Addressing the 16th annual general meeting (AGM) of Agriculture Development Multipurpose Co-operative Society on Friday, Manabi said the government had started implementing its plans and programs to make Nepal self-reliant on these three products. "We have been working on implementing different programs so that will no longer have to depend on foreign nations for meat, egg and milk," she said.
Nepal brings in powdered and fresh milk worth almost Rs 2 billion and goats and buffalo worth Rs 7 billion every year, she said. "If we succeed in making the country self-sufficient in these items, it can significantly contribute in narrowing down our trade deficit."
"As per our plans, we aim to be self-sufficient in chicken eggs by next fiscal year, in meat in the next two year and in milk in the next three years," Manabi said.
The livestock minister also said the government was becoming stricter on livestock subsidy control as some farmers were found to be misusing the funds. "Though a huge fund is issued to farmers under different subsidy programs in the livestock sector, there is no sign of improvement and we are still largely depended on livestock products from other countries," she said, adding: "The government is adopting new and more scientific methods in distributing such livestock subsidies."
She further said that livestock subsidy would now be provided to only result-oriented programs.
On the occasion, the society's chairman Tej Bikram Thapa said the government's programs had not yet benefitted small and local farmers.
"The government's subsidy benefits only those farmers who have easy access to it," Thapa said. "The government has not been able to bring programs that directly benefit livestock farmers at the local level."
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