FinMin asks ADB to be more generous

KATHMANDU, MAR 05 - Finance Minister Ram Sharan Mahat has asked the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to be flexible in its aid policy as the Asian lender has been providing only loans to Nepal.

The multilateral donor has said that it will only provide loans citing Nepal’s enhanced debt repayment capacity. The country’s outstanding external debt is 17 percent of its Gross Domestic Product.

During a meeting with a delegation of the board of directors of the ADB on Monday, Mahat asked them to be soft on Nepal considering that it was still in transition, the Finance Ministry said in a press release.

A seven-member team of the ADB’s board of directors is on a six-day visit to Nepal. The visit has been considered to be important as the board of directors approves aid requests and inspects financial statements.

This is the first time in five and a half years that a delegation of the ADB’s board of directors is visiting Nepal. The delegation will take account of Nepal’s situation and the impact of ADB-funded projects, according to the ADB.

On Monday, the team met with Finance Minister Mahat, vice-chairman of the National Planning Commission, chief secretary, finance secretary and other senior government officials, said the ADB in a press release.

During the meeting, they discussed ways to achieve and sustain higher economic growth and job creation with effective use of external assistance, and to achieve the longer term goal of poverty reduction.

“Discussions also focused on building stronger capacities to enhance project implementation performance, governance systems and an enabling environment to support private sector investments in Nepal,” stated the ADB.

Source: The Kathmandu Post