Finance Minister asks WB to lend budgetary support

Finance minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai has asked the World Bank (WB) to extend budgetary support to Nepal.

Talking to Justin Lin, senior vice-president and chief economist of the World Bank on the sidelines of the 'Follow-up International Conference on Financing for Development' seminar in Doha, Qatar, Dr Bhattarai also apprised him of the strategic and development direction that Nepal is taking.

Lin, on the other hand, suggested creating a conducive industrial environment that will help modernise the agriculture sector, attract foreign direct investment and encourage public private partnership. Lin assured him of continued support from the World Bank in the days to come.

Dr Bhattarai also informed the World Bank representative that Nepal is organising a Nepal Development Forum meeting in March 2009 and that it expects a high level representation from the Bank. "Dr Bhattarai also briefed Lin on the current fiscal year's budget programmes," said a press release adding that he requested World Bank to extend budgetary support to Nepal for eradicating poverty, reducing inequality and integrating peace into development -Peace for Development and Development for Peace.

The finance minister urged World Bank to adopt a flexible approach in formulating and adopting a Country Assistance Strategy after adequately considering the unique mode of Nepal's transformation. He also called on the international community to pay serious attention towards mobilising women's potential for economic growth and development.

Addressing a sideline seminar of 'Follow up International Conference on Financing for Development' in Doha, he emphasised the need for enhancing capacity. He reiterated that the present practice of ignoring economic value of work performed by women while determining the national income does not reflect the contribution of women in gross national product (GNP) of any country. "A comprehensive statistical system should be adopted at both the global and local levels for such measure," he said.
Ban-Ki-Moon, secretary general of the United Nations was the keynote speaker at the seminar chaired by Eric Solheim, Norway's minister of environment and development cooperation.

Dr Bhattarai, along with a team of three representatives, is in Doha to participate in the seminar that will go on till December 2. Some 500 delegates from member countries of the UN, civil society groups and business communities are attending this global event.

The programme will discuss the implementation of Monterrey Consensus, an agreement reached during 2002 at Monterrey in Mexico. The conference is organised by the United Nations.