NFTA concludes 45th AGM, approves annual, financial reports

KATHMANDU: Nepal Foreign Trade Association (NFTA) concluded its 45th annual general meeting (AGM) in Kathmandu on Monday. The AGM approved the association’s annual and financial reports and a range of proposals.

Opening the session, Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) leader and House of Representatives (HoR) member Ganesh Parajuli said the government would work to create an environment in which entrepreneurs feel respected. He stressed the private sector’s role in delivering the party’s five manifesto commitments and called for closer cooperation as the government drafts a new Export-Import Act.

“The Export-Import Act is being drafted, and collaboration with the private sector is necessary,” Parajuli said, urging business leaders to engage with lawmakers on policy design. He also pushed for greater digitisation of government transactions. “If the revenue and fees the businesspersons have to pay to the government can be paid online, why can't the refunds received by businesspersons be paid online? Start working on this from tomorrow,” he told officials present, including director general of the Department of Customs.

Describing his familiarity with private sector challenges, Parajuli said the government intends to regulate entrepreneurs rather than control them and invited business concerns to be brought before parliamentary committees. He urged firms to formalise operations as Nepal seeks removal from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list, adding, “You come with clean intentions, we will amend whatever laws need to be amended.”

On the occasion, NFTA President Shiv Kumar Agrawal warned that large price differentials between Nepali and Indian markets encourage unauthorised imports through the open border and called for adjustments to tax and duty rates to close that gap. He cautioned against arbitrary import bans and criticised practices that pressure customs to clear goods under headings that yield higher revenue.

Speakers from other private sector bodies echoed calls for coordinated policy reform. Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) President Chandra Prasad Dhakal said FNCCI and other organisations must work together to resolve policy issues. Likewise, Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) President Birendra Raj Pandey urged policy measures that support production and exports.

Similarly, Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) President Kamlesh Kumar Agrawal said the political change and stability sought by the private sector have arrived and called for the start of an 'economic revolution.' He highlighted that some 150,000 businesspersons have been blacklisted for policy reasons and recommended a study of multi-rate value-added tax (VAT), pledging to work with NFTA on private sector advocacy.

In the inaugural session, NFTA Secretary General Jayant Kumar Agrawal presented a detailed analysis of policy and procedural weaknesses affecting import-export entrepreneurs and proposed a set of reforms to address those concerns. The assembly adopted the presentation’s recommendations as part of its agenda for follow-up with relevant authorities.