FNCCI should solely focus on economic agenda: Industry minister

Kathmandu, April 26

Minister for Industry Nabindra Raj Joshi today urged the newly elected executive committee of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) to solely focus on economic agenda and ways to accomplish them.

Citing that FNCCI has time and again been gripped by internal politics, which is against the aspirations of FNCCI, Joshi said that the new executive committee should maintain uniformity within the organisation and dedicate itself to support the government’s goal of economic prosperity.

“FNCCI is the mouthpiece of domestic businesses and its priorities should be for the betterment of businesses in the country. I believe that the new executive committee at FNCCI, which is full of youths, will maintain and enhance the legacy of FNCCI,” Joshi said.

MoI today had organised an event in the Capital to congratulate the newly elected executive committee members of FNCCI.

Similarly, Joshi also said that the new FNCCI executive committee, together with the government, should work to reduce the conflicts of interest that prevail between the government and private sector in the country.

“The government has set various ambitious targets related to foreign investment in Nepal and job creation. However, it is the private sector that has a major role to accomplish this target of the government,” he said, adding that the government will internalise every agenda of the private sector in the days to come.

MoI recently unveiled a plan to attract foreign investment worth $10 billion in the next fiscal year and at least $250 billion in the next one decade. Similarly, it has also initiated a campaign to create ample job opportunities in the industrial sector so that no Nepali will have to fly abroad for jobs in the next one decade.

FNCCI President Bhawani Rana, addressing the event, said that the recent initiatives of the government towards industrial development have encouraged the domestic private sector. “The business environment has become better in Nepal today with enhanced possibilities of businesses and investment to boom here. However, Nepal does not have enough skilled human resources to expedite the development process,” she said, adding that FNCCI is preparing to work together with MoI to establish at least one technical training school in each province.