KATHMANDU: President of the Non-Resident Nepali Association (NRNA), Mahesh Kumar Shrestha, met Finance Minister Rameshwar Khanal on Thursday to discuss advancing the long-planned “NRNA Nepal Development Fund.”
Shrestha, accompanied by NRNA’s founding and former presidents, urged the minister to amend existing regulations, provide necessary approvals, and introduce policy arrangements required to operationalize the fund. In response, Finance Minister Khanal said the government is positive about addressing all concerns raised by NRNA.
NRNA expedites preparations to set up a Rs 10 bn fund for inves...
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According to Shrestha, Minister Khanal committed to swiftly revising the relevant Securities Board regulations so that obstacles to launching the fund can be removed. Shrestha said Nepalis abroad are eager to invest in Nepal and demanded that 85 percent participation in the IPO be ensured for the diaspora. “In the coming days, the global Nepali community is ready to support Nepal’s economic and development plans more effectively through this fund,” he said.
On the occasion, founding president Dr. Upendra Mahato urged the government to immediately amend the regulations required to operate the fund, while former president Kumar Pant called for a policy “breakthrough” to simplify the long-delayed process.
The delegation included President Shrestha, founding president Dr. Mahato, former presidents Pant and Binod Kuwar, Canada NRNA President Dhruva Bhattarai, and Anil Raj Bhattarai, CEO of the NRNA Nepal Development Fund, among others.
The NRNA, in partnership with the Government of Nepal, is preparing to establish a Rs 10 billion Nepal Development Fund to invest in the country’s infrastructure sector. The proposed fund will have a capital structure in which the Nepal government holds 5 percent and non-resident Nepalis contribute 95 percent.
