Public healthcare worsens despite efforts

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KATHMANDU, August 19 - Despite the promise "Health for All by the Year 2000," as endorsed by the 1978 Alama-Ata conference called by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, the healthcare situation in the third world continues to deteriorate further, health experts said here today.

The efforts made by the WHO to improve public health through the Ministry of Health over the last fifty years have fallen far short of the expectations and a gap between the health of the rich and the poor continues to widen further, prominent health experts said.

The health officials also accused the government of failing to commit on its promise at Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan where it said it will provide "Health for All by the Year 2000" with special emphasis on primary health care.

"Health service has now become a priceable commodity," said Professor Dr Mathura Prasad Shrestha. The philosophical direction "Health by the people and for the people" given at the Jakarta Conference in 1997 has been violated by the government. The contribution of the donor and the HMG has fallen far short of the expectations, he added.

The poorer countries of South Asia clamouring against the double standard policy of the western pharmaceutical companies producing cheap drugs at home using the resources of the poor to fight AIDS and other costly diseases have come out with a comprehensive strategy to fight back. One of them is the People’s Health Charter founded in Bangladesh in December 2000 and endorsed by over 70 representatives from different countries.

Presenting his papers on "TRIPS agreement: Coming to grips with Access to health Issue," Ratnakar Adhikari, General Secretary of South Asia Watch on Trade, Economics and Environment (SAWTEE), said that the multinational companies show little consideration for other countries’ needs. "Profiteering even on "death-bed" is the objective of the Trans-National Corporation (TNCs) and the Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement is an outcome of such a motive," he added.

The People’s Charter of Health seeks to protect the health of the poor wherever the international treaty or agreement fails to address their need.

The charter as a common tool of world-wide citizen’s movement is committed to make the dream of Alma-Ata promise a reality. The Charter calls on radical transformation of the WTO and prioritize health as a top issue of development concern and address environment related issues and commercialization of health sectors.

"Health should be the center of development agenda," said Dr Qasem Chowdhary, Coordinator, People’s Health Assembly (PHA), Bangladesh.

The big pharmaceuticals companies have found WTO and TRIPS an opportunity to promote the export of their cheap drugs and avoid imports from other countries thereby flagrantly failing to address the social concerns, the environment, labour and the Third World Poverty, health officials said.

The TRIPS hammered out by technocrats and Multi-National Companies (MNCs) at the Uruguay round of GATT and subsequently in the WTO would affect the millions of people in South Asia, should a mechanism be not developed to check before the TRIPS agreements will be forced to them in 2006.

"PHA has been formed to protect the health of the poor in the region and fight any treaty contradicting the interest of the poor but it needs national governments’ support," added Chowdhary.

The PHA has been holding National Consultative Meeting in the respective countries including Nepal to come out with a national health policy in the wake of global health crisis, said health officials.

The National Consultative Meeting on people’s health held today in the Capital is expected to press the policy makers to include health services under the status of a fundamental human right and adopt equitable, participatory and inter-sectoral approach to health.

Setting ablaze of Shah distillery flayed

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KATHMANDU, Aug 19 - Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) has expressed its concern over setting fire on Shah Distillery at Khajura, Banke district.

Issuing a press release here today, FNCCI has condemned the action saying that it has disrupted the industrial peace and created terror among industrialists at a time when the government and the Maoist party are holding talks to restore peace and order in the country.

We strongly condemn such terrorist activities and request the government to completely stop such things and to provide protection to the industrial sector so that the national economy would not deteriorate further, states the release.

Similarly, Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) issuing a press release today has expressed concern over setting Shah Distillery in Nepalgunj ablaze.

At a time when the government and the Maoist party are holding talks in an amiable way, such terrorist activities would create disturbance and uncertainty. NCC condemns such activity. The national economy is weakening, foreign investments are being withdrawn and local investors are afraid to invest. Repetition of vandalizing of property and arsening would further discourage and frighten the industrialists. Therefore, Chamber requests all the concerned not to let such activity take place again, says the release.

Economy, finance and market

By Supa Upadhyay

Domestic money market:

This week, the participants failed to bid 91-day government Treasury Bills at cut-off price offered by NRB and all the offered TBs was purchased by secondary market at 4.5443 percent. Although, the Average Weighted Discount Rate (AWDR) of 91-day Treasury Bills (TBs) was lowering against past few months but it seems the government is not willing to pay more than 4.5 percent. In fact, the banking system is highly liquid and the Commercial banks are offering less than 4.5 percent in their 3-month deposit then government should also take advantage of prevailing low interest rates, thus reducing the pressure of servicing the public debt. In the regular weekly auction, the NRB is going to issue 91 day TBs worth NPR 1260 million on August 21, 2001.

Domestic capital market:

Last week, some commmercial banks published their high performance for the Fiscal Year 2057/58. Accoding to their unaudited published Balance Sheet, Nepal Bangladesh Bank, Himalayan Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and Nabil Bank have registered a growth in their operating profit by 51.2 percent, 35.8 percent, 17.4 percent and 11.04 percent respectively. Despite, some regular investors are taking their position accumulating blue chip shares at lower rate. As a result, the share market witnessed a further discouraging last week. The NEPSE Index-100 opened lower at 316.39 dipped further in all consecutive trading days and eventually closed lower at 312.86, netting a sharp loss of 6.63 points. This week, trading was estimated at 38758 shared valued NPR17.7 million compard to 40707 shares valued NPR 18.9 million of previous week. Commercial Bank and Finance Companies shared 70.89 percents and 19.93 percent respectively of total traded amount. The Index of Hotel Sectors was improved while Commerical Bank, Finance/Insurance Sector, Business Sector and Other Sector was lost. Production Sector remained unchanged at their previous prices. This week, brokers had quoted the prices of 53 companies on the trading board but only 42 companies were traded. Out of forty-two traded companies ten companies improved, nineteen companies lost and thirteen traded companies reamained unchanged at their previous prices. Bank of Kathmandu, Nepal Merchant Bank & Finance, and Nepal Bank Ltd registered the first, the second and the ghird most traded companies trading 4209, 3810 and 2559 shares respectively. Share of Nepal Bank Ltd. Nabil Bank, Nepal Indosuez Bank, Everest Bank, NIC Bank, Bank of Kathmandu, Lumbini Finance, Standard Chartered Bank and Nepal Merchant Bank & Finance were able to trade in all five working days. Likewise, Nepal SBI Bank, Sagarmatha Insurance, People Finance, Universal Finance, Himalayan Bank, Siddhartha Finance, Necon Air, Everest Insurance, Nepal B'desh Bank, Taragaon Regency Hotel, and HISEF were able to trade in four working days.

Forex round-up:

The dollar ended weaker against all major trading partners over the week. The market was now awaiting U.S. trade data for June and the University of Michigan statement survey for August later on Friday to offer fresh direction for the dollar.

The pound was little changed against the dollar in thin markets with little fresh domestic news to give the courrency impetus. Dealers said sterling was still deriving support from figures published on Thursday which showed retail sales surged 0.6 percent in July, suggesting British consumer demand still remained strong. They further said that with little scheduled on the domestic calendar, the euro's movements against the dollar should prove to be the biggest driver for sterling.

The JPY strengthened against the dollar over the week despite Japanese officials warned possible intervention to cap strength in the Japanese currency. The INR and the NPR remained unchanged against the dollar over the week.

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