Kathmandu, August 16:

The government has designated Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) to issue certification of generalised systems of preference (GSP) for export to European countries.

NCC, as a private sector authority, will now certify GSP form ‘A’ and issue no objection letters under the derogation facility provided by the European Union for export of various goods under its provision of ‘everything but no arms’ extended to the least developed countries, including Nepal. NCC will begin the service from August 19.

This comes as a relief in the backdrop of plummeting exports of readymade garments to the US, said Purushottam Ojha, acting secretary at the ministry of industry, commerce and supplies.

He urged exporters and traders to take a cautious note while exporting to European countries under the GSP facility, as they have some tricky provisions on rules of origin.

Ojha also informed that the derogation facility extended to Nepal is subject to renewal every year and will be in place until Nepal becomes fully competent in terms of garment production and exports.

He urged a private sector body like NCC to carry out studies on what Nepal needs to do to become competitive in terms of price and quality of exportable items.

Surendra Bir Malakar, president of NCC thanked the government for designating it to issue GSP certificate.