Nepal Investment Year 2012-13
KATHMANDU, MAY 07 -
With the start of the Nepal Investment Year (NIY) 2012-13 just two and half months away, preparation for such an ambitious event is yet to gain momentum.
The government did form four sub-committees for NIY and two secretariats — one at the Ministry of Industry (MoI) and the other at the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) — but both are idle.
Even five months after the announcement of the event, the government has not been able to identify the 50 projects to be presented to prospective investors.
The Investment Board (IB), which will have a key role in making the event a success, neither has a full-fledged office nor adequate human resources. The board drafted its regulation a month ago as a prerequisite to implement the Investment Board Act, but the government is yet to endorse it.
Because of the delay in regulation endorsement, the board has not been able to hire human resources. “The government’s failure to approve the Investment Board Regulation has started to show its ill effects,” said a private sector representative at the board. “The board cannot recruit staffers and expand its areas of operations without the approval of the regulations.”
Sources at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said as the Prime Minister is busy with political tasks, he hasn’t been able to chair the board’s meeting. “Once the board meeting is held, the regulation will be approved,” said IB Chief Executive Officer Radesh Pant.
Six investors from India, China, the US, the UK, France and Germany have approached the board with investment proposals of Rs 3.5 billion, according to Pant. “However, we are not in a position to initiate talks with them as we have no regulation,” he said.
While foreign investors’ interests in Nepal after NIY announcement have increased, the board is struggling to identify 50 viable projects for the investors. “FNCCI had planned to identify the 50 projects and promote them in the international market, but the government didn’t allow us to continue with it,” said Hemanta Dawadi, director general at FNCCI.
Lack of the budget is also one of the major reasons behind the delay in the identification of the projects, according to PMO Secretary Lila Mani Poudel. “IB can come up with projects after the next year’s budget allocates funds for the job,” said Poudel.
Much more is needed to be done on the policy front too. The board has formed a sub-committee headed by National Planning Commission Vice Chairman Deependra Bahadur Kshetri to revise industrial acts. But Kshetri says no work has been done so far as the MoI is also doing the same job.
The MoI is working on the amendment of several acts, including the Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Act, Industrial Enterprises Act, Company Act and Labour Act, Intellectual Property Act and Special Economic Zone (SEZ) Act.
According to Yam Kumari Khatiwada, joint secretary at MoI, the ministry has just begun drafting the Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Policy, while it is all set to submit the Industrial Enterprises Act to the Cabinet for final approval. “We are collecting inputs from stakeholders for other acts including the Company Act, Nepal Standards Act and Accreditation Board Act” said Khatiwada.
Source: Kantipur
