Duty-free access in US sought for all Nepali products

KATHMANDU, JUL 31 - Nepal has requested the United States to provide duty-free access facility to all Nepali products.

At a preparatory meeting for the Nepal-US Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) in Kathmandu on Wednesday, Nepali officials made such a request, citing Nepal’s “underdevelopment status”.

Earlier, the government had submitted a list of 75 products for the duty-free access facility.

Although the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) facility expired on July 31, 2013, the US had asked for such a list from the countries that had been offered the facility.

Before its expiry, the GSP facility was applicable to approximately 5,000 products from 127 developing countries. However, Nepali products account for just 5 percent of the list.

Toya Narayan Gyawali, joint-secretary at the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies is leading the Nepali team, while Mara Burr, deputy assistant at the US Trade Representative for South and Central Asia, is leading the US delegation.

The preparatory meeting, which will last until Friday, will fix the date and agenda for the second meeting.

“During Wednesday’s meeting, Nepal also sought the US support in capacity building of Nepali exporters, preferential treatment to Nepali services and promotion of Nepali products in the US market,” Gyawali said.

“We have urged them to help mainly in capacity building of the associations of producers major exportable goods,” said Gyawali.

Nepal also asked the US to incorporate the issue of strengthening of Nepal’s trade sector in the US Development Cooperation Strategy for Nepal.

Gyawali said they also asked for increasing cooperation among the private sectors of the two countries. In addition, promoting Nepali products in big retail chains like Wallmart and trade fairs in the US were among other demands put forward by Nepal.

At the meeting, Nepali pashmina producers requested the US offer pashmina the GSP facility saying the product falls under handicrafts. “Besides, the product’s collective trademark ‘Chyangra Pashmina’ is a quality assurance, which has already been registered in the US as well,” said Vijay Dugad, general secretary at Nepal Pashmina Industries’ Association.

The US side has asked Nepal to carry out reforms in legal and policy sectors to make them more transparent and understandable to US investors.

“The US side told us they were interested in investing in Nepal’s information technology, tourism and hydroelectricity sectors,” said Gyawali.

Source: The Kathmandu Post