A one-stop service centre will be launched on May 15 to facilitate investments, the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies said. Publishing a directive in the Nepal Gazette on April 29, it announced that the centre would be established on the premises of the Department of Industry, Tripureshwor.

The government’s statement of policy and programmes issued on Friday also mentioned that the centre would start work in mid-May. Ministry spokesperson Dinesh Bhattarai said the construction of the necessary infrastructure was at the final stage. He added that the ministry had asked the concerned government agencies to appoint officials to the centre.  

The ministry said the centre would house the offices of various government agencies to streamline the legal processes that investors have to follow to transfer capital to the country. “The centre will not only help foreign investors but also domestic financiers by saving them the bother of having to visit several government offices to get their paperwork done,” said Bhattarai.

According to him, the centre will contain dedicated offices of 14 government agencies under one roof—Nepal Rastra Bank; Office of the Company Registrar; tax office; Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Ministry; Forests and Environment Ministry; Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation Ministry; Labour, Employment and Social Security Ministry; Physical Infrastructure and Transport Ministry; Depart-ment of Customs; Department of Immigration; Department of Supply Management and Protection of Consumer Interest; Nepal Electricity Authority and Nepal Telecommunications Auth-ority.

The one-stop service centre will provide services ranging from registration and operation to exit of an industry from a single window. Bhattarai said the centre would also simplify the repatriation process for foreign companies.

According to the ministry, the centre will serve enterprises with a capital of more than Rs100 million to Rs6 billion. Companies will receive almost all related services such as approval of investment, labour permit, visa facility, environmental impact assessment and approval of foreign exchange, among others. Foreign investments of more than Rs6 billion will be handled by Investment Board Nepal.

Bhattarai said the ministry had prepared a draft working guideline to operationalise the centre. “We have sent the draft to the concerned government authorities for their consent,” he said.

The Industrial Enterprises Act 2016 has also provisioned establishing a one-stop service centre, but the government moved to set it up only after the Investment Summit 2019 held in March.

The government is making preparations to make sure that the investment pledges made during the summit meeting materialise this time. It has also revised more than two dozen acts and policies in a bid to facilitate foreign investments.