersons
said that the membership of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) had brought them
more constraints than favours and they suggested that the government should
think about protecting domestic industries contributing to the employment and
economy.
Senior VP of
the FNCCI, Chandra Prasad Dhakal, stated that the Ministry of Industry,
Commerce and Supplies (MoICS) has not been the priority of the government.
“The
ministry should have been accorded a high priority in the post-COVID situation
as there is a need of launching economic recovery programmes,” he said.
The ministry
has not got a minister for the last four months.
Sumit Kedia,
Past President of Nepal Dairy Association, suggested the government to model
the CTEVT in producing skilled and semi-skilled manpower targeting the domestic
industries. So far, the vocational education body is producing human resources
for foreign markets.
“We are not
getting skilled HR.”
Dipak
Shrestha, VP of Nepal Chamber of Commerce, said that it was a sad thing that
the private sector had to always complain about the deteriorating industrial
environment in the country.
“There shouldn't
be a situation where business community always has to ask for incentives,
facilitation, government should act proactively in this regard,” he said.
In response,
Secretary of the Ministry of MoICS, Arjun Prasad Pokharel, said that the
government would protect the domestic industries.
“It is
government’s duty to protect domestic industries. The state doesn’t believe in
charging fines to the businesses, it happens due to ignorance and negligence in
their part,” he said.
He urged the
private sector to find opportunities of cost effectiveness and maximize those
opportunities.
Likewise, Director
General of the Department of Industry, Jiblal Bhusal said that the department
was implementing full automation system and all registration and updates could
be done from home.
Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 25 November 2021.
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