Nepal urges SAARC members to open up their markets

KATHAMDNU, Jan 19: Nepal has urged SAARC member countries to open up their markets for tourism, education, health, Information Technology (IT) and other services that have been indentified as highly potential service sectors by Nepal Trade Integrated Strategy (NTIS) -- a government blue print to promote the country´s international trade.



Nepal made the request when technical experts from eight SAARC member countries gathered for a two-day long eighth meeting of Expert Group on SAARC Agreement on Trade in Service in the capital. The meeting ended on Wednesday.[break]



“Keeping in view our potential and expertise, we have requested other member countries to open up their market for investment and marketing of services such as tourism, education, health, IT and also other sectors included in NTIS,” said a source at the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies (MoCS).



NTIS has suggested 19 priority export potentials for Nepal that includes 12 manufacturing and seven service areas. Services identified by NTIS are tourism, labor, health, and education, IT and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), engineering and hydro-electricity.



Even if member countries open up their market, Nepali investors will not be able to make investment in foreign countries. That is because existing Nepali laws restrict Nepali investors from investing in foreign land in both goods and service business.



"We still pushed SAARC member states for opening up these sectors because we have expertize and capacity in those areas and will be able to tap them," said the source. During the meeting, India and Pakistan pushed the SAARC member countries to open almost all service sectors, a demand which goes beyond the commitments made under World Trade Organization (WTO).



However, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives did not make any request for opening additional service sectors.



SAARC countries are presently negotiating a framework for trade in services after the 16th SAARC Summit held in Bhutan in 2010 decided to introduce free trade agreement for services under South Asia Free Trade Area (SAFTA). Presently, SAFTA incorporates provisions for trade in goods only.



As per the summit´s mandate, SAARC members have so far made initial offer to open up more than 170 sub-sectors of services for trade and investment in line with the commitments made under the WTO.



Nepal has already agreed to open up to 70 sub-sectors of 11 services, which goes in line with its WTO commitments, allowing 80 percent foreign investment in the sectors.

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