August 4: National Business Initiative (NBI)’s flagship project, the second Responsible Business Summit, kicked off at Hotel Yak and Yeti on August 3. Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba jointly inaugurated the two-day event along with Padma Jyoti, president of NBI and Dr Ram Makaju Shrestha, vice chancellor of Kathmandu University.

PM Deuba appreciated NBI for taking initiative to encourage ethical business practices in Nepal and also stated that the government supports such initiatives. NBI President Jyoti said during the welcome speech that the event’s main objective was to create awareness and encourage entrepreneurs to practice ethics in business.

“Successful business is not possible without a successful society,” he said.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Dr Ram Makaju Shrestha stressed on the need for social engagement of businesses and also mentioned that educational institutions also need to work closely with the business houses. 

The two-day summit will include 16 sessions divided into four parallel sessions including internal business practices, stakeholder engagement, fostering partnerships and academia and regulation. 

Saurabh Jyoti, director of Jyoti Group, Shekhar Golchha, senior vice-president of FNCCI, Dilip Agarwal, CEO of Worldlink Communications, Suresh Pradhan from National Business Initiative, Narayan Poudel from Nepal Rastra Bank, Kabin Padey from CloudFactory, Binija Nepal from GIZ, Rupesh Shrestha from KUSOM and Idea Studio, Anil Keshari Shah from Nepal Bankers’ Association, Surendra Phuyal from BBC Nepali Service and Govinda Raj Pokharel from National Reconstruction Authority were some of the speakers during the  summit.