USAID Trade and Competitiveness – launched in Nepal (audio report)

September 20, Kathmandu: The United States has launched the USAID Trade and Competitiveness activity, introducing it to Nepal’s private sector.

According to the US Embassy, $ 19 million will be invested to increase the competitiveness of Nepali enterprises in targeted sectors with high growth and employment potential.

Building on 75 years of friendship between Nepal and the United States, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) will collaborate with Nepal’s Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Supplies (MOICS) to help businesses facilitate new trade and investment opportunities, improve their access to market-based financial and non-financial services, and boost productivity.

USAID Nepal Mission Director Sepideh Keyvanshad said the investment in Nepal’s private sector would create jobs and increase incomes for women, youth, and marginalized groups.

She said that this investment was just one example of the broader cooperation between Nepal and the US to strengthen the economy and improve the livelihoods of the Nepali people.

USAID Trade and Competitiveness will advance Nepal’s ambitions to increase and diversify high-value exports such as local produce, tourism experiences, and digital services that can be provided anywhere in the world.

 These export sectors will accelerate job growth and income generation by creating more resilient markets that facilitate the participation of marginalized groups as Nepal’s economy grows. 

The Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Supplies, Gobinda Bahadur Karki, applauded USAID’s partnership with the Ministry and the continued investment in Nepal.

“As Nepal recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic and addresses the local impacts caused by the ongoing global food crisis, the investment will support the private and public sector’s capacity to compete in overseas markets, adding resilience to Nepal’s ability to cope with external shocks,” the US Embassy said.