Buy Nepali products and cut imports, says Prez

President Ram Baran Yadav on Thursday urged the people to use Nepal-made products and services in order to reduce the country’s ballooning imports. He added that Nepali products and services could penetrate the global market if the necessary initiatives were taken.

Inaugurating the third edition of the five-day Nepal International Trade Fair 2014 at Exhibition Hall, Bhrikuti Mandap on Thursday, he said that such fairs would be vital in promoting domestic products in the local as well as international markets.

“Until we spread awareness on the importance of consuming domestic products, we won’t be able to generate employment and drive economic growth. The country has immense potential to produce various products and services that are exportable, but we have not been able to promote them to the fullest,” he added.

The fair is being organised by the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) in association with the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies.

Madhav Prasad Regmi, secretary of the ministry, underscored the need for import substitution as it was hurting the country’s growth. Nepal has been facing a huge trade deficit due to limited exportable products. In the six months of this fiscal year, the trade deficit touched Rs 279 billion, which is half of the country’s annual budget.  “We imported products worth Rs 334 billion while exports were only Rs 45 billion in the first six months of the current fiscal year,” he said. Regmi added that organizing fairs had become a strong medium for promoting and branding Nepali products. “Such fairs create a good platform for investors, manufactures, traders and buyers,” he said.  Suraj Vaidya, president of the FNCCI, said that the fair had been providing a common platform for exhibitors, importers and exporters. “We have been organising different types of international trade fairs for the last three years, which has been very beneficial in promoting domestic products in the international market,” he said. The FNCCI held different types of fair in four development regions and 42 districts this year.

The five-day event contains 350 stalls from India, Bangladesh, China, Bhutan and Thailand along with Nepal showcasing a wide range of products and services. Kalyan Krishna Tamrakar, a coordinator of the fair, said that the fair would highlight 19 exportable products. Likewise, there is a separate pavilion of 50 stalls showcasing herbs and herbal products. The organizers have arranged “one district, one product” stalls at the fair.  

According to the FNCCI, it will be holding a three-day Gem and Jewellery show at the Hotel Yak & Yeti from Friday and a day seminar on herbal products. The organizer has expected 200,000 local and 1,500 international visitors to attend the fair.

source: the kathmandu post,7 march 2014