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One of the most concerning issues for Nepal right now is climate change and every anomaly that comes attached to it. The weather is uncertain, several lands remain barren, and most of all, pollution has gone off the charts. With the federal election coming up, the public does expect to see some mention of climate change and ways of addressing its effect in parties’ manifestos. True, this time, there are a lot of changes that could be seen in the politics of Nepal. After the win of Balen Shah, several independent candidates have decided to run in the federal election. And new parties like the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), which have promised to eschew the old political culture, have gained considerable limelight. But none of these candidates or parties—both new and old—have nuanced and informed views on climate change and addressing its impacts. While several of these parties and candidates have committed to working on these issues in case of winning the election, most of those commitments are either surficial or far-fetched, say the experts. Talking about impracticality, when analyzing the manifesto of the RSP, some of their promises seem impossible to follow through. “They have mentioned putting a zero tax on electric vehicles (EV), which is impossible, as it is one of the sources for our revenues,” says Vijay Kant Karna, a political analyst. Bhushan Tuladhar, environmentalist, echoes Karna’s sentiment. He says that with that big of a change, the country will have to work on making proper roads suitable for EV, a proper supply of electricity, feasible workshops, and most of all, enough charging stations. “It is too much to do at once,” he says. “They could have instead promised to raise the tax on fossil-fuel run vehicles to encourage people to buy EVs and gradually move up the ladder than do everything at once.” The party has further mentioned establishing a Sewage Treatment Plant which will be used to clean up the sewage coming from every household, and also mandate every manufacturing industry to establish a chemical waste treatment center before the industrial waste is dumped into the river. Though the plan is good and can be realized, Karna says, he is worried about the age-old tendency of Nepali political parties and their leaders reneging on the election promises made to their voters. Established parties like the Nepali Congress, CPN-UML, and CPN (Maoist Center) have barely scratched the surface of climate issues on their manifestos. Congress has promised to work on making Nepal net zero by 2045. But that is already a global commitment made by Nepal. “Why not commit to something that could be addressed within the next five years?” says Karna. The commitments made by the UML and the Maoists are similar and perfunctory in nature, lacking in imagination. Both parties talk about nature and environmental protection. “If you study their manifestos, these parties are using heavy words and hollow jargons to deceive voters,” says Bishnu Dahal, political analyst. Many experts are critical of the political parties regarding their climate change pledge because of their decision to cut down almost 2.4m trees in the name of building an international airport in Nijgadh, which is a home for sati sal trees dating back to 400 years. Had the tree felling plan gone ahead, it would have resulted in the loss of several rare flora and fauna, causing an irreversible disturbance in the ecosystem. “How do we believe that they are pro-nature and pro-environment protection when they made a conscious decision to destroy the forest in Nijgadh?” asks Karna. The parties have also failed to address the closest matter at hand: reducing pollution in the capital city. “Going through all these manifestos, what disappoints me the most is that none of them have mentioned a single thing about dealing with the pollution even in the capital city,” says Dahal. While the RSP  does state that they will be coordinating with India to prevent inland pollution issues, Tuladhar says their priority should be reducing pollution in Kathmandu. Climate expert Madhukar Upadhya says, “If the parties were so concerned about the environment, why is there no mention of promoting ropeways instead of roads?” A study done by Ropeway Nepal shows that Nepal has the capacity to cater up to 2,000 ropeways, which would cost much cheaper than making a highway on the same route. Feasibility tests have been done on 62 of those possibilities, but Nepal only has five operational ropeways for human transportation and somewhere around a dozen gravity ropeways for goods’ transportation. With this potential, Nepal could easily shift to a ropeway system, which would decrease the use of fossil fuel-run transportation at an affordable cost. “But none of the parties have done any research on mitigating the climate change effect,” says Upadhya. “They have used climate change as an excuse to make their manifestos a bit more fancy.” Dahal agrees with Upadhya. “These manifestos are highfalutin, flights of fancy, utterly removed from reality.” Dahal says that parties are more focused on having the same solution for the many impacts of climate change. “Our country is geologically diverse. Solutions that work in the Tarai might not fit for the problem in the hill or the mountain regions.” Upadhya says the parties have not consulted experts or relied on research papers to come up with climate pledges in their manifestos. “These are uninformed pedestrian strategies.” Karna goes on to venture that the parties do not have any knowledge about climate change. Meanwhile, Tuladhar remains cautiously optimistic. “There is at least the mention of the terms like ‘climate’ and ‘nature protection’, which you would not find in past election manifestos,” he says. “We could still expect some change if the political parties actually work on some of the practical commitments they have mentioned.” Key points on parties’ manifesto regarding climate change  Nepali Congress

• Will work on the global commitment of achieving net zero carbon by 2045 and a roadmap of the green economy will be developed
• Will establish Climate Change Research Center

• Will work on forest and environment protection
• Will ensure policies for climate adaptation and disaster management

• Will formulate rules for nature protection and climate change effects’ mitigation
• Will create an environment-friendly sustainable infrastructure in the rural areas

• Will imply zero tax on electric vehicle
• Will research for alternatives to plastic

The CPN (Maoist Center) unveiled its election manifesto last week, where it advocates for a directly elected president and fully proportional election systems. With these propositions, the party says the current governing and electoral systems, embraced by the constitution, are hindrances to Nepal’s growth and stability. And it is not just the Maoist party batting for a new model of government and election. Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal, too, has proposed the same thing in its election manifesto. The Maoist Center and Janata Samajbadi have both suggested making amendments to the constitution to introduce presidential and fully proportional election systems. The Nepali Congress, which takes pride in portraying itself as a staunch supporter of parliamentary system of government, has also hinted at amending the constitution in its manifesto to ensure balance of power and prosperity. Constitutional expert Chandrakanta Gyawali says the talk of changing the existing government and voting systems in the election manifestos of these parties smack of the betrayal of the trust people have placed on these political parties. “The parties have barely implemented the constitution since it was promulgated. Where did this talk about amending the constitution come from?” Gyawali adds: “These are the same parties that endorsed the constitution and its provisions. They will be deceiving the voters if they are really considering changing the government and election systems, which have been barely implemented.” The constitution was approved by more than 90 percent members of the Constituent Assembly in 2015. Experts say the constitution is not even 10 years old and it has not been exercised properly to determine whether it is good or not. “To change the system of governance, which was determined by the people of Nepal, will only invite instability. It is the political parties who need to change,” says Nilamber Acharya, one of the drafters of the constitution. “The parties are trying to hide their own incompetence by faulting the constitution and the system of governance.” The Maoist Center has termed the current system of governance a failure and proposed amendments to the constitution to ensure political stability, peace and prosperity. It has also described the current mixed electoral system as costly and corruptible, which has caused disenchantment among the masses. Other political forces like Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), CPN (Unified Socialist) Nepal Independent Party have also claimed that the current constitution is limiting the country from achieving political stability and economic growth. RPP has called for a directly elected prime minister and scrapping federalism, while Unified Socialist has called for doing away with the mixed electoral system. “These are impractical issues that should not be in an election manifesto,” says Gyawali. “An election manifesto should contain those issues that the respective party will do, or things it will improve in the next five years.” Furthermore, in order to amend the constitution, a party must have a two-thirds majority in parliament, which not a single party contesting the November 20 elections is likely to secure. Constitutional expert Bipin Adhikari says the election manifestos of the parties are removed from the current reality and the existing state of affairs. “To amend the constitution, you have to have a strong government, the opposition should also approve of it, and, most importantly, there should be a popular mandate,” says Adhikari. “All these things are impossible with the way these parties are contesting the polls as electoral allies. They are simply trying to confuse the people with the talks about changing the governance and electoral systems.”

Asterdio is a software outsourcing company established in 2016. It serves as a technology and design partner, with a workforce of more than seventy specialists, for its client companies. The company provides a full spectrum of solutions for developing custom software, including web and mobile development, product design, DevOps services, quality assurance, and branding and identity design. For years, Asterdio has been helping clients in need of PHP and JavaScript development, which makes it a real powerhouse when it comes to these technologies. “We believe in the power of design,” says Binit Sharma, CEO of Asterdio. “In order to fulfill our client's goals, we foster a welcoming environment where professionals have access to the tools needed to create the finest digital experiences.” Sharma studied IT in Malaysia and worked at a few start-ups there before returning to Nepal in 2014. “I worked for a couple of businesses here as well, but I was never satisfied,” he says. “I've always been passionate about new technology and product design. So I started Asterdio six years ago. ” Sharma founded Asterdio concurrently with his first startup, Basobaas, a digital marketplace for real estate. Asterdio has two operational models. The first is project outsourcing, and the second is human resources. Project outsourcing is managing the entire project for a specified period of time, delivering the finished product after usually starting from zero. The second is outsourcing human resources, like frontend engineer and quality assurance engineer, to its clients. Although the company is based in Nepal, the majority of its clients are based abroad. Sharma says though Asterdio mostly works with international clients, which generates a significant number of remittances, managing them is challenging due to a lack of adequate government rules.  “There are several challenges, mostly arising due to political instability and a lack of regulations and policies in the industry.’’  In the global technology market, Sharma says Nepal is almost insignificant for outsourcing.  “This is due to our lack of experience in the field. International clients often choose India, Vietnam, or China to outsource their operations,” he says. “The other issue is the migration of young people to foreign countries.”  Asterdio got into its stride during the covid lockdown. The company was among the few companies capable of implementing work-from-home policies.  “As a tech business that mostly deals with foreign clients, we already had work-from-home policies. So implementing them during the lockdown wasn't particularly difficult,” says Sharma. “In fact, we got two of our most important clients during the lockdown.” Sharma says one should do adequate research in order to start a business, and it can be a product for Nepal or abroad.  “A balance should be maintained between the product's quality and how the company markets itself,” he says. “A person who wants to start a successful business in Nepal needs to be persistent and must not give up easily.”

New US Ambassador to Nepal Dean R. Thompson has just taken charge. The Chinese Embassy remains vacant since the departure of Hou Yanqi. And Indian Ambassador Naveen Srivastava, who arrived in July, is just getting a sense of Nepali politics.  But with or without their ambassadors, these three powers– which are competing to counter each other’s influence in Kathmandu– are closely following the November 20 elections and its outcomes.  For the new ambassadors, it is not an easy job to navigate Kathmandu’s complex political situation. At the same time, there are new developments in Beijing and Washington. Chinese President Xi Jinping has been elected for a third consecutive term, while his US counterpart Joe Biden has come up with a new national security strategy, which clearly mentions about containing China.  In order to contain each other, they want a favorable government in Kathmandu.  Rupak Sapkota, a Kathmandu-based foreign policy expert, says compared to the past elections, there are greater concerns among the big powers regarding the outcomes of the elections this time.  “The case of Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) clearly showed that parliament and parliamentarians have much of a role to play on bilateral agreements and other international cooperation issues,” says Sapkota. “It is not only about which party comes to power after the elections. This election, the big powers have shown concerns regarding the victory of some specific candidates.”  Amid geopolitical tensions, all three powers want to see a government that will potentially advance their interests in Kathmandu. The immediate priority of the US, according to experts, is to create a conducive environment for smooth implementation of the MCC, which will formally come into operation from next August, and to push forward the State Partnership Program, which has been halted for time being.   As for Beijing, it is obvious that it prefers to see a communist party-led government in Kathmandu and if that is not possible, it wants the left alliance to be a dominant force in the government.  At this point, China’s number one priority is to curb the growing Western influence in Kathmandu.  “If Sher Bahadur Deuba were to become prime minister after the elections, China fears the Western influence may further increase in Nepal,” says a source close to the Chinese Embassy. Meanwhile, India’s priority for now is to lessen the influence of Beijing in Kathmandu.  Apart from curbing China’s role in Nepal, New Delhi also wants to see a government in Kathmandu that is willing to keep on hold the border disputes and 1950 Peace and Friendship Treaty, says a former diplomat. Nihar R Nayak, a New Delhi-based Nepal-India expert, says India prefers a government led by liberal democratic forces in Nepal, which means the continuation of the current coalition government led by the Nepali Congress.  “Given the election manifestos of communist parties, New Delhi may not feel comfortable working with them after the elections,” says Nayak. “At the same time, as always, India is ready to work with whichever party comes to Baluwatar, but does not want much noise on map and other issues and engage on those issues diplomatically.”  Whichever party ascends to power after elections, it will have to balance the ties with New Delhi and Beijing. This way of diplomacy is also something all major parties have in common in their election manifestos as well.  “It is important for the new government in Kathmandu not to tilt to any powers,” says Amit Ranjan,  research fellow at the National Unity of Singapore. “Only a balancing act can better serve Kathmandu’s interests.”  In 2017, when the left alliance secured two-third votes in national parliament, it sent a shock wave in New Delhi, while Beijing was upbeat over the victory of communist parties. Sheng Zhang, research fellow at Chengdu Institute for World Affairs, says as Nepal faces a crucial time, the November 20 polls should elect competent leaders to lead both internal and external fronts.  Internationally, there is a risk posed by the complicated China-US relations and the controversy over the US-led Indo-Pacific Strategy and China-led Belt and Road Initiatives (BRI). Domestically, Nepali economy needs to revive and there are multiple tasks such as economic development, health care, infrastructure, education and cultural reforms.  “The large hope that many international friends of Nepal have for the post-election time is, that no matter what the election outcome, Nepalese society and political parties, especially those in the left, should cease the polarization,” says Zhang. “Political parties of Nepal should reconcile and work together to actually improve the livelihood of the people and to handle the international challenges.”