Minister Joshi appointed as IBN VC

Kathmandu, May 18: The government has given the responsibility of the vice-chairman of the Investment Board of Nepal (IBN) to Minister for Industry Nabindra Raj Joshi in addition to his present ministerial responsibilities.

Until now there was no provision of appointing the vice-chairman at the IBN, a high-level government agency formed in 2011 to create an investment-friendly environment and provide fast track services to the investors, both domestic and foreign.

The post had been lying vacant for the last couple of years.

The Prime Minister leads the IBN as its chairman.

"The IBN should be developed as a strong agency in terms of large infrastructure projects, and there should be greater collaboration and coordination among the various ministries and agencies in this regard," said Minister Joshi while speaking at a programme organised by the Board to welcome him on Thursday.

He said that the IBN should work to identify bankable projects and conduct studies on the contribution of such projects in employment, revenue and overall economy, and should give top-most priority to investment facilitation.

According to him, the Board should resolve the problems in close coordination with the line ministries.

IBN Chief Executive Officer Maha Prasad Adhikari updated the minister about the projects being facilitated by the Board and the challenges being faced in executing the projects.