Nepal’s Investment Climate Needs Urgent Reform, Says MP Swar

Nepali Congress lawmaker Bharat Bahadur Swar has urged the government to take serious steps to improve Nepal’s investment climate, warning that bureaucratic hurdles, commissions, policy uncertainty, and weak institutional coordination are discouraging both domestic and foreign investors. Speaking at a meeting of the Infrastructure Development Committee on Monday during discussions on infrastructure development and public-private partnerships, Swar said investors are forced to visit multiple government agencies to establish and operate businesses due to the absence of an effective one-stop service system. He argued that such unnecessary administrative hassles have caused industries and investments to leave the country, while several industries established with foreign and donor support have also failed to remain operational. Swar also expressed concern over the financial difficulties facing Nepal Airlines despite the progress of airlines in neighboring countries. He said the practice of arresting and detaining businesspeople without sufficient grounds, along with other forms of uncertainty, sends a negative message to potential investors. Highlighting challenges in the construction sector, he criticized project selection based on political access and favoritism, while honest contractors are sometimes blacklisted. Swar called for these practices to be changed and urged the committee to move beyond simply hearing the concerns of investors, industrialists, and contractors and instead take concrete initiatives to address their problems. He also criticized the low attendance of lawmakers at committee meetings and urged the chairperson to ensure broader participation and consultation in future meetings.