Bairagi meets Ali

Kathmandu, Oct. 8: Foreign Secreatary Shankar Das Bairagi paid a call on Bangladeshi Foreign Affairs Minister Mahmood Ali in his office in Dhaka, Bangladesh Sunday.

 According to a press statement issued by the Embassy of Nepal, Dhaka, they discussed wide range of issues like trade, transit, connectivity, energy, investment, culture, higher education and tourism.

“Promoting cooperation under the BBIN (Bhutan-Bangladesh-India-Nepal) framework also figured during the discussion. Both sides agreed to work together to enhance partnership and collaboration on mutually agreed areas with a view to further strengthening bilateral ties,” reads the statement.

Earlier, Bairagi had a bilateral meeting with the Secretary of the Road Transport and Highways Division of the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges M. A. N. Siddique.

Their meeting was focused on enhancing cooperation on transport and all modes of connectivity between the two countries.

Bairagi is in Dhaka to attend the second round of Foreign Office Consultation between Nepal and Bangladesh.

He is accompanied by Nepali Ambassador to Bangladesh Prof. Dr. Chop Lal Bhushal, senior officials of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Commerce, Energy and offcials of the Embassy of Nepal, Dhaka.

'Developing inland water transport is relevant in BBIN'

Kathamdu, July 18:

“Emerging significance of Sri Lanka in maritime connectivity of South and South East Asia underlines the relevance of developing inland water transport in BBIN ( Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and India ) countries,” said Commodore Mohammed Muzamal, Chairman of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA).

Speaking at the Ganga Basin Policy Dialogue at Kathmandu on July 14, 2017, he said that transshipment of cargo arriving at Sri Lanka to the ports of Chittagong and Mongla in Bangladesh and from there by waterways to locations in Bhutan, Nepal and India will reduce the logistics cost considerably.

The dialogue was organized by CUTS International in Kathmandu under the project ‘Expanding tradable benefits of trans-boundary water: Promoting navigational usage of inland waterways in Ganga and Brahmaputra basins’.

The objective of the meeting was to present findings from the country specific diagnostic studies conducted in the Ganga Basin of Nepal, India and Bangladesh; facilitate knowledge sharing on waterways governance and to promote policy discourses bringing in the upper and lower riparian so as to enable reform measures.

While CUTS International presented the findings from India, South Asia Watch on Trade Economics and Environment (SAWTEE) and UnnayanShamannay shared the studies from Nepal and Bangladesh respectively.

The participants included officials from BIWTA, Inland Water Authority of India (IWAI), Water and Energy Commission (Nepal), academia and civil society organizations in South Asia.

Shashi Bhusan Shukla, Secretary, IWAI shared the updates about the developmental work undertaken in the Jal Marg Vikas Project and said that development of Kalughat (West Bengal) and Jogighopa (Assam) terminals will provide connectivity to landlocked countries of Nepal and Bhutan, respectively.

The techno feasibility studies of Ghagra, Gandak and Kosi rivers will also provide insights on the possibility of connecting Nepal and India through waterways.

KeshavDhojAdhikari, Joint Secretary, Water and Energy Commission of Nepal said that inclusion of transboundary inland waterways as an agenda in the bilateral meetings of Ministry of Water Resources of Nepal and India would pave way for an inclusive discourse on the subject between two countries. The detailed project report (DPR) of Kosi high dam which has been delayed over more than a decade also has a component of inland waterways connecting Kosi and Ganga.

The livelihood opportunities offered by IWT sector in fairway and terminal development as well as in tourism sector were also highlighted by civil society representatives in the meeting.

Capacity building and skill development of local communities and other stakeholders whose livelihoods are directly dependent on rivers will assure their inclusion in the development process and gain their confidence.

With respect to protocol routes between India and Bangladesh, though both governments are keen in undertaking dredging and maintaining least available depth for navigation, there are uncertainties regarding the no man’s area along border points especially in those areas wherein the river traverses between India and Bangladesh when it enters Bangladesh. The officials from relevant authorities in both countries agreed to take this matter forward.

The event also necessitated to undertake joint feasibility and hydro-morphological studies of waterways, basin management, joint dredging and silt management, user friendly customs policies and data sharing which will lead to cooperation among riparian countries. 

SAARC is not a failure: Teerink

Kathmandu, June 27: Rensje Teerink, ambassador of the European Union Delegation to Nepal, Tuesday said that the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) was not a failure.

Speaking at a talk on Economic Development in Landlocked Countries – part 2, a series of Linkfest Thoughts to Action, she said that the regional cooperation might face confusion and difficult situation at times, and recommended to enhance the cooperation through the people to people connectivity and organizations like Sabah, a regional association for home-based workers in South Asia.

She said that the SAARC had taken up and brought down by political problems.

“Small initiatives will be effective in this regard. You shouldn’t be disappointed with small breakdowns. It took 60 years for us to materialise the European Union,” she said.

Teerink said that the EU could be model for the regional integration and suggested to move forward with other regional initiatives like the BBIN (Bangladesh-Bhutan-India-Nepal), BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) and Belt and Road Initiative.

She recommended Nepal to give priority to hydroelectricity, agriculture and infrastructure development.

Executive director of Cuts International, India Bipul Chaterjee also said that energy was definitely an area of cooperation and suggested to take health and education along with the energy development and connectivity.

He said that the BBIN was like the Greater Mekong regional approach, and both the initiatives were led by the Asian Development Bank.

Managing Director of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) Kulman Ghishing urged to give priority to transport and electricity in the regional setup.

Francois Driard, chief executive officer (CEO) of Himalayan French Cheese, said that agriculture and agro-processing industries had high potential in Nepal.

“Perception of Nepal in far east is very good even as compared to India. If the process is simplified, Nepal can tap market opportunities there,” he said.

CEO of Nepal Airlines Sugat Ratna Kansakar said that for the tourism development, the national flag carrier should be strengthened and number of aircrafts and destinations should be increased.

Include private sector in sub-regional initiative: Deuba

Kathmandu, Apr. 17: Former Prime Minister and Nepali Congress Chairman Sher Bahadur Deuba Monday said that private sector should be involved in the South Asia sub-regional initiatives for trade and connectivity.

"There is a huge potential for BBIN (Bangladesh-Bhutan-India-Nepal) countries to engage private sector in facilitating trade through infrastructure development such as roads, airports, railways, waterways, ports, industrial zones, and integrated border management system," he said while addressing a conference on 'Strengthening cooperation among BBIN countries: the road ahead' here.

The BBIN Initiative is a sub-regional structure of four member countries which works in the areas of water resource management, connectivity of power, transport and infrastructure.

First concrete progress towards the sub-regionalism was made when the four countries signed the BBIN Motor Vehicles Agreement in June 2015 at the BBIN Transport Ministers' Meeting in Bhutan.

The BBIN-MVA permits the vehicles of member states to enter in each other's territory for the movement of people and cargo by obtaining electronic permit to make an entry.

As the BBIN provides a better platform for bilateral trade by linking four South Asian countries, it can open up untapped and unexplored trade possibilities in various goods, and services including tourism, energy, education, health, finance and logistics, said Deuba.

However, he maintained that in order to boost bilateral trade and facilitate transit, physical and soft infrastructure should be developed with priority.

"Though there is a strong demand for a deeper regional integration in South Asia, the progress has been rather slow. The actual implementation of agreements often does not match the declared ambitions, and in this context, lack of coordination, institutional weaknesses, resources inadequacies and capacity for implementation have been argued to be the major impending factors," he said.

Professor Sachin Chaturvedi, director general of Research and Information system for Developing Countries (RIS) – a New Delhi-based autonomous think-tank, also emphasized on the involvement of the private sector of in the connectivity initiatives.

Saying that the government should not alone remain in the driving seat in the regional initiatives, he posed a question, "Can we think of a BBIN wide transport company with shares of key truck operators in the region so that we avoid undue pollution and get the profits distributed in such a way that all share in the pie?"

According to Chaturvedi, economic complementarities, geographical proximity, political commitment, policy coordination and infrastructure development are the basic factors to make regional integration success.

"Adequate participation and cooperation of the public and private sectors are equally relevant," he said.

Member of the Board of Directors at the Institute for Strategic and Socio-Economic Research (ISSR), Professor Madan Kumar Dahal proposed that the BBIN should be declared as one economic zone to expedite joint investments in potential areas based on comparative advantages and competitive edges.

"Sharing of knowledge and technology in potential areas is necessary to ensure a high, sustainable and inclusive growth in member countries. Equally important is to share experiences in poverty alleviation," he said.

Another member of the ISSR BoD, Professor Govind Nepal said that the enhanced cooperation and deepening integration among the BBIN countries would help to optimize benefits, reduce costs, increase efficiency and utilize platform to maintain the quality of public goods.

Chairman of ISSR, Professor Bishwambher Pyakuryal, said that the conference would discuss on strengthening cooperation and increasing connectivity among the BBIN member countries.

The conference is organised by ISSR in collaboration with the UN ESCAP, The Asia Foundation and Pavilion Group.

BBIN expert urge to implement SAARC decisions

The two-day Public-Private-Dialogue (PPD) on Promoting trade in BBIN, a SAARC sub-regional group that includes Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal, called for reforming the SAARC charter to allow for legally binding compulsion for the member states to implement decisions taken by SAARC bodies.

Businesspersons, civil society members and government officials of BBIN proposed to reform the SAARC charter as various decisions made by the SAARC bodies were not implemented.

The PPD asked for the engagement of political elites through policy advocacy to effectively advance the agenda of regional integration, read the final report of the two-day workshop, which was published Friday.

The PPD was organized last week in Dhaka of Bangladesh by the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) in collaboration with the SAARC Chambers of Commerce and Industry  (SAARC CCI) and The Asia Foundation.

The experts called for greater regional trade integration in South Asia, and urged the four nations for increased movement of people and goods across the border.

Saying that it was impossible for any neighbour to grow alone, the experts underscored that need to minimize obstacles in trade in the sub-region as the custom clearance issues were paramount.

“Visa regime should be reformed in order to make BBIN effective, allowing cross border traffice of people, as well as goods and vehicle,” read the report.

Citing the small size of intra-regional trade in the South Asia, the PPD recommended to review the SAFTA sensitive list, and the rulef of origin criteria in order to identify realistic trade interests of the member countries.

The SAARC has only 5 per cent trade within the region while the largest member India trades less than 1 per cent in the region.

In addition to the development of common SAARC ‘quality standards’, there was a need for capaity building on ‘conformity’ assessment as well, PPD suggested the BBIN.

The workshop also suggested to develop Standard Operating Procedures for port operations at BBIN and in South Asia and consider regional dimension while developing national level planning.

 Shaquib Quoreshi, Secretary of MCCI, said that such PPD would help to understand the cross border issues in the region and the recommendations of the workshop would be useful for the policy makers.