Expressing firm commitment to providing environment conducive to business and protection of foreign investment, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has pitched Nepal as a favourite investment destination.

Speaking at the Nepal Investment Summit-2019, Prime Minister Oli described Nepal as ‘almost a virgin land’ for investment with every sector profitable as he wooed the prospective foreign investors who have converged in Kathmandu for the two-day mega summit that kicked off on Friday.

The event, jointly organised by the government and Investment Board Nepal, is taking place in the country for the third time since 1990 and aims to attract foreign investment as Nepal embarks on a higher growth trajectory. The government seeks to attract investment worth $30 billion in 77 different projects, ranging from urban infrastructure; transport infrastructure; energy; tourism; agriculture; hydropower; education to health sectors.

Assuring foreign investors, Oli stated that their investments would be fully protected and there would be zero tolerance on corruption. “The government that is stable and remains fully committed to protecting your investment with assured profit,” he said.

Allaying the fear of investors, especially the Netra Bikram Chand-led Maoist violence in recent time, the prime minister said, “Any attempt to disrupt law and order will be firmly and resolutely dealt with as per the law.”

Underlining his government focus on economic transformation, he said, “The central task before us is to undertake rapid economic transformation.” “Political transformation alone cannot be enough and sustainable without economic transformation. If we could successfully steer country’s historic political transformation, there is no reason why we cannot do the same in economic realm? My answer is yes, we can! We can do it,” he added.

Oli also highlighted measures taken by his government in improving country’s investment climate from the enactment of two key legislations—Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Act, and Public-Private Partnership and Investment Act, to simplification of provisions on land acquisition, company registration, environmental assessment and infrastructure development.

“We have already started online registration and payment system, which will soon be upgraded to full automation system,” the prime minister said, adding that the government will actively pursue bilateral investment protection agreement with friendly countries. “We will also pursue negotiations on avoidance of double taxation with interested countries.”

The next reform cycle would involve policies and comprehensive legislation in the field of intellectual property rights commensurate with our rights and obligation under various multilateral instruments.

Besides highlighting a number of facilities, including tax holidays offered by Nepal’s laws, Oli also pointed out the advantage of investing in the country that is strategically located between China and India—two large markets with population of nearly three billion. “With India, we have duty-free arrangements for most of our products, while China has granted a significant number of our tariff lines duty-free access to its market,” he said.

Welcoming the foreign investors and development partners, Finance Minister Yuba Raj Khatiwada appraised the major policies and structural reforms undertaken lately by the government.

“Several regulatory and operational reforms in areas of industry, energy, forest, and land management, environment, airline industry, financing services, public procurement and labour market have already been undertaken in the last one year,” he said, adding that the government is moving forward with legal and regulatory reforms in the areas of information technology, intellectual property right safeguard, foreign exchange, banking and financial services and public finance.

Informing the gathering that a process has been initiated for Nepal’s sovereign rating, Khatiwada said it will give investors added confidence on making investments in Nepal.

“With solid macro-economic foundation, Nepal is now ready to take off its journey to a higher growth path,” he said. “This is why we want to welcome foreign investment which promotes industrialisation, builds modern infrastructure, creates jobs, enhances exports substitutes imports and contribute to innovation and technological advancement.”

Former finance minister and Nepali Congress leader Ram Sharan Mahat spoke about the economic reforms of 1990s and how economic liberalisation made positive impact on the economy.  Mahat was one of the key architects of the first generation economic reform of the 90s carried by the then Nepali Congress government.

He urged the investors not to see Nepal as a small market but also to look at the two giant economies next door—India and China. “We have preferential trade arrangements with both the neighbours. We want to invite investments with these huge markets in minds,” he said.

On the occasion, affirming their commitments to Nepal, the representatives of development partners—World Bank and Asian Development Bank—reminded the government what the key areas where Nepal needs to work on, if it wants to jump into middle income country by 2030.

“The prerequisites for reaching the middle income country in 2030 are very good. What it requires is maintain the growth rate over 7 percent, make more investments  in the economy and do that more intelligently,” said Hartwig Schafer, vice-president of the World Bank.

While lauding the recent reform measures taken by the government, Schafer reminded the Oli administration about importance of implementing these new initiatives. “The FITTA, PPP and Investment Act, reform and land and forestry will go far but what is needed is not only to have these policies but also to implement the policies. And make sure the private sector potential is unleashed,” he said.

“We are all here today as investors, development partners to put our resources and  our bets behind this new Nepal. And the odds that we will succeed with our resources are good,” he said.

Shixin Chen, vice-president of Asian Development Bank said the successful hosting of BIMSTEC Summit, progress on the protocol on transit transport agreement with China, cooperation in energy with India and Bangladesh, Nepal has sent out encouraging signals to domestic and foreign investors. “I believe Nepal is at the cups of transformation with great focus on economic and social development,” said Chen, adding that as LDC, Nepal’s infrastructure investment requirement is even higher. “Given its limited domestic resources, it will have to rely on external resources including FDI as well to meet its all needs,” he said.

ADB had a record investment of around $600 million in Nepal in 2018, Chen continued, assuring of maintaining it in coming years as the multilateral lender prepares a new country partnership strategy 2020-24.

“Nepal has the right conditions to focus on accelerating economic development. With political stability, Nepal can capitalise on improvement on economy and address remaining challenges in attracting investment,” he said.

Sharing Singapore’s growth story, Shahzad Nasim, Group Executive Chairman of Singapore-based Meinhardt Group underscored the importance of having political leadership and vision, backed by good governance and  flawless implementation for higher economic growth.

Nepal, according to Nasim, has the potential to perform well if it can quickly improve its infrastructure and continuously enhance the regulatory framework to create an attractive investment climate.

More than 700 foreign delegates from 39 countries, including representatives from around 300 companies from across the globe, are participating in the summit.