In the past few weeks as Nepal faces trying times with falling growth and high inflation, Kathmandu has witnessed numerous seminars, conferences and workshops with the discourse revolving around the economy and investments. The consensus that Nepal needs foreign direct investments (FDI) to grow was once again repeated, and the familiar litany of reasons about why it has not been able to. Policy advocates and regulators have understood that the lack of urgency is compounded by procedural inconsistencies and added to the already deficient investment environment in the country.

In March, the World Bank approved a $150 million ‘Finance for Growth’ credit line to strengthen Nepal’s financial sector for green, resilient, and inclusive development. However, critics say lack of money has never been the issue for the country to make a transition to renewable energy, it is the dearth of political will. The Finance for Growth loan package kicks off a new climate agenda for Nepal by promoting climate finance resilience policies in banking, insurance, and capital markets, which lay the groundwork for the adoption of green loan incentives and new insurance and capital market products that are tailored […]

Southern Voice is a network of 50+ think tanks from Africa, Asia and Latin America. Since its inception in 2012, it has served as an open platform. It provides structured inputs from the Global South into the debates on the 2030 Agenda, and the SDGs, with a view to addressing the ‘knowledge asymmetry’ and ‘participation deficit’ that usually afflict such global discussions.   Download Article PDF

Foreign equity investments in Nepal have been both in green field investing and brown. A green-field investment is where a parent company creates its subsidiary from the ground in a different country, whereas a brownfield investing is where an entity purchases existing facilities to begin new production in another country. Joint venture investments in banks would be an example of green-field investing and investments in hotels, hydropower, cement etc. would be examples of brown-field investing. In the past decade, the concept of Private Equity (PE) investing in Nepal would be considered a bit of both as it includes many approaches […]

November has been scintillating with COP26 deliberations in Glasgow and around the world in various side lines discussing, once again, how to arrest global warming. This time, with net zero pledges. Nepal has been a willing and obedient participant in these conferences through the years and has repeatedly endorsed all actions and commitments. As one of the most vulnerable nations affected by global warming, Nepal has clearly impressed the need for financial support to address this. It now needs to plan to implement climate smart measures and provide the “how” to the “why” billions of dollars are required. The most […]

काठमाडौं (अस) । सरोकारवालाहरूले नेपालमा ग्रीन एसएमई फाइनान्सिङको क्षेत्रमा उच्च सम्भावना भएको बताएका छन् । नेपाल इकोनोमीक फोरमले मंगलवार आयोजना गरेको ‘ग्रीन एसएमई फाइनान्सिङ इन नेपाल’ विषयक छलफल कार्यक्रमा सरोकारवालाहरूले यस्तो बताएका हुन् । नेपालमा ग्रीन एसएमई वित्तीय विकासका लागि क्षमता तथा यससम्बन्धी नीति निर्माणमा पनि काम गर्नुपर्ने उनीहरूको भनाइ छ । यसका लागि सरकारले नियमावली बनाउनु प्रशंसायोग्य रहेको उनीहरूले बताए । तर, उक्त नियमावलली कार्यान्वयन गर्न असफल भएको बिजनेश अक्सिजन प्राइभेट लिमिटेडका अध्यक्ष तथा प्रमुख कार्यकारी अधिकृत सिद्धान्त राज पाण्डे बताए । यस्ता नीतिहरू कार्यान्वयन गर्न सरकारले सबैसँग सहकार्य गर्नुपर्ने उनको भनाइ छ । ग्रीन फाइनान्सको लक्ष्य कार्बन उत्सर्जन […]

Further reforms can help the market grow and attract more investments and best practices. In just half a decade, since the private equity market first broke ground in Nepal, it has provided welcome support to local entrepreneurs. With better access to capital, small businesses can now dream bigger. Private equity funds bring more than money to the table. They help build or grow dynamic, job-creating companies that can be potential game changers, spurring the development of the business ecosystem. For Nepal, this can help stimulate its economy, especially in the face of a global pandemic. Our research shows that 17 […]

IFC South Asia Gender Compendium profiles case examples of gender impact in agribusiness in South Asia covering India, Bangladesh and Nepal. Business Oxygen’s investments  in Nepal are  improving the lives and livelihood of women smallholders and local entrepreneurs. These are powerful examples of what the private sector-led initiatives can do to promote gender in their business operations and supply-chains.     Download Pdf    

Business Oxygen (BO2), a private equity fund backed by International Finance Corporation (IFC) to support small and medium enterprises in Nepal, said Monday it has invested $500,000 in MedPro International. MedPro, which is led by cardiac surgeon and healthcare entrepreneur Bishal Dhakal, runs a venture under the banner of Health at Home Nepal. Established in 2007, it is an out-of-the-hospital healthcare service provider. The company provides a range of care services for patients, from general nursing care to critical care for severely ill patients and long-term, chronically ill patients. It also offers counselling for patients, physiotherapy services and monthly prescription-drug […]

About 250 years ago when King Prithivi Narayan Shah made Kathmandu the capital of unified Nepal, he realised that the city had great potential as a business centre, complementing its role as a trading hub. He allowed in businessmen from Rajasthan in India to set up shop and allow entrepreneurship to ferment, a move expanded later by Prime Minister Chandra Shamshere Rana. One reason entrepreneurship did not have deep roots in Nepal was the concept of जागिर, a 10-5 salaried position with job security. That is why the start-up culture took so long to start up and morph in Nepal. The proliferation of, […]