Concerns raised over garment industry’s future

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KATHMANDU, March 23 - Garment Association - Nepal (GAN) has made an urgent appeal with the government to initiate high level efforts to secure quota and customs facilities granted to Least Developed Countries (LDCs). The latest concern to safeguard the country’s largest exportable industry follows the recent enforcement of African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).

The AGOA, signed between United States and the Sub-Saharan African countries last November, allows duty free access to African garments into American markets. As a result of the enforcement of the agreement, African garments have become cheaper by 35 per cent, all at the unease of Nepali garment entrepreneurs.

The African agreement, in addition to causing a remarkable slump in the garment exports towards US market in recent months, has also prompted US importers to demand undue discounts on the payment of goods that have already been exported. And the fear of a possible divergence of US garment importers towards the African products seems coming true with potential garment importers starting to cancel further orders.

Issuing a press release here today, GAN has pointed out upon the need to take urgent steps by the government to enhance the plunging competitiveness of domestic garment products in the international market.

Among others, the association has also urged the government for quick initiation of the operation of the Birgunj Inter-Continental Depot, whose construction works were completed recently. The dry port with railway linkage with the Calcutta and Haldia ports is expected to bring down the costs of transportation in import/export by 35-40 per cent.

Similarly, in order to minimize the cost of production and to maximize employment opportunities, the association has urged to speed up the operation of Export Processing Zone (EPZ) and to transfer the garment industries into EPZ.

The association, in the press release, has also demanded that the garment industries should be exempted from current 10 per cent income tax levied on 50 per cent of the total income.

In addition, demanding that the interest rates on loans extended to the garment industries should be less than seven per cent, GAN has also urged for a slash in the present rate of export and visa fees, which the association believes would be helpful to enhance the competitiveness of Nepali products.

The association, in the press release, has drawn urgent attention of the concerned authorities to sort out the various complications that the garment industries are experiencing due to the new budgetary provision of bank guarantees while importing necessary raw materials for export purposes.

Finally, the association has expressed deep dissatisfaction over the continued failures of the government to implement the assurances given by the government during the presentation of the budgets in the past years.

‘Effective regulations key to narrow digital divide’

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KATHMANDU, March 23 - In a report release recently by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), effective interconnection regulations is the key to Digital Divide.

According to a press release received here today, the regulation is vital to ensure the twin goals of maximizing the productivity and efficiency of rapidly growing networks and of extending those networks to those who cannot now enjoy them.

An effective interconnection framework is the foundation to developing a competitive marketplace which is seen as a means to provide market incentives for rapid and efficient telecommunication infrastructure development, says the release.

The 240-page report, entitled "Trends in Telecommunication Reform 2000-2001: Interconnection Regulation," explains why effective interconnection regulation is so vital to today’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) market, which includes fixed line, mobile, satellite, cable television and Internet and IP-based networks, states the release.

The ultimate beneficiaries of well-designed interconnection policies are customers. "Each time a new access line is added to the ICT network, it expands the range of destinations with which callers can communicate," the release quotes Hamadoun I Toure, Director of ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau.

Effective interconnection frameworks also provide benefits to a host of other key actors. Network operators benefit from increased demand. Workers benefit from increased employment. Economies expand, and the government benefit from increase tax revenue. Societies overall benefit from new application for health, education and democratic outreach, the release concludes.

Slaughter House Act to be enforced

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LALITPUR, March 23 - The government is going to introduce Slaughter House Act from the coming fiscal year, with an objective of regulating the unhealthy practice of slaughtering animals and selling meat and meat products.

Nil Prasad Karki, Director General of Department of Animal Service said today that the government has prepared the Act and is going to enforce it from the next fiscal year.

"In order to regulate the unrestricted slaughtering and sale of meat and meat products, the government is going to execute the Act. At the beginning, it will be implemented in the capital city and introduced to other major cities and municipalities in a phase-wise manner", said Karki.

With the implementation of the Act the slaughtering and sale of meat and meat products will be organized, which, to a greater extent, will reduce the diseases which spread from contaminated meat products and this will help clear the confusion regarding the quality of meat and meat products, he said.

He said this while speaking at an interaction program among the poultry entrepreneurs and journalists on "Importance and Role of Media in Poultry" organized by Poultry Forum Monthly, here today.

However, poultry entrepreneurs and the concerned government officials have said that poultry business has suffered a lot due mainly to a lack of correct flow of information and unclear policy of the government.

Dr Mahendra N Lohani, Advisor to Nepal Feed Industry Association and Nepal Hatchery Association, said that uncontrolled inflow of unhealthy chicks and contaminated eggs especially from India has badly affected the poultry farming in Nepal.

Similarly, the imposition of Agriculture Service Tax and value added tax (VAT) on the import of raw materials from abroad has pushed up the production cost of eggs and meat, which has weakened the competitiveness of the domestic poultry firms, he said.

Instability in the market price of the poultry products and misleading news reports are other major problems of the sector, he said.

T P Sharma, Chief Editor of the Poultry Forum Monthly stressed that the regulatory bodies should not make decisions like banning meat products following an outbreak of an unknown disease in Siliguri, India in an ad hoc manner. The disease has nothing to do with meat and meat products.

Similarly, the media should pay check the facts before writing news with the concerned authority, unless it wreaks havoc on the poultry farming. "Once, a rumour is spread, you cannot wait to clear the confusion to sell poultry products. By the time thing get clear, the entrepreneurs already incur huge losses," he said.

However, Dr Lohani said that Nepal is self-sufficient in poultry products. In 2000, a total of 35,000 tons of meat and 527 million eggs were produced and the annual growth rate of meat and eggs is 18 and 10 per cent respectively.

Likewise, the country is self-sufficient in livestock and poultry feed. The Nepalese feed and hatchery industries produced 260,000 tons of livestock and poultry feed and 20.2 million broiler chickens and 2.3 million layer chickens last year. And the products meet the quality of such products of our neighbouring countries, he added.

Interaction and reception held

KATHMANDU, March 23 (PR)-Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) organized an interaction and hosted a reception to honour State Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supply, Krishna Prasad Situala, on Thursday.

Welcoming the State Minister, President of NCC, Rajesh Kaji Shrestha apprised the various activities conducted by NCC and highlighted the increasing role of private sectors especially after government opted the liberal economic policies.

Emphasizing the development of industrial and trading sector for economic development of the country, Shrestha urged the government to amend some rules and regulations hindering the growth of the private sector.

He further demanded to strengthen the security situation of the country as well as to discourage strike and lockouts in the industrial sector.

NCC seeks to raise the voice of the trading and industrial sector, Shrestha added. "Capital mobilization and expansion are the key elements of economic development," he said.

On the occasion, State Minister Situala assured the business community to solve the existing problems of the sector adding the government is ready to initiate dialogue so as to find ways to promote trade and enterprenuership in the country.

Highlighting the need for competitiveness after becoming the member of the WTO, Situala urged the private sectors to be prepared for it.

CCIA team meets state minister

KATHMANDU, March 23 (PR)-A delegation of Central Carpet Industries Association (CCIA) headed by President A J Shrerpa met State Minister of Industry, Commerce and Supply Thursday, says a CCIA press release issued here.

The delegation mainly apprised the existing problems of carpet industry.

The delegation demanded to review the present minimum export price so as to make them timely and to establish a ‘woolen carpet research and development institute’.

Carpet entrepreneurs has also demanded to declare carpet industry as priority sector; establish a separate "carpet promotion"; to make measure to compulsory usage of Nepali carpets in the governmental and semi-governmental institutions, among others.

Addressing the members of the delegation, Minister Sitaula assured businessmen of solving the problems and pointed out the need to apprise the existing problems to the government regularly.