Experts insist economic policy must focus on
agriculture and tourism
Parsa, April 4: The Madhes-based intellectual
fraternity has suggested prioritizing agriculture and tourism when formulating
the country's economic policy.
At a workshop organized by the Technical Committee formed by the
Ministry of Finance for formulation of the new economic policy in Birgunj on
Monday, participating economists stressed on need for lending precedence to
agriculture and religious tourism.
With favorable climate and soil, experts opined that Province no
2 can be the most prosperous state in the country if the economic policy
prioritizes agriculture.
Thakur Ram Multiple Campus Lecturer, Lalan Dabivedi, said the
economic policy in Madhes should prioritize agriculture. He also called for
promoting religious tourism in Madhes. "In terms of religious tourism, the
Indian tourists must be targeted in particular when formulating the policy, if
we can draw 10 million Indian tourists in a year we will not have to depend on
tourists from the third country," he said, adding that only political
stability can make the country's economy sustainable.
Narayani Sub Regional Hospital Development Committee Chairman,
Binod Gupta, suggested the government to mention the subject of restarting the
state-owned agro-based industries that have remained closed.
Stating that Nepal is a country based on agriculture, Gupta
called for making the country, not just Madhes, self-reliant on
agriculture.
Technical Committee Coordinator, Hari Roka, shared that the
seminar on economic policy formulation drew highly relevant and important
suggestions. He said the advices would be scripted and submitted to the Finance
Ministry while expressing belief the government would embrace these
suggestions.
The seminar was attended by Birgunj's professors on economy,
teachers, lecturers, industrialists, entrepreneurs, civil society advocates,
government offices' chiefs, agricultural experts, political party leaders and
media persons.
