A two-day WCP Nepal-AIB South Asia Conference kicked off in Kathmandu on Sunday.

More than 60 experts and participants from various countries gathered in Kathmandu for comprehensive interactions on the ‘Global Trade and South Asia: Competitiveness, Value Chains and ESG’ theme.

Achyut Wagle, registrar at Kathmandu University and chair of WCP-Nepal, said that South Asian countries need to create an effective value chain for their products to benefit from global trade.

He stressed the need for changes in Nepal’s trade policy in view of its graduation from a Least Developed Country in 2026.

S Raghunath, chair of the AIB-SAC executive board, Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, stressed the collaborative efforts of South Asian countries to develop an effective value chain in the global market.

He emphasised the promotion of local products through innovation and utilisation of intellectual property rights.

Narayan Prasad Sharma Duwadi, secretary of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supply, said that the suggestions from the seminar would be helpful to bridge the policy gaps seen in Nepal’s ballooning trade deficit.

Ram Prasad Subedi, the Nepali ambassador to the United Nations Permanent Mission in Geneva, suggested diversifying products and markets to narrow the trade deficit faced by Nepal.

Xiangchen Zhang, deputy director general of the WTO, said that UN body is focused on capacity enhancement in various sectors to facilitate global trade.