BRIEFS (Spotlight Weekly)

Indian Ambassador I.P. Singh and US Ambassador Michael E. Malinowaski presenting their credentials to His Majesty the King

AMBASSADOR-DESIGNATE of the Republic of India Dr. Indu Prakash Singh and Ambassador-designate of the United States of America Michael E. Malinowski presented their credentials to King Gyanendra amid separate functions at the Narayanhiti Royal Palace Wednesday. Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and other senior officials were present on the occasion. King Gyanendra also granted audience to Bangladeshi Ambassador Cyril Sikder at the Royal Palace Wednesday. Mr. Sikder is returning home after completing his tenure. Meanwhile, Russian Ambassador Valery Nazarov and British Ambassador Ronald P. Nash called on Home Minister Khum Bahadur Khadka separately at his office Wednesday. They discussed matters related to bilateral relations.

UNDER PRESSURE FROM the ruling and opposition parties to clean up the mess in the administration during the emergency, Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has asked Attorney-General Badri Bahadur Karki to draft two ordinances to empower the Commission for Investigation on Abuse of Authority (CIAA) and to control corruption. Kantipur daily reported that both ordinances are likely to be promulgated within the next two weeks. Two separate bills on the issue are pending in parliament due to lack of consensus among political parties. The anti-corruption ordinance also proposes to set up a National Vigilance Center under the direct supervision of the prime minister.

THE WORLD BANK HAS approved a US$ 22.56 million loan to Nepal to finance the telecommunication sector reform project. According to the bank, the project will support the implementation of the government's sector reform agenda that includes the permission of private sector to provide all forms of value-added services and enacting the Telecommunication Act aimed at creating a level playing field for all operators and increasing competition in the sector. The project supports the licensing of a private rural operator through a market mechanism to provide telecommunication service in 534 VDCs in the eastern region, accounting for roughly 25 percent of rural areas of the country without access to telephone services.

THE GROWTH OF GROSS Domestic Product (GDP) in fiscal year 2001-02 is likely to tumble to 2.5 percent, from nearly 5 percent last year. According to preliminary estimates made by the Central Bureau of Statistics, the sharp decline in the GDP is mainly due to sluggish growth of the agriculture sector, estimated at 2.1 percent. Similarly, the non-agriculture sector is expected to grow by 2.76 percent this year as against the robust growth rate of 5.6 percent last year. Per capita income of Nepalis will grow just by 0.5 percent to Rs. 19,000 (approximately US$ 250).

THE GOVERNMENT OF Finland is to provide a grant assistance of nearly Rs. 67 million to Nepal for the production of a database of digital maps and of "ortho-photos" in relation to the census 2001 mapping project for housing and population. An agreement to this effect was signed and exchanged between Finance Ministry and Finnish Embassy officials at the Finance Ministry on Thursday. The mapping component will contribute to strengthening digital map production capability as well as digital mapping capacity and lay the foundation for the establishment of multipurpose digital database in Nepal, officials said.

SECURITY PERSONNEL in the eastern hilly district of Panchthar have barred newspapers published from different parts of the country from reaching the district, Nepal Samacharpatra daily reported Sunday. Leading newspapers published from Kathmandu, Blast Times daily published from Dharan and other newspapers published from Jhapa have not been allowed to reach Phidim, the district headquarters, by the security personnel.

TWO CHEETAH HELICOPTERS donated by the Indian government to Nepal landed at the Tribhuvan International Airport Tuesday, Kantipur daily reported last Tuesday. The choppers, manufactured in Bangalore under license from a French company, were being used by the Indian army. The helicopters are likely to be used in the ongoing army operation against the Maoist insurgents.

A UGANDAN OFFICIAL has said Nepal should prioritize its problems in fighting poverty. Dr. Emmanuel Tumusiime, governor of the Bank of Uganda, said no country should live beyond its means. In a high-level interaction with Nepali officials Monday, Dr. Tumusiime described how privatization and foreign aid had helped Uganda in bringing down the poverty level from 56 percent to 35 percent over the last decade. Like Nepal, 80 percent of Ugandans live on agriculture though the country has a per capita income of around US$ 1,000, four times greater than that of Nepal.

The Green Nepal Party has expressed deep distress at the terrorist attack on Indian Parliament and the loss of lives in the attack. Kuber Sharma of the GNP in a letter to the Indian Prime Minister has said that he values India's friendship and conveys his support in the fight against terrorism.