With an aim to make Nepali industries and corporate houses responsible and ethical, an extensive code of conduct is in the pipeline. National  Business Initiative (NBI), a Nepali private sector NGO,  has been working on a project about  ethical practices in business. “This project was initiated to develop responsible and conducive business environment,” said Saroj Raj Pandey, Coordinator of the project.

Although few business asociations have already developed a code of conduct of their own, it has not been implemented yet. Similarly, ethics developed some years ago have become outdated with the changing business styles and technology. Pandey stated  that a project like this was initiated with the purpose of  addressing such issues and also to encourage implementation of ethics throughout the country.

Some institutions like the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), Trekking Agencies’ Association of Nepal (TAN)the Hotel Association of Nepal (HAN) and the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies (NAFEA) each have a separate code of conduct for their respective sectors already but it is said to be ineffective.

The project has  four phases. The first one is expected to be  completed within two years. This first phase will be a baseline survey. Later phases will be developing the code of conduct based on survey results, announcing the ethical codes and also working for its implementation.  NBI representatives said that the project not only will be implementing ethics but also rewarding companies with best corporate practices.