Nepal and SAARC

  • South Asian Association for Regional cooperation was established on 8 December 1985.
  • Main aims
  • To promote welfare of South Asians,
  • To improve the quality of life of South Asian people,
  • To accelerate the economic growth of this region,
  • Social progress and cultural development,
  • To provide a individuals opportunity to live in dignity and realize their full potentials etc.

Members Countries

  • Afghanistan,
  • Bangladesh,
  • Bhutan,
  • India,
  • Maldives,
  • Nepal,
  • Pakistan and
  • Sri-Lanka.

Organs of SAARC

  • SAARC Summit: It is the highest body of SAARC. Executive’s heads of the member states.
  • Council of Ministers: - It comprises the ministers of foreign affairs of the member’s states. It formulates policies, reviews progress of cooperation, decides new areas of cooperation etc.
  • Standing committee: - It is the charter body at foreign secretary level for monitoring and reviewing progress of SAARC activities and program.
  • SAARC Secretariat: - It was established in Kathmandu on 16 January 1987. It mainly coordinates and monitors the implementation of SAARC activities.

Nepal’s contribution to SAARC.

  • SAARC Secretariat is established in Kathmandu Nepal on 16th January 1987.
  • The Logo of SAARC was designed by the Shailendra Mahargan.
  • Nepal contributes 10.72 of the expense of SAARC.
  • SAARC information centre and head office of SAARC economic union is in Nepal.
  • Nepal Hosts SAARC Tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS centre at Bhaktapur

BIMSTEC

  • Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi Sectorial Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) was established on 6 Jan. 1997.
  • It mainly aims to create an enabling environment for rapid economic development, accelerate social progress and promote collaboration on matters of common interest in the region.
  • Members country are
  • Bangladesh,
  • Bhutan,
  • India,
  • Myanmar,
  • Nepal,
  • Sri Lanka and
  •  
  • Its secretariat is located in Dhaka.
  • Nepal’s membership in BIMSTEC on 8 February 2004.

Priorities areas

  • Trade and Investment,
  • Technology,
  • Energy,
  • Transportation and communication,
  • Tourism,
  • Fisheries,
  • Agriculture,
  • Cultural cooperation,
  • Environment and disaster management,
  • Public Health,
  • People to people contact,
  • Poverty alleviation,
  • Climate change etc.

Organs of BIMSTEC

BIMSTEC Summit:

  • It is the highest policy making body. It is comprised of head of the member state/government of the member states.

Ministerial Meeting: It is the second policy making forum of BIMSTEC.

  • It is comprised by the external of foreign affairs ministers of member state.
  • Ministerial Meeting is preceded by senior official meetings and is represented by the senior officials.
  • Business and Economic forum: It ensures active participation of private sector. In business forum private sector representatives meet and discuss various issues.
  • Senior Official’s meeting:
  • BIMSTEC working group

UNO

  • UNO was established in 1945 after Second World War.
  • First Meeting 10 Jan 1946.
  • Nepal’s membership on 14 December 1955.

Objectives

  • To maintain the international peace and security.
  • To develop the friendly relations among the countries of the world.
  • To promote and protect the human rights and fundamental liberty in the world.
  • To solve the international problems such as economic, social, and cultural problems etc.

Principles of UNO

  • UNO is based on the theory of equal sovereignty of all countries.
  • All countries shall solve the international disputes according to the responsibility towards the UN charter.
  • All countries will help the action of UNO and do not help to the countries who are against the UN charter etc.

Organs of UNO

  • General Assembly: -
  • General Assembly is the supreme and highest organs and legislature of UNO.
  • All the member state send five representatives in the general assembly but each country has one vote in the decision making.
  • It makes important decision on the tow third majority.
  • Meeting of general assembly starts from the third Tuesday of September in every year.
  • Security council: -
  • There are 15 members in the Security Council.
  • America, Britain, China, France, and Russia are the permanent member of Security Council and other ten member are elected by from the General Assembly by two third majority for two years.
  • Main function of this council is to maintain international peace and security.
  • Economic and social council: - There are 54 members in the economic and social council. All 54 members are elected by the General Assembly by two third majority for 3 years.
  • Judicial Council: It has 14 members. Out 14, 7 are administrative and other 7 are non-administrative member. Its main function is decolonized the countries which are under the colony.

International Court: -

  • There is the provision of an international court to see the dispute among and between the countries.
  • There are 15 judges who are appointed by the General Assembly on the recommendation of Security Council.
  • Terms of office for international judges is 9 years.

Specialized institution of UNO

  • Food and Agriculture Organization –FAO,
  • International Labour Organization- ILO,
  • United Nation Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization- UNESCO.
  • World Health Organization- WHO,
  • World Bank- WB,
  • International Monetary Fund-IMF,
  • International Civil Aviation Organization- ICAO,
  • Universal Postal Union- UPU etc.

Role of Nepal in UNO

  • Nepal is showing enduring help to UNO after joining the UNO on 14 December 1955.
  • It has been actively involved in the activities of the UNO.
  • Nepal has been significantly contributing to the UN peace keeping operation around the world by sending military and police personnel.
  • Nepal is showing the commitment to the international contract and treaty by signing on different treaties.
  • Nepal has shown strong commitment towards peace, security and disarmament.
  • Nepal has been actively fulfilled its responsibilities while being members of Security Council in 1969-70 and 1988-89 and other different positions etc.

NGOs/INGOs in Nepal

Meaning of NGOs and INGOs

  • The organizations which are privately established, regulated through their own mechanism, non-political, non-governmental and not profitable such organizations are known as the NGOs.
  • If these organizations are opened within the national boundary are called NGOs and internationally operated organizations are called INGOs.

Registration of NGOs in Nepal

  • In Nepal, NGOs have been recognized as important avenues for development.
  • The NGOs are to be registered according to Association registration act 1977. This act provides registration of NGOs at all chief district administration offices with minimum of restrictions.
  • Any group of seven citizen may apply for registration specifying the name of the institution, its objectives, name and address of the management committee members, sources of funding and office address.
  • INGOs are required to get permission from social welfare council for working in Nepal.  

Types of NGOs in Nepal

a) National welfare oriented NGOs:-

The national welfare oriented NGOs operate their work at National scale. In institutional structure, it consist a central office mainly in Kathmandu and branch offices in different parts of the country.

Programs are approved once in a year and generally the members are volunteers.

They also have district and local committee. The decision making process is generally on the people. They provide the selfless service to the people. Yet, recently they are seen participating in the several development activities. Nepal Red Cross Society is a good example of National welfare oriented NGOs in Nepal.

b) Professional NGOs:-

  • The general characteristics of the professional NGOs are highly qualified personnel with rich payment. Usually, executive director is hired for day to day management of organization.
  • Main activity of professional NGOs is conduct research and action program. These NGOs operate in a few districts with a limited capital or budget.
  • c) District / village based or Community based NGOs:-
  • District /village based NGOs are the creation of a particular characteristics of personality.
  • The decisions are generally made by the leaders and passed through the common consensus at the executive meeting. The activities of the executive leaders include fund raising, planning, coordinating as well as implementing, the programs. Social workers are hired and kept under the strict and continuous supervision at the centre. The availability of funds from the donor agencies or countries determines their course of action.  
  • Most of NGOs in Nepal are of district/village/Community based NGOs.

Focused areas of NGOs in Nepal

The growth and expansion of NGOs in Nepal is faster. Likewise, Non-governmental organizations are conducting their activities in different sectors of society. They are performing different activities. NGOs are focusing their activities on the following areas:

a) Poverty alleviation:-

Especially Non-governmental organizational are focusing their activities in the poverty alleviation. They are contributing on generating program and constructing the saving and credit group.

b) Agriculture:-

Agriculture is another area, where NGOs of Nepal are focusing their activities. They use the concept of group mobilization in agricultural development.

NGOs motivate people for the cultivation, animal husbandry, and other unified services by forming the different agricultural groups. Likewise, NGOs provide training of horticulture and vegetable cultivation. They also distribute hybrid of crops and animals.

c) Irrigation:-

NGOs help to irrigation by identifying the source of water and carrying out feasibility study with the intended beneficiaries group.

NGOs are helping to target groups to organize and working out resources mobilization plan, construction program, including supply of construction materials, use of water and charges to be paid by the water users, maintenance and operation and mobilizing governmental as well as non-governmental support for such activities.

NGO are providing training to the local people in construction, operation maintenance and creating local experts.

d) Drinking water and sanitation:-

Another area of NGOs activities is drinking water and sanitation. NGOs are helping community groups and others identifying feasible areas for construction of drinking water projects. They help to mobilize technical and other material support for construction of drinking water projects. They are also helping to train community members in repair and maintenance activities. They are educating community groups to organize water users association and providing assistance in account maintenance and management. They are propagating and educating communities in water conservation, sanitation etc.

e) Primary health and family planning: - NGOs of Nepal are performing different activities in the area of primary health and family planning.

  • They are providing general health and family planning education on preventing health car, and personal hygiene. They are also popularizing the use of family planning devices.
  • They are also providing training in basic health care and the need to immunize the children and pregnant mothers.

f) Basic and primary education:-

  • NGOs are helping communities in initiating the establishment and operation of primary school.
  • They are also encouraging enrollment of all school age children including girls by motivating their parents and the children.
  • They are also organizing non-formal education classes. In fact, they are conducting literacy, post-literacy and out of school education programs.

g) Income generating program:-

  • NGOs are conducting and developing income generating program for poor through training.
  • They are providing financial service in local level by forming small saving and credit group.
  • They are educating the lesson of capacity building in the local level.

h) Forestry:-

  • Forest is another focus activities area of NGO in Nepal. They are creating awareness on the necessity to plan, protect and manage community forest resources both for individual, household and community.
  • They are educating the communities about the rules and regulations of community and private forest.
  • They are also facilitating legal recognition for the indigenous groups already managing community forest and also seeing that they are receive ownership rights and other requisite supports.

i) Gender main streaming:-

  • Another an important area of focused activities of NGOs is gender main streaming.
  • They are providing the education of gender equality by creating awareness community members.
  • They are performing the activities in gender awareness, gender discrimination equality etc.
  • Apart from above areas, NGOs are doing their activities in the field of
  • social welfare,
  • human rights,
  • conflict management,
  • construction of physical infrastructure,
  • Heritage conservation and growth etc.

j) Implication on Economy and Business

  • Generally political development and governance in Nepal is about the constitution, democracy, political parties, administrative division, local self-governance etc. which are the matter of implication in each and every field of economy and Business of the country.
  • Politics being the decision making component of society it always influences our economic and business policies and activities so we should consider about the state law and politics in making the economic and business policies.
  • Democracy always taught about to respect the majority which is also can be implicate in the economy and business.
  • The knowledge of constitution and law can be helpful to develop the economy and business. We should remain under the existing law and regulation in making the different policies and plan of business.
  • Similarly knowledge about the political parties and their policies and ideologies help to determine the business policy.
  • Political ideology is always related to the economic system which always influences the economy and business.
  • Local self-governance always helps the mobilization of local resources which can be use in the development of local economy and business.
  • The knowledge about international and regional organizations helps to the international trend and policy which is helpful to internal economy and business.