Nepal has 20-35 percent working poverty: Report

Nepal has 20 per cent to 35 per cent working poverty, according to an international report.
World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends 2017 (WESO), which was published by International Labor Organization (ILO) today, said that 20 per cent to 35 percent of the country's workforce is living on less than $3.10 per day.
The outlook has also highlighted that Nepal has 55 per cent to 70 per cent vulnerable employment. "The percentage of own-account workers and contributing family workers as a share of total employment is more than half," the report added.
However, the report states that Nepal has unemployment rate of 4 per cent. This is equal to the United States and less than the UK and Germany.
According to ILO, persons in employment comprise all persons above a specified age, who during a specified brief period, either one week or one day, were in the following categories, paid employment or self employment.
The report also highlighted that the global unemployment rate is expected to rise modestly from 5.7 per cent to 5.8 per cent in 2017, representing an increase of 3.4 million in the number of jobless people.
The number of unemployed persons globally in 2017 is forecast to stand at just over 201 million - with an additional rise of 2.7 million expected in 2018 - as the labour force growth outpaces growth in job creation, according to the report.
The ILO's World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends 2017 takes stock of the current global labor market situation, assessing the most recent employment developments and forecasting unemployment levels in developed, emerging and developing countries.
It also focuses on trends in job quality, paying particular attention to working poverty and vulnerable employment.
"We are facing the twin challenge of repairing the damage caused by the global economic and social crisis and creating quality jobs for the tens of millions of new labor market entrants every year,” ILO director-general Guy Ryder said in the report.
“Economic growth continues to disappoint and underperform, both in terms of levels and the degree of inclusion," he said, adding that it paints a worrisome picture for the global economy and its ability to generate enough jobs. "Let alone quality jobs. Persistent high levels of vulnerable forms of employment combined with clear lack of progress in job quality - even in countries where aggregate figures are improving - are alarming. We need to ensure that the gains of growth are shared in an inclusive manner."
The report shows that vulnerable forms of employment – that is contributing family workers and own account workers – are expected to stay above 42 per cent of total employment, accounting for 1.4 billion people worldwide in 2017.
“In fact, almost one in two workers in emerging countries are in vulnerable forms of employment, rising to more than four in five workers in developing countries,” ILO senior economist and lead author of the report Steven Tobin, said.
As a result, the number of workers in vulnerable employment is projected to grow by 11 million per year, with Southern Asia and sub-Saharan Africa being the most affected.
Turning to policy recommendations, the authors estimate that a coordinated effort to provide fiscal stimulus and an increase in public investment that takes into account each country’s fiscal space, would provide an immediate jump-start to the global economy and reduce global unemployment in 2018 by close to 2 million compared to our baseline forecasts.
However, such efforts should be accompanied by international cooperation.
“Boosting economic growth in an equitable and inclusive manner requires a multi-facetted policy approach that addresses the underlying causes of secular stagnation, such as income inequality, while taking into account country specificities,” Tobin said.

Malaysia reverses scrapping of levy

Malaysia has reversed the scrapping of levy and decided to continue with deducting levy from wage of foreign workers until January 2018, after its decision to shift the levy burden to employers, announced on New Year’s Eve, hit a snag.
The Malaysian National News Agency reported that the cabinet meeting yesterday agreed to postpone the implementation of levy payment on foreign workers by employers. "The levy payment will be enforced under the Employer Mandatory Commitment to next year."
Earlier, on December 31, the Malaysian government had announced that the levy should be paid by the employers on behalf of foreign workers. The scrapping of the levy would have increased the flow of remittance to Nepal as Malaysia is one of the most favoured destinations of the Nepali migrant workers.
According to president of Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies Bimal Dhakal, the decision came as a bad news for both the migrant and the country’s economy.
“It sure would hit workers’ earning and flow of remittance," he said, adding that the decision will further discourage fresh migrant from going Malaysia.
Though, number of migrant workers going to Malaysia has dropped since earthquake of April 25, 2015, a period that saw numbers of policy level changes including Nepal’s decision to adopt free-ticket-free-visa policy and Malaysia’s move to regulate inflow of foreign workers to create more job opportunities for workers, it is estimated that over 700,000 Nepali migrant workers are currently working in Malaysia.
And they have been paying levy to the Malaysian government themselves, as of now.
Nepali workers used to pay up to 250 ringgits as levy for every 1,000 ringgits they earned.
With the decision put on a hold, foreign migrants working in the manufacturing, construction and service sector will continue to pay annual levy of 1,850 ringgit from their hard-earned wage, the Malaysian news agency reported, adding that the Malaysian authorities were forced to defer the date for the enforcement of the new levy related policies following protest from the employers’ unions. "It is not just on levy, but on the rights of the employer to have direct access towards the workers, rather than going through a middle man, how to cut down bureaucracy procedures and how to have fast employment of foreign workers."
It remains unclear whether the stalled new policies would be pursued after the extended deadline of 2018 or not.
Malaysia’s employers’ unions together with local workers’ unions had stood against shifting the burden of levy on local businesses arguing that it would increase the cost of production. They had also warned that the consumers would eventually end up paying more for their products and services if the levy is imposed on the local business. Workers’ unions, on their part, claimed that exempting foreign workers from levy would attract more migrants, dampening the prospect of locals getting the jobs.
Malaysia had first decided to impose levy on workers in 2013, shortly after raising the minimum salary of foreign workers to RM 900, up from RM 650. The minimum wage was later raised to RM 1,000. The levy rate was revised several times in the following years.
On the eve of New Year, Malaysian deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid announced another major change shifting the burden of levy from foreign workers to employers, a decision that draw cheers from foreign workers and right groups, and strong opposition from employers’ and local workers’ unions.

Nishan Shrestha to compete in global finals

A student of Kathmandu-based Ratna Rajya Laxmi Campus Nishan Shrestha has won the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA) Nepal competition.
The competition – organised by Entrepreneurs' Organisation Nepal (EON) in partnership with Nepalese Young Entrepreneurs' Forum (NYEF) in Silver Mountain School of Hotel Management – chose Shrestha to lead Nepal in the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA).
Shrestha's company Eco Cell Industries produces reliable, economic, environment-friendly and earthquake-resistant building materials. "It is pioneering the production of interlocking bricks in Nepal," a press release issued by NYEF, the apex body of young entrepreneurs in Nepal, reads.
Shrestha will represent Nepal at the 2016-17 GSEA Global Finals to be held in Frankfurt, Germany. He will be competing against the top student entrepreneurs from around the world to win $400,000 in cash and donated prizes, the NYEF release reads, adding that he has won a cash prize of Rs 50,000 in GSEA Nepal Finals.
Similarly, Johnson Bokati, a student of Kathmandu University, has been declared first runner-up. His company, Endeaver, is an app development company whose first product is an app which helps people to receive calls despite their busy schedules.
Johnson has won a cash prize of Rs 25,000.
Likewise, the third place went to Bikesh Sapkota of Nagarjuna College of IT. His company, Cryptic Thread Technology is an IT company whose main product is a school management system. Bikesh has won a cash prize of Rs 10,000.
Speaking on the occasion, Samir Thapa, GSEA chair for Nepal, said that the competitions like GSEA can provide a learning opportunity and exposure to student entrepreneurs and will also inspire other students to pursue entrepreneurship.
Fluer Himalayan managing director Ajay Pradhanang, iCapitla chairman and managing director Ajay Shrestha, Merchantile Group chief investment officer Amod Rajbhandari, Arya International managing director Anuj Shrestha, Siddhi Ganesh Enterprise managing director Pragun Rajbhandary and Wellness Hopital chairman Sudahrshan Basnet were in the panel of judges.  
The Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA) represents more than 1,700 of the prominent student entrepreneurs from more than 37 countries. Built on a mission to inspire students to start and grow entrepreneurial ventures, GSEA brings global visibility to pioneering student business owners.

Langtang features in NYT's '52 places to go' list

Nepal's Langtang Region has been featured in The New York Times-Travel '52 places to go in 2017' list.
Stating that there are thousands of getaways to explore this year, The New York Times has listed Langtang Region of Nepal at the 43rd spot among the 52 places to visit in 2017.
Visitors to this hinterland 40 miles north of Kathmandu dwindled following the 2015 avalanche that nearly wiped out Langtang village, the nerve center of the area, the newspaper writes, saying that a crumbled town springs back. "In an effort to revive tourism, the travel outfitter Intrepid now offers a spectacular 15-day Tamang Heritage Trail Trek through alpine terrain, verdant midlands, rustic villages and monasteries," it further writes, adding that the newly opened portion of Langtang National Park called the Tamang Heritage Trail affords an opportunity to meet the Tamang people, originally Tibetan horse traders.
Canada tops the list followed by Atacama Desert of Chile in the places to go in 2017.
After the last year's devastating earthquake, tourists have started to come to Nepal as the country offers unique geography, a part of the Himalayan range, and, of course, the highest peak of the world, Mt Everest. The government has also been planning to promote the country as tourism is the key source of foreign currency and one of the largest employment providers.
Last week, Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), during its anniversary celebration, announced to celebrate the year 2017 as a 'Visit Nepal Year' in Europe as part of its initiatives of promoting Nepal as a tourism destination and with the aim of bringing maximum number of tourists from European countries.

NAC to start Kathmandu-Seoul direct flights from October

Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) is planning to launch Kathmandu-Seoul flights soon.
The national flag carrier has recently received ‘take off and landing’ permission from a major South Korean airport, according to the airlines. "Incheon International Airport of South Korea has allowed NAC to take off and land on every Sunday and Wednesday," the corporation said, adding that Nepali airline has not yet been flying to South Korea till now.
According to corporate director and NAC spokesperson Ram Hari Sharma, NAC will start flying to and from South Korea sometime in October this year as per the slot provided by Incheon International Airport.
NAC will be flying its wide-body Airbus of the series of A330-200 with a capacity of 250 to 280 seats for its flight on Kathmandu-Seoul route.
"Our flight will take off every Sunday and Wednesday at 7:20 pm from Kathmandu," he said, adding that the aircraft will return at 7:15 am local time. "It takes 6 hours of direct flight from Kathmandu to Seoul."
NAC has also made business plans to fly from Kathmandu to Seoul and from Seoul to Tokyo, he added. "NAC will prove a good connecting flight for those traveling to the western parts of the US from Seoul and Tokyo."
Not only those returning to Nepal from those parts will also find it easy but lots of Nepalis working in Korea will also be able to fly own national flag carrier.

PM directs ministers, secretaries to expedite development spending

Prime Minister Puspa Kamal Dahal today directed the government officials and ministers to expedite development spending and prepare criteria for qualifying projects as national pride projects.
Addressing the ministers and secretaries of various ministries during the meeting of National Development Action Committee (NDAC) – the prime minister-led mechanism that looks after the development projects – Dahal asked them to spend at least 80 per cent of the development budget citing there has been no significant progress when compared to the previous fiscal year, which had retarded the economic growth of the country.
Accepting the government’s apathy toward development work, he also directed the ministers and secretaries to prepare unified development plans and implement them accordingly to show the outcomes.
"As we have envisioned moving towards higher growth trajectory to upgrade our status to a middle-income country by 2030, we have to fully implement the budget to achieve the desired results," he said also instructing them to conduct regular monitoring of top priority projects – P1 projects – and introduce ‘carrot and stick’ policy targeting the project chiefs.
Asking them to prepare criteria for qualifying projects as national pride projects, Dahal also directed them to come out with a concrete plan, to complete the national pride projects, within a month.
Prime minister expressed concerns over dismal progress of critical projects including Kathmandu-Tarai fast track, Budhigandaki Hydroelectric Project, Second International Airport in Nijgadh, West Seti Hydro Project and Postal Highway.
The concept of national pride project was first introduced in 2012 in a bid to expedite the construction of schemes considered to be crucial for the country’s sustained development. However, there is no standard process based on which a project is described as ‘national pride’.
Currently, 21 projects have been identified as national pride projects. They include four irrigation projects, three hydropower projects, three international airports, six road projects, an electric railway project, a drinking water project, two projects aimed at promoting the holy sites of Pashupati and Lumbini and an environment conservation project.
The completion of these projects, according to experts, can change the face of Nepal and put it on a high growth trajectory. However, more than half of these projects failed to meet 50 per cent of their performance target in the first four months of the current fiscal year, according to the latest report of the National Planning Commission (NPC).
The Kathmandu-Tarai Fast Track Project, for instance, met only 0.1 per cent each of the physical and financial targets, making it the worst performer in the first four months of this fiscal year.
Likewise, the 1,200-MW Budhi Gandaki Hydroelectric Project has met only 1.1 per cent each of the physical and financial targets. Another worst performing project is the Lumbini Area Development Trust, which has achieved 7 per cent of the physical target and 10 per cent of the financial target.
Some of the common problems faced by these projects are delays in land acquisition, disputes between project officials and locals over the compensation amount offered by the government, unclear relocation and resettlement strategy, lack of coordination among officials and protests launched by their staff.
“Many projects also face problems while conducting Initial Environment Examination (IEE) and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA),” said NPC vice chair Min Bahadur Shrestha, on the occasion. “We will list all the problems faced by these projects and try to address them by providing them certain benefits as directed by the prime minister," he added.
“If the bureaucracy continues to follow its traditional approach toward development works, we are not going to get any outcome,” the Prime Minister said, asking to change their working culture. "We have to think unconventionally to ramp up the capital expenditure."
Speaking at the meeting, the secretaries of various ministries updated PM Dahal on the progress of development projects being implemented under them.
Earlier in September too, PM Dahal had said that he would personally monitor the implementation status of national pride projects. Addressing the NDAC meeting, Dahal had said that he would prepare the schedule for implementation of concerned projects and monitor their progress.
His instructions, however, failed to speed up development spending. The government has, according to the Financial Comptroller General’s Office (FCGO), been able to spend only 8.89 per cent of the total capital budget by yesterday.
The first half of fiscal year is ending in mid-January. And of the total development budget of Rs 311.94 billion, the government has been able to spend only Rs 27.71 billion by January 1, according to the FCGO. Of the total budget of Rs 1048.92 billion, the government has managed spend only Rs 232.85 billion till yesterday.
The government had tabled the budget – for the current fiscal year 2016-17 – one-and-a-half months before the start of fiscal year calendar to break the trend of slow capital expenditure. However, the situation in the current fiscal year is no better than the last fiscal year.
While the government has not been able to spend, revenue mobilisation has been exceeding the target. As a result, the government treasury is ballooning. The government is sitting on a cash pile which is neither being productive, nor contributing to the economy. Had the government been able to spend, the private sector would have felt encouraged to spend, resulting in capital formation. However, the bulging treasury caused by the government’s inefficiency will hurt the economic growth and slow down capital formation in the coming fiscal years too.

Railway department extends deadline of Ktm-Birgunj railway global tender

The Department of Railways (DoR) has extended the deadline of the global tender to study feasibility study of the Kathmandu-Birgunj Railway Line by a week.
“We have extended the deadline till January 9,” said a senior divisional engineer with the department Prakash Upadhyaya.
The consultant will get six months to conduct feasibility study, prepare preliminary cost estimate, and recommend the best technical, financial and economical routes from the six months of the selection. It will also have to propose three routes for the railway line and recommend the best one.
According to the department, it started the process to conduct feasibility study of Kathmandu-Birgunj railway line as the service will be cheaper, environment-friendly and consumes less time. Birgunj is a major trading point for Nepal as over 70 per cent of its international trade is done through this customs point.
Upadhyay also said that the railway line would be important to connect Birgunj and Rasuwagadhi with the rail networks. “The department is taking forward the construction of north-south rail networks as the work for preparing a Detailed Project Report (DPR) for Mechi-Mahakali Railway has already begun,” he added.