KATHMANDU, Feb 23: The next Steering Committee meeting of the EU-Nepal Trade and Private Sector Development (TPSD) Program will be held in second half of 2016.
The second meeting of the Steering Committee chaired by Naindra Prasad Upadhyay, secretary of Ministry of Commerce (MoC), recently decided to hold the next meeting in the second half of 2016.The Steering Committee comprises of representatives from the government, business membership associations and the European Union (EU). The meeting reviewed progress made since the inception of the program in April 2015.
Speaking at the meeting, Upadhyay said that the program will help the Nepali coffee sub sector grow with value chain development, involving all sub-sector actors.
Meanwhile, Andreas Roettger, Head of Cooperation of the EU Delegation to Nepal said that trade can be a catalyst for sustainable and inclusive development and added that EU was committed to invest in Aid for Trade programs. "Nepal's challenges in 2015 were daunting and TPSD nevertheless made progress," he said, adding that it was encouraging and shows the relevance of the program. "There are huge opportunities to enhance Nepal's agricultural productivity."
Similarly, Anup Shrestha, executive committee member of Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce (FNCCI), emphasized the need for economies of scale of coffee production to be well positioned in a global market.
The six-million-euro TPSD program closely works together with organizations representing producers, exporters and importers. It covers key themes, including trade policy and capacity building, quality infrastructure and value chain development. A specific emphasis is on bringing productivity and exports of coffee from the Himalayan republic to a new level. Some important results achieved during the last nine months include capacity development of National Tea and Coffee Development Board (NTCDB), Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Agricultural Development, and other line agencies by developing strategy and capacity development plan of NTCDB, training on value chain based business plan analysis, productivity enhancing measures and district visits.
"The training was mainly provided to the frontline extension officers who can then guide and plan for necessary actions. For the semester ahead an important emphasis is to establish a pilot collaboration with EU and the Nepalese Coffee Producers Association and Cooperatives through NTCDB and to enhance quality infrastructure with top notch equipment," according to officials of MoC.
The overall objective of the project is to contribute to the government's efforts to reduce poverty and stimulate trade-led economic growth.
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