Connectivity at the heart of economic success, PM says at Nepal Infrastructure Summit

Kathmandu / Feb 19: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ has said infrastructure is the foundation of development, and infrastructure development is the topmost priority as Nepal aspires to reach middle-income country by 2030.

“It is through robust and sustainable infrastructure, cost of production is minimized; productivity of workforce is enhanced; economic and industrial growth is propelled; and, ultimately the welfare of society is boosted,” the PM said during his inaugural statement at Nepal Infrastructure Summit 2017 in the capital city on Sunday.

The PM said that lack of basic infrastructure has forced us to witness an average of below four percent economic growth over the last decade and the infrastructure gap has directly hurt the development activities.

He was of the statement that the public sector bears the responsibility to develop basic infrastructures but that responsibility was not exclusive as the private sector is an indispensable partner in this endeavour.

Saying that to develop the basic infrastructure, mobilization of private sector is not a luxury, Dahal added the government was committed to work in partnership with the private sector to bridge the infrastructure gap. “We have adopted the policy of Public –Private Partnership (PPP). Necessary acts, regulations and guidelines have been streamlined,” Dahal assured.

On the occasion, PM Dahal said that infrastructure development in Nepal has been constrained by geography, by limited capital and by investment gap.

He also urged the private sector and financial institutions for increased investment in the country. Stating that domestic resources were limited, Dahal said that foreign investment was an essential source to meet the investment gap.

“Our water resources, biodiversity and human resources can be utilized to meet our development aspirations. If harnessed properly, they can contribute to our economy,” the PM added.

Likewise, the PM said that cross-border connectivity of infrastructures was a key to benefit from the fastest growing economies of our two neighbours– China and India.

“This is the world of interconnectedness. Connectivity lies at the heart of economic success. We can realize shared success through shared efforts. Partnership between the governments to develop cross-border infrastructures can bear remarkable fruits of development, PM Dahal underscored the need for partnership.

On the occasion, the PM said that Nepal has given top priority to energy and transport connectivity as the key components of infrastructure development. “Our efforts to make the country load-shedding free has been encouraging and we want to maintain the momentum to generate required energy to enhance our agricultural productivity, expand industrial base and promote service sector,” he viewed.

Inviting the foreign investors in Nepal, PM Dahal said Nepal has adopted liberal policy in foreign investment and expressed commitment to further improve it. “Our labour policy is market friendly. Abundance of cheap labour is another asset,” he claimed.

Recalling the devastating earthquake and the consequent aftershocks, PM Dahal said that Nepal has an important task of building the infrastructures and expressed commitment to building sustainable and resilient infrastructures in partnership with private sector. He also hoped continued supports from the international community in this effort. RSS