National 4 (Spotlight Weekly)

‘We Need To Promote IT To Alleviate Poverty’

— BHAKTA BAHADUR BALAYAR

Minister of State for Science and Technology BHAKTA BAHADUR BALAYAR is known as a frank and dedicated politician. Whatever ministry Balayar finds himself leading, he works with dedication and commitment. A few years back when he was minister of state of population and environment, Balayar persuaded then-prime minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai to remove smoke-belching Vikram tempos and introduce vehicle emission standards. During his current stint at the Ministry of Science and Technology, Balayar has taken major steps toward harnessing science to improve the economy. At a time when his colleagues are talking about the upsurge of violence, Balayar is quietly searching for ways to employee youths in the information technology sector. Balayar spoke to SPOTLIGHT about his plans. Excerpts:

You have introduced a program to provide jobs to a large number of youths. What is the status of the program?

Poverty is one of the major problems of the country. Because of rising unemployment and declining agricultural production, the level of poverty continues to go up. So I am focusing on providing employment opportunity for the youths. We recently called applications for computer training. Since we need human resources for economic development, we cannot develop without youths' participation.

How serious is the problem of youth unemployment?

Even for limited vacancies, we find a lot of applicants. When our ministry recently sought applications for training for few hundred youths, we received 50,000 entries. We have selected only 11,000. This is an age of science and technology so we have to promote Information Technology (IT) and Information Communication Technology (ICT).

How do you see the role of IT in alleviating poverty?

We need to promote IT to alleviate poverty. We are moving ahead with the slogan of ICT for poverty alleviation. The United Nations Development Program is supporting us in the ICT program. Unless we can provide employment opportunities for youths, we cannot make lasting change. We cannot expect a better future by training youths in the traditional manner.

How compatible is the present education system with modern IT?

The present traditional education pattern neither offers employment opportunities to youths nor instills self-confidence and respect. There are conflicts in families when son and daughters completing higher education fail to find employment. On one hand, we have a large number of unemployed people with higher qualifications. On the other, there are many investors who are complaining that Nepal does not have manpower.

Will IT benefit others, too?

Because of lack of skills, many Nepalese working abroad are compelled to do menial work. After realizing the need to upgrade the quality and efficiency of youths, we have implemented a human resource development program. Our aim is to develop manpower in accordance with the demand of the market and investors. IT is playing a vital role in the all-round development of the country. Right now, it is very difficult to visit the cities. So we are trying to provide employment and all other information to the villages through the ICT program.

What plan do you have to expand IT in rural areas?

We are establishing community information centers in 15 Village Development Committees (VDCs) with certain information facilities through computers and the information will be supplied to other parts of the country. The program includes disaster and environmental management, agriculture and distance learning, and economic growth management. With the support from the UNDP, ICT for poverty alleviation will be expanded in 1500 VDCs. One of the aims of the program is to show that science is for the poor as well. After the introduction of the program, many youths will be employed. Nepal has certain topographical advantages and we can produce varieties of off-season vegetables and other agriculture products.

Do you believe technology will bring lasting changes in rural society?

If we provide information to the rural farmers about the demand and supply of the agriculture products, it will help them a lot. This program will focus on agriculture. At a time when a country like Israel, which does not have water and fertile land, can raise productivity three time higher than Nepal's, why cannot we do so. Productivity in Israel is eight metric tons per hectare, while ours is a mere two metric tons. Despite the fertile soil and availability of water resources, why is our productivity so low. If we increase productivity, our whole system will benefit. We have many potentials in the agriculture sector. For example, we have already done tissue culture of 22 varieties of bananas. Despite this, we are net importers of banana. If we teach the importance of production, we will bring change.

What are the steps taken by the government to upgrade the level of IT?

The Indian government has agreed to build an IT institute and a party is building an Information Park at Banepa. These centers will offer various kinds of services in the areas of medicine, agriculture, weather and other areas. We can improve the quality of education through the use of IT. We are also including disaster management and environmental protection in IT. We are upgrading our information delivery system through optical fiber and VSAT.

How can you implement the program when violence is disrupting rural life?

There is nothing impossible. In Israel, I have seen children born with the sound of bullet but nothing has hindered their progress. If we introduce some productive programs in the villages, people will automatically support the move. We must introduce economic packages and provide employment opportunities side by side to wipe out terrorism. At a time when tourism and other industries are hurt by terrorism, IT will be the only best option to bring change, as IT business can be linked through satellite. We have been talking about expanding the scope of medical transcription.

What advantages does Nepal have in the IT sector?

Nepal is in a very advantageous position, since we are between India and China. China is famous for hardware and India is for software. Nepal has comparative geographical advantages. If there is growing demand from Japan, we can easily employee 500 Nepalese in Kathmandu to do their job. If the government takes a small step, it will change. We are now building the IT Park in Banepa. After its completion, we will be in a position to produce software in the low cost for the international market. Nepalese labor market is much cheaper than other countries of the world. So we are very competitive. We are unable to tap the market. In other countries, science is used to alleviate poverty, but it is ignored in Nepal. The government must try to understand the present context. Once you provide training, the people will automatically search the market and develop the software. If we provide the atmosphere and training, investors will come. I am determined to do something for the IT and biotech sectors.

What kind of political support are you getting?

The prime minister has been supporting me and other parties are also favorable to my program. Although Nepal is landlocked, its space is still open. So, there is no hindrance to develop the IT sector.

Have you seen any prospective investors?

I have seen many investors who want to invest in Nepal. Even our friendly countries are supporting us. I am requesting other countries not to give foreign aid but open markets for IT. Once we secure the technology, we can bring change. We need technology and skills to provide employment opportunities. This is a country with an immense reserve of herbal and other plants. If we provide skills and technology to the people, they will protect them and sell it to the market. People are making money in my constituency in Doti district selling local products. We have very valuable herbs and plants used for medicines. We must provide the new technology to the rural people.

How many young people will get jobs?

If I remain in the ministry for another year, I will bring substantial change and bring many investors. I have signed many MoU with friendly countries. Nepal is lucky to have things like Chiraita and Yarsa Gumba. The problem is to identify our potentials. We have many herbs that can bring prosperity to the country. We are now in the process of establishing a laboratory at the Royal Nepal Academy of Science and Technology. The government is planning to establish various sites. We are considering bringing an ordinance for the biotech and cyberspace. We can lure many investors. There is a big market in the biotech sector. Our water and land are still pure.

How much effort have you made to tap the IT market?

Private entrepreneurs are now tapping the international IT market on their own. We have many research agencies for biotech but they don't have coordination. In the IT training sector, I am very much concerned about the quality of education. There are incidents of fake certificate and other matters. There are many institutes with limited equipment. I am very much concerned about the need for quality training. I am offering training in different parts of the country including Jumla, Humla and other areas.

How do you see the quality of mushrooming IT institutions?

There are still many unclear things regarding to the level of education. What type of student is admitted at the IT college? Should science be made compulsory or just other subjects? There is still confusion in the curriculum. There are many IT colleges where the instructors are unqualified. We have set up a committee to improve the quality.

How do you see the use of computers in government offices?

Frankly speaking, the computers have just replaced the typewriters in many government offices. Computers are used to type materials and play games. We are trying to link the Prime Minister's Office with other ministries.

What advantages can Nepal get from the recent agreement signed with India?

Nepal will receive immense benefits in the areas of science and technology, agriculture and meteorology from the agreements signed with India. This is a major achievement for us. Under this agreement, India will support Nepal in the areas of IT and also provide some scholarship. Till now Nepal is using VSAT of Japan to predict weather in Nepal but the new agreement provide us opportunity to use INSAT which is more reliable and beamed to Nepal than VSAT. I think our farmers will receive more accurate forecasting after the use of VSAT. It will also help to improve agriculture information system in Nepal. Until the farmers get proper information regarding the weather, they would be in no position to increase production. India will soon provide support for us to build necessary things to go VSAT. This paves the way for sharing scientific knowledge with India. Nepal will receive support from India in 15 different areas. The question now is how soon we agree to implement them.