CNI delegation meets PM Oli to plan industrialisation drive

KATHMANDU: A delegation from Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) met Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli today to discuss strategies for turning Nepal into a production hub and driving industrialisation.

During the meeting, PM Oli urged a shift away from profit derived from imports towards increased domestic production and exports. He urged CNI’s newly elected president, Birendra Raj Pandey, that the government is encouraging the private sector through legal and policy reforms. “Products—from those used in the kitchen to other goods—should be Nepali,” he said. “Only by producing and using domestic goods can import substitution be achieved.”

Likewise, Pandey said CNI and the government are running the Make in Nepal–Swadeshi campaign to promote import substitution. He outlined CNI’s target of growing the national economy to $100 billion and achieving double-digit growth within the next decade, adding that preliminary studies have identified eight priority sectors.

The new CNI leadership also met Speaker Dev Raj Ghimire to request the enactment of laws that promote private sector investment.

CNI representatives separately held discussions with Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Damodar Bhandari; Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport Devendra Dahal; Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Dipak Khadka; and HoR's Public Account Committee Chairperson Rishikesh Pokhrel, covering the current state of the economy, legal and policy reforms and effective budget implementation.

Industry Minister Bhandari praised CNI for its clear, study-based recommendations and reaffirmed the government’s focus on legal and policy reforms. He added that more must be done to boost private sector morale and that industrial infrastructure should be built by the private sector.

Similarly, Physical Infrastructure Minister Dahal said his ministry had increased capital expenditure in the previous fiscal year and stood ready to collaborate on policy formulation for broader economic development.

Likewise, Energy Minister Khadka announced plans to introduce policy reforms for the energy sector and said the government is preparing to open electricity trade to private companies.

The meeting was attended by CNI vice presidents Raj Bahadur Shah, Hem Raj Dhakal, Amit More, Bhim Ghimire and Gokul Bhandari; executive committee member Sandeep Sharda; Director General Ghanshyam Ojha; and other representatives.