Target 7 Percent Growth

Anil Gyawali                                               CEO                                                          Nabil Bank

To attain economic growth, the government should make proper use of opportunities and promptly address the challenges. Stability in policies is most important for Nepal now. Frequent changes in government will never help attract investment. There are three major areas that need to be prioritised: agriculture, manufacturing and service-oriented businesses. Recently, Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) came up with a policy to make it mandatory for banks to invest 10 per cent of their money in agricultural sector. This can be done for tourism as well.

Dharma Raj Pandey                             President                                                  Nepal Microfinance Bankers Association    (NMBA)                                                            

Agriculture holds the key to achieving 7 per cent economic growths in Nepal. There are a few steps that the government could take to modernise agriculture. First of all, it should commission research on ways to capitalise on agricultural products. Secondly, modern technology should be made accessible to the farmers. After doing that, new industries that use agro products as raw materials can be set up. This ultimately will contribute towards economic development. In addition to this, the government should invest in infrastructure, especially in transportation. Similarly, foreign investment needs to be sought in areas of hydropower and tourism.