Rastriya Banijya Bank management contract ends

The management contract of Rastriya Bannijya Bank (RBB) led by CEO Janardan Acharya has expired from April 1 as one of the component of DfID under Financial Sector Reform Programme has ended on March 31.
Though, the selection committee has been under scanner of Financial sub-committee of Constituent Asembly (CA) due to its structure, the chairman of government bank Ram Prasad Adhikari will for the time being work as a chief executive as well. "Since my term has ended on March 31, I have stopped going to the office," said Janardan Acharya, who had been managing the bank for last eight years.
Both Rastriya Bannijya Bank and Nepal Bank Ltd have been under the Financial Sector Reform Programme to restructure them and hand over as healthy financial institutions to the private sector, according to the primary agreement between the World Bank -- a key partner of the Financial Sector Reform Programme started in 2002.
Nepal Rastra bank and the World Bank had also planned bidding for the selection of management team for the Nepal Bank Ltd that is being managed by a team sent from the central bank unlike Rastriya Banijya Bank.
"We have prepared a road-map to hand the Nepal Bank management to the competent management," said deputy governor Maha Prasad Adhikari.
After a sudden walkout of the ICCMT, an Irish/Scottish consulting firm that was handling the management of the troubled NBL for some five years since the Financial Sector Reform Programme started the central bank has been sending a team to manage it.
"A professional team should be selected on performance basis," according top Dr Ram Sharan Mahat, a CA member and a member of Financial sub-committee. "But the selection committee has to be restructure to make the selection process more competent and transparent," he said, adding that the current structure of the selection committee has a prossibilities of selecting partisian management rather than a professional one.
Nepal started financial sector reform programme in 2002. The main objective of the programme was to develop a healthier financial sector, which intermediates funds more efficiently and effectively for the benefit of all the segments of the society and in a manner that supports private sector development, increased investment, and faster growth.
The programme was not only related to Nepal Bank and Rastriya Banijya Bank but the broader aspect of it is also to reengineer central bank and make it more efficient in monitoring aspect.
"Only a well-regulated financial sector can facilitate sustained economic growth, fostering a robust and vibrant financial market," the programme has said. "Revamping research and financial monitoring strength and enhancing the capacity of Nepal Rastra Bank -- the regulatory authority -- to oversee an operated banking system are prime objectives of the series of reforms, and boosting its supervision capacity was one of the key agendas of the reform.