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The government and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Tuesday signed a concessional loan agreement amounting to $200m (equivalent to Rs 26.51bn) for supporting the first five years of the School Education Sector Plan (2022–2030) and a Grant Agreement of USD 12 million to implement the Strengthening Systems to Protect and Uplift Women Project. The Ministry of Finance in a press statement said that the project will benefit survivors of gender-based violence (GBV) across Madhesh, Lumbini, and Sudurpaschchim provinces through the establishment of long-term rehabilitation centers, development of survivor-friendly facilities for the women, children and senior citizen service centers within selected district and area police offices and strengthening of survivor-friendly services in these provinces. The project will also build a new national long-term rehabilitation center in Bhaktapur. Joint Secretary of MoF, Ishwori Prasad Aryal, and Saugata Dasgupta, ADB Officer-in-Charge for Nepal signed the agreement papers. The proposed assistance will support the implementation of the government’s School Education Sector Plan in a sector-wide approach supported by eight development partners, including ADB under the Joint Financing Arrangement. “The program will enhance learning provisions for basic and secondary schools; strengthen teaching and learning skills in schools; accelerate the recovery from learning losses caused by the Covid-19 pandemic; and improve the capacity of local governments in education planning, monitoring and reporting,” reads the statement. Speaking on the occasion, Aryal said that Nepal has achieved significant progress in terms of improving access to education in the past decades. "However, much more needs to be done to further improve equity of access and the quality of education," he mentioned. According to him, the program will be crucial to operationalize Nepal’s holistic approach to improving overall learning outcomes. “This agreement is a key part of ADB’s overall efforts to help Nepal accelerate reforms and transform the country’s education system to develop human capital, reduce social inequity, and attain sustainable growth. The plan is designed towards eliminating inequities in access and participation in school education, and improving quality and resilience of school education,” the statement quoted Dasgupta as saying.

The National Planning Commission (NPC) has reduced the role of the Ministry of Forest and Environment in determining whether specific projects fall under the national priority project. As per the new Standard on Determining National Priority Projects 2022, NPC will be responsible for determining whether specific projects recommended by the provincial governments and local governments are national priority projects. A project that has its detailed project report (DPR) prepared, has secured a guarantee of resource availability and falls under the scope of the national priority as per the existing periodic plan, can be categorized as a national priority project. Likewise, additional criteria such as completion of environmental impact assessment (EIA) or initial environmental examination (IEE) and secretary-level decisions of categorizing the project as a national priority should also be fulfilled. A national priority development project receives approval to use the forest area and such a project can also conduct mining, process, and sell the mining materials. Both government and private sector projects can be categorized as national priority projects as per the set of standards. The NPC is the recommending body in the case of projects which has been categorized as National Priority Projects-1 or National Priority Projects-2 by the Medium Term Expenditure Framework, a three-yearly expenditure projection, and the Annual Development Program of the government. But NPC is responsible for determining the priority of local and provincial governments as national priority projects. As per the earlier standards, the NPC had little role in determining whether certain projects should be categorized as national priority projects. A senior NPC official said that the new set of standards has cut down the process of determining whether a certain project was a national priority. “It has reduced the compulsion of taking the file to an additional ministry,” the official said. In case of projects determined as a national priority by the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and the Annual Development Program, the NPC is responsible for notifying the line ministries about it only. And then, the ministries concerned should recommend that those projects are national priority projects to the Ministry of Forest and Environment which will do a needful to facilitate the development of such projects. For the prioritized projects of the provincial governments, the provincial cabinet and Office of the Chief Minister and Council of Ministers should decide and recommend for categorization as a national priority. A member of the NPC looks after it and makes necessary recommendations. Then, the planning body will determine whether the recommended project is a national priority project. As per the earlier provision, the provincial government should have recommended to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and the PMO would recommend to the Ministry of Forest and Environment for treating certain projects as national priority ones. Similarly, in case of the projects designated as 'local-level priority projects, the assembly meeting of the local governments should recommend to the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration, and based on the further recommendation of the ministry, the NPC will decide on the matter. Under the previous arrangement, the federal affairs ministry used to recommend to the forest ministry for treating such projects as national priority ones. Likewise, regarding projects with a cost of over Rs 100 million to be operated by the NGOs or the community for social development, the decision of the local-level rural municipality executive is required. This should be forwarded to the federal affairs ministry and based on the recommendation of the ministry, the NPC will determine whether to enlist recommended projects as national priority ones. An industry categorized under the national priority list will get approval from the forest ministry to use the forest area based on the recommendation of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies.

The price of gold has dropped by Rs 200 per tola in the domestic market on Thursday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the yellow bullion is being traded at Rs 100, 900 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 92, 101, 100 per tola on Wednesday. Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 100, 400 per tola today. Similarly, the price of silver has dropped by Rs 10 and is being traded at Rs 1, 380 per tola.

A meeting of the senior leaders of the ruling coalition has decided to prepare a draft of the Common Minimum Program of the government within five days. The meeting held at the Prime Minister’s official residence in Baluwatar has decided to form a committee under the headship of CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli to prepare the draft. Speaking to journalists after the meeting, Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane said that the draft of the government Common Minimum Program will be prepared within five days. Minister Lamichhane, who is also the Chairman of the Rastriya Swatantra Party, said that the meeting has also decided to send one member each from the ruling parties to the committee. “The committee will prepare the draft of the Common Minimum Program within five days. The final shape will be given after holding a meeting later,” he said. Prime Minister and CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal, UML Chairman Oli, Rastriya Swatantra Party Chairman Lamichhane and Rastriya Prajatantra Party Chairman Rajendra Lingden among others were present in the meeting.  

The Health Ministry of Uzbekistan on Tuesday said 18 children, with acute respiratory disease, have died from taking excessive doses of a cough syrup, Doc-1 Max, manufactured by Marion Biotech, an Indian firm, The Hindu reported. The children consumed “excessive amounts” of the cough syrup, which contained ethylene glycol, a substance that ought not to be present in cough syrup. This comes days after a parliamentary panel in The Gambia found “unacceptable levels” of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol in cough syrups made by Haryana-based Maiden Pharma. Here, the cough syrups were linked to instance of acute kidney injury that is believed to be responsible for the deaths of at least 63 children. India’s health ministry officials said they were “aware” of the report from Uzbekistan but declined comment. “To date, 18 out of 21 children with acute respiratory disease have died as a result of taking Doc-1 Max syrup... It was found that deceased children took 2.5-5 ml of the drug at home for 2-7 days, 3-4 times a day, which exceeds the standard dose of the drug for children. All children were given the drug without a doctor’s prescription. Since the main component of the drug is paracetamol, Doc-1 Max syrup was incorrectly used as an anti-cold remedy on the recommendation of the pharmacy sellers and this was the reason for the deterioration of the condition of the patients… preliminary laboratory studies have shown that this series of Doc-1 Max syrup contains ethylene glycol. This substance is toxic and about 1-2 ml/kg of a 95% concentrated solution can cause serious changes in the patient’s health, such as vomiting, fainting, convulsions, cardiovascular problems and acute kidney failure.” “Tablets and syrups of the drug Doc-1 Max are withdrawn from sale in all pharmacies of the country in a prescribed manner,” reads the translation of the statement from Uzbekistan’s Health Ministry, according to The Hindu. Following the World Health Organisation’s (WHO’s) warning on October 5, linking four syrups to the deaths in The Gambia, Maiden Pharma’s export licence has been suspended. However, India has said that the WHO has drawn a “premature link” between the deaths of the children and the India-made cough syrups.

CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal has a lot of challenges to overcome as prime minister. Above all, he needs to improve the national economy, which is getting worse. The soaring interest rate, liquidity crunch, and a sharp slowdown in business activity are major causes of concern. The private sector has already submitted a long list of demands to PM Dahal.  On top of their agenda is the postponement of the guidelines on working capital loans introduced by Nepal Rastra Bank. The two leading private sector organizations–Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) and Confederation of Nepalese Industry (CNI)–separately briefed Dahal about the health status of the economy. The private sector says reviving the economy should be the first and the foremost priority of the government. The Dahal-led government needs to take immediate and drastic measures to improve the economy. The second challenge obviously is to improve the service delivery. As parties remained busy in the elections and intra-party and inter-party fighting, the quality of service delivery has suffered. Corruption and irregularities are thriving. The first meeting of the Dahal Cabinet has decided to improve service delivery, particularly in the passport and transport offices. This is indeed a welcome step, but it is not sufficient. If the past is any guide, proactive measures like these last just a few days. People are still forced to pay bribes to get their job done. So, the Dahal-led government should launch a special campaign to improve service delivery. The next step would be to revive people’s trust in key state institutions, such as the parliament, the judiciary and other constitutional bodies. Politicization of state organs has shaken the basic democratic tenet of checks and balances. The judiciary is without a full-fledged chief justice, with an impeachment motion pending against the high officeholder, Cholendra SJB Rana. The damning exposé on Rana’s political ambition whilst leading the Supreme Court has eroded public trust in the judiciary. Rebuilding the court’s image and its legitimacy will require hard work and a long time. To perform these tasks effectively, the government needs to take a consultative approach. Before taking any decision, the PM should take all the coalition partners and even the opposition into confidence. Previous governments failed to take decisions on time because coalition partners were not on the same page on various issues. The new PM faces the challenge of accommodating more than seven coalition partners and their conflicting interests. This government’s failure to deliver will further fuel people’s dissatisfaction with the mainstream political parties. The November 20 elections have clearly shown that frustration against the mainstream parties will further strengthen the rightist forces challenging the constitution. So, to build on the progress made so far, the current government should work seriously. PM Dahal has said on several occasions that he will not repeat past mistakes and will work to revive people’s faith in the political parties. The onus is on all political parties to lend their support to the Dahal-led government, enabling it to serve the people in a difficult time.

The agitating business community members have halted their protest programs after the newly appointed Minister for Finance Bishnu Poudel assured them to address their demands by the end of Poush. On Wednesday, Minister Poudel held a discussion with the agitating businesspersons at the ministry where he told them that the government will take necessary steps to resolve the issues in the economy. Bhawani Rana, former president of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), who led the delegation of the businesspersons, said that various trade associations across the country have agreed to halt their protests with the finance minister's assurances. "The minister has committed that he will take decisions only after discussing with experts," she said. According to Navin Rizal, President of the Morang Merchant Association, businesspersons of Morang and other districts have stopped their protests for the time being as they believe that the new government will address their demands. Industrialists and businesspersons from Biratnagar, Birgunj, Bhairahawa, Nepalgunj and other cities have been demanding the postponement of guidelines on working capital loans and to bring down the persistently high interest rates. They took to the streets with demands including bringing the bank interest rates to a single digit, postponement of the implementation of the guidelines on working capital by at least two years and revision of tax rates, among others. Against the free market norms? In what is seen as against the norms of the free market, the newly appointed Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel has promised to address the demand of the private sector to reduce borrowing interest rates. Just two days after assuming the office, Paudel, who took charge of the Ministry for the third time, has assured the private sector to reduce interest rates and reschedule and restructure concessional loans provided during the Covid-19 pandemic. While businesspersons have been accused of investing the money they took as refinancing and working capital loans in real estate and the stock market, the finance minister's assurances to the agitating business community to fulfill their demands will not solve the problems in the economy, say observers. One of their key demands is the postponement of the implementation of the guidelines on working capital loans and the other is the bringing down of high borrowing interest rates. According to a banker, interest rates are determined by the market and not by the government. “And in a free market economy like Nepal, it is the central bank that looks at the issue, not the finance ministry. In such a crisis, how the banking sector can sustain a reduction in interest rates? And as the pandemic is already over, why does the private sector want to reschedule loans? They have already invested the loans in the unproductive sector,” said the CEO of a commercial bank on condition of anonymity. He further added that the private sector just wants to extort the government and the central bank.        

Hard hit by the persistently high interest rates, a prolonged liquidity crunch, and a sharp slowdown in business activities, the country's private sector bodies have swung into action to get their voice heard by the new dispensation in the Singhadurbar. On the top of their agenda is the postponement of the guidelines on working capital loans introduced by Nepal Rastra Bank. The two leading private sector organizations - The Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) and the Confederation of Nepalese Industry (CNI)- separately met Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal at his residence on Tuesday morning. The FNCCI and CNI delegations also met Finance Minister Bishnu Poudel later in the afternoon. The FNCCI delegation led by its President Shekhar Golchha apprised the PM about the difficulties faced by the private sector as well as the current state of the country's economy. During the meeting, Golchha raised the issue of postponement of the guideline on working capital loans and stressed the need for interest rate stability. The private sector has been lobbying hard for the postponement of the working capital loans guidelines by at least two years. PM Dahal assured FNCCI delegates saying that he is also studying the past suggestions of FNCCI and that initiatives will be taken to resolve the problems soon with the cooperation between the Finance Ministry, Nepal Rastra Bank, and the private sector. The CNI team led by its President Vishnu Agrawal presented a concept note on 'Rebooting Nepalese Economy' along with the clear steps to be initiated immediately in order to revive the country's economy. CNI has also suggested measures that can be taken immediately by prioritizing the financial sector (liquidity crisis and high-interest rates), industrial promotion, infrastructure, tourism, energy, and information technology sectors to give momentum to the Nepali economy. "We have prioritized the economic recovery from the very first meeting of the Council of Ministers. We will be moving ahead in collaboration with the private sector," remarked PM Dahal meeting with the CNI team. CNI office bearers also met finance minister Paudel and suggested that the government take steps to bring down bank interest rates by 2 percent and defer the guidelines on working capital by two years to raise the confidence of the private sector. CNI President Agrawal urged the finance minister to implement the six unimplemented industrial zones on the model of India's Rudrapur Industrial Zone as soon as possible through the public-private partnership to encourage import-substituting industries. Govt will take all possible measures: FinMin Poudel Finance Minister Bishnu Paudel has assured the private sector that the new government has started working to resolve the problems of the economy. Poudel made such a remark during his meetings with the representatives of the FNCCI and CNI on Tuesday. Stating that the economy has not gone out of control, Poudel pledged that the government would take all possible measures to bring it back on track. “The very first meeting of the newly formed cabinet of ministers decided to take various steps to improve the economy,” said Poudel. Urging the private sector to work with high morale, he promised to extend all sorts of possible support to the private sector.