Nepal to hold economic summit next week to lure investment

Nepal's apex business body has announced the Nepal Economic Summit-2014 will be held from Monday in Kathmandu as part of the efforts to make the country a lucrative destination for investment. The first of its kind, the three-day event is expected to kickstart a cause to upgrade the poor Himalayan country into a developing one by 2022 by attracting huge amount of foreign direct investment, the organizer said on Sunday. The Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry ( FNCCI) said the summit is expected to initiate dialogue between the government and the private sector on major economic agendas and assess economic policies and reform programs to give Nepal's ailing economy a momentum. "We believe that timely amendments to policies related to major investment sectors like tourism, agriculture and energy can strengthen the investment climate in Nepal and this will lead the country to rapid economic development," said a press release issued by FNCCI President Suraj Vaidhya on Sunday. The press release also said that the summit will gather together international scholars, economists and private sector businessmen who will share their knowledge and experience on how to develop Nepal's core economic areas. FNCCI Vice President Bhaskar Raj Rajkarnikar told Xinhua that speakers and participants from the United States China, India, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Australia, the Philippines, Germany and Thailand will show up in the event. "The summit will play an important role in prioritizing economic agenda," he said. With Nepal's political parties being in internecine struggle for holding power, the economy of one of the poorest nations in the world has been stagnant. "Enough is enough, there is now no time to wait and see," Rajkarnikar told Xinhua by phone, "Now the only thing all should concentrate on is economic development which is the only way to raise the living standards of the Nepalese."