Reviving Nepal's economy: The Role of Private Sector

Nepal is rebuilding after the devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake and multiple aftershocks.
This week on June 2nd a conference was held at the Hotel Annapurna in Kathmandu to discuss next steps. Samriddhi - The Prosperity Foundation, organized Econ-ity... "Reviving Nepal's economy: The Role of Private Sector". The program was focused on the role of private sector in Nation Building after the earthquake.

The session was moderated by Professor Dr. Bishwambher Pyakuryal, Senior Economist. He talked about the constraints to Nepalese economic growth, and the role of the private sector in dealing with those issues. Further, he added that the loss estimates made by different parties thus far are not necessarily accurate, and therefore we need to be careful while devising monetary and fiscal policies to deal with the effects of the earthquake.
Other Panelists in the session were:
1. Anil Khesari Shah VP, Nepal Bankers' Association. Mr Shah talked about the contribution of private sector during and after the disaster. Government as well as private sector must coordinate and stand together to move ahead. He discussed about the central bank loan issue and how 2% won't be sustainable, and on building permitting for houses over 2 stories.
2. Hari Bhakta Sharma, VP Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI). Mr Sharma talked about how the Government should develop and announce their working public-private partnerships for reconstruction - perhaps 10 groups. The government alone cannot solve the reconstruction issues alone and must move with private sector. He also added that government should increase the cash flow in the economy, increase liquidity in the market by buying bonds (instead of selling them) and increase consumption.
3. Dr. Hemanta Dabadi, Samriddhi Foundation. Dr. Dabadi told about the assets loss and production loss. He added that this is not the best time for Nepal to build small houses; that the focus should be on building secure housing. He also said that insurance companies must increase the penetration in the market.
4. Kamlesh Kumar Agrawal, General Secretary, Nepal Chamber of Commerce NCC. Mr Agrawal discussed how the earthquake has caused damage to 50% of the GDP of the country, and the GDP growth will likely be reduced to 3-3.5% from the expected 5.5%. Mr. Agrawal then talked about the role of free trade in improving the trade deficit position. He talked about the need to promote exports.
5. Pashupati Murarka, Officiating President, FNCCI. Mr Murarka discussed the losses in the private sector after earthquake. The private sector financial loss has been at least Rs. 100 billion (approximately US$1 billion). Next he talked about financing the reconstruction phase. Finally he added that the banking, insurance, and entire private sector needs to coordinate their efforts with that of the government and the government needs to allow the private sector to make their contribution.

                                             
Saujan Gyawali is currently First Year Site License Program in +The New York Times and also a student of business administration who loves writing on economic and business issues along with development stories.

Blatter to resign. What now for the Nepali worker in Qatar and where does FIFA go from here?

The resignation news came days after Sepp Blatter won the presidential election for FIFA. FIFA was already in the news last week for several of its members being charged for corruption when the election for the FIFA president was taking place. However, the elections still took place where Mr. Blatter was victorious and was thought to be in charge for the fifth term. The recent resignation, which comes only days after he won the election, creates a suspicion among football fans and those who have been following the recent FIFA's scandle. He said:

Sepp Blatter walks out of the press conference after he delivers his resignation speech.

"I felt compelled to stand for re-election, as I believed that this was the best thing for the organisation. That election is over but FIFA’s challenges are not."

"While I have a mandate from the membership of FIFA, I do not feel that I have a mandate from the entire world of football – the fans, the players, the clubs, the people who live, breathe and love football as much as we all do at FIFA. Therefore, I have decided to lay down my mandate at an extraordinary elective Congress. I will continue to exercise my functions as FIFA President until that election. "

This might explain why he chose to stand in the election in the first place but still cast some doubts among others why the resignation right after the elections.

Along with this resignation, there are some doubts on the world cup that's going to take place in Russia and Qatar. Especially for the Nepalese who have been working under harsh conditions in Qatar, could this be their way out? With the news that the workers aren't being treated properly and some weren't allowed to return home with the recent events of deadly earthquake in Nepal, the new president might have a different perspective of the workers in Qatar. This might be an opportunity to get the attention of the officials about the problems these workers are facing and ways to stop it as soon as possible,

Hopefully the change in regime might help salvage something for the Nepalese workers who already have suffered so much. With the corruption scandal in FIFA being taken seriously, the attention could then be diverted to the thousands of workers in Qatar working under harsh conditions and being treated unfairly. Ultimately, justice might be served.

Click Here to view Sepp Blatter's resignation speech in text form.

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+Bijesh Bajracharya is currently a student at +Minneapolis Community and Technical College.

Revival from the devistation

25/4/2015 - The black day in the the history of Nepal. A 7.8 Richter Scale magnitude earthquake strikes Nepal causing above 8000 casualties and destroying homes, villages, and shattering the hopes of communities. Weaker buildings were falling apart as delicate minds and hearts of people were left numb when news flew across like a wind making you unmovable. The devastation was too hard to handle as the so called "View tower" also know as "Dharhara" was no more standing on its base and destruction of temples at Basantapur Durbar Square and other UNESCO world heritage sites was too hard to handle. In this chaotic situation, what was seen after the quake was unimaginable.

People who survived the first quake were actually helping others trapped. Though it looks a natural behavior of human to help those in need, the help didn't stop there.  A month onward,  help is still there and they are eager than before to get as much help as possible to the affected areas. The unity is what is being seen among the people. In this hard moments, Nepal Police, Armed Police Force, and Nepal Army have played a crucial role in the rescue and recovery process. They have been working day and night to save the lives of those trapped under the rubble. International help has also been vital in these dark days for the homeless and those affected. Where some have criticized the response by the government, Nepalese are using their own sources and means to get the relief supplies in the rural areas  as much as they can.

The lesson to be learnt, no matter how big the earthquake that shattered the normal lives of the Nepalese, we are resolute in defending our home and we will work together to build what we have lost. Forgetting which race we come from, which political party we support, we have to work together as one from now on to rebuild Nepal and that's one of the option to move forward.

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+Bijesh Bajracharya is currently a student at +Minneapolis Community and Technical College.