The ‘International Conference on Financing for Nepal’ 2023 was organised jointly by the Investment Board Nepal (IBN) and Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) in collaboration with the Society of Economic Journalists – Nepal (SEJON) last week.

Addressing the opening session, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal said that the recommendations from the participants could be included in the upcoming budget and monetary policies.

While Finance Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat emphasised the importance of new financing tools that are needed for mobilising resources in addition to investments, Sushil Bhatta, chief executive officer of the IBN, said that the returns of projects would increase with the mix of resources obtained from various financial sources and investors can also get compensated appropriately to opportunity costs.

Anirvan Ghosh Dastidar, chief executive officer of Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited, said, “Sustainable finance can help Nepal in leveraging its potential for renewable energy by providing the necessary funding and support to help us transition towards a more sustainable and low-carbon future.”

The technical sessions were conducted on the macroeconomics of investment, legal, institutional and implementation arrangements related to investment, tools and scope of financing in Nepal along with resource mobilisation and disruption prevention.