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The next unicorn may be a company developed in Nepal.

It has now been fifteen months since lives around the world changed, with no parallels to draw from our lifetimes. Many, of course, face difficult times frequently, but the challenges and issues are usually more localised. Not so with the Covid-19 pandemic.

In the past fifteen months, I have written many columns around change. My first column, from March 2020, when I was scrambling for the last flight to Kathmandu to bring me home from Bangkok, focused on what we can learn from the pandemic. I spent a lot of time reflecting on how societies react to situations. From lockdown musings to looking at managing death rituals better to reforming religious institutions. There were reflections on the internalising change sessions (close to a thousand people have attended this till now, and I continue to volunteer to host these for interested groups).

We also learnt that change begins at home as the political mess that began in Nepal is now more than a year old. Till societies change, politics will not change. The ‘Enough is Enough’ movement by the youth in June 2020 made a big call for change. But that seems to be years ago which has not really impacted anyone’s life, and politics remains the same. The second wave has further exposed our weak structure of governance and our poor civic discipline. In October 2020, I had written about how the response to the pandemic will further isolate Nepal. Already, international media have clumped Nepal together with India, with the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant causing more fear and distrust.

The pandemic is here to stay. We are looking at recovery for the later part of 2022 or early 2023. The only way to survive is to grow, be it as an individual or an organisation. However, we have also seen some amazing trends that the pandemic has pushed through. I look at three key trends in this column.

The first is digital money. In Rwanda, as I get comfortable with the idea of not needing any cash or card, I also start to wonder whether regulators around the world are going to be keep up with the pace of adoption. With paper trails still being important as part of legal proceedings and especially when issues lands up in a court of law, will digital transactions be accepted?

While the adoption of mobile money has accelerated and central banks are now pushing for the regulation of digital currencies, what will be the global digital currency that countries will adopt? Will the Chinese Yuan in digital form become the new force that will complicate the current global polarisation towards two key economic powers? Or, does Nepal actually have an opportunity to leapfrog with a digital currency and be the clearinghouse for transactions between India and China?

Tourism will also bring changes as we will see more digital nomads travelling and the line between work and leisure blurring. The comfort of work from home can be defined as work from anywhere. There have also been many developments in virtual and augmented reality during this past year and a half. Therefore, when a tourist points his phone at the Patan Durbar Square image, he expects the details to load on this phone. A human guide may be outdated, like hotel booking desks, as people adapt to more convenient services online. The pandemic has also brought a rise in human wellness and mindfulness-related visits. What are folks thinking about this for Nepal or anywhere else?

Lastly, we see learning and education change as examinations become irrelevant. Perhaps you really do not need physical classes to get educational degrees, but you need more ways of consuming content if it is to seek knowledge. From the growth in podcasts to the adoption of Clubhouse to the proliferation of companies doing e-books and audiobooks—even in Nepal—the change is amazing to witness.

Dima Syrotkin, CEO of Panda Training, argues in his latest blog that the next trillion-dollar start-up will be an education company. We have seen how many people reskilled themselves and discovered the sea of trainings and knowledge platforms. In Nepal, it was wonderful to see so many young people take on different platforms to share information and knowledge about wide-ranging topics. Perhaps, with tremendous information technology capabilities and good track record of exporting ICT services, Nepalis have a wonderful opportunity to dive in. Who knows, the next unicorn could be developed in Nepal.

Political uncertainty in Nepal is a phrase that we are used to; its relevance will not disappear. The players may change, but the game of uncertainty will not change until the age and make-up of the leaders across the political, business, societal and cultural spectrum will reflect the demographic of the country. Till then, it’s about embracing small changes that will deliver big results. 

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Nepal’s trajectory drastically changed after the events of June 1, 2001.

On the night of June 1, 2001, exactly twenty years ago, an event at the Narayanhiti palace saw an end to an entire family of the then ruling Shah dynasty. Helicopters were hovering and rumour mills were active. In the pre-smartphone days, when mobile phones were still uncommon, the SMSs didn’t stop coming, and home phones rang non-stop. I was then working at the Soaltee Hotel, where the requisition of a large amount of ice from the hospitals triggered lots of questions.

Nepalis had to depend on the BBC and CNN or Indian television channels to tell us the story of our own country, as Nepali television and radio channels played sombre music. Then prince Gyanendra Shah, who went on to become the king, was in Pokhara waiting for board meetings of a company and a conservation trust to happen the next day. Nepal received global attention as it was a piece of news that shook everyone; people still ask me what happened that night. The Gorkha earthquakes, the royal massacre and the current Covid-19 crisis are the only events from Nepal that have caught global attention in the past two decades. That speaks volumes about the country. A lot of introspection, therefore, is needed. Three things come to mind.

Shun isolationism and conservatism

The Shahs ruled as the custodians of a Hindu kingdom and used religion as a tool of keeping power. They had to demonstrate they believed in old age traditions, religious dogmas and relied on interpreters of religion. Therefore, the brother of the king and the next in line to the throne decided to keep the traditions going. In the twentieth century, when the internet had already penetrated our homes, he decided to keep the sombre music going on television channels rather than appearing on television to tell the world what had happened; after all, he had lost many members of his family and his wife was still battling for her life in the hospital.

He was advised to hire some good global public relations companies to put the story straight, but perhaps that would have been seen as risking his image of being a good Hindu monarch. If he had chosen to tell the world what happened, he would not have to live with the rumours and the theories that circulate till now. Perhaps, for centuries to come, the rumours will live along with the facts. Therefore, the big lesson is, shun isolationism and conservatism, embrace contemporary practices of communication. There are many platforms. Engage with your audience—people need to hear from the horse’s mouth.

Leadership is about perceptions

Twenty years after the massacre, people still talk about king Birendra fondly, despite his tenure being a tumultuous one. His reign began with straining relations with India, when he invited the ruler of Sikkim for his coronation. His direct rule ended when India intervened with a blockade in 1989, paving the way for multi-party democracy. I talk about the hotchpotch, inward-looking education policy he brought in the mid-seventies in Unleashing Nepal, the results of which we are seeing in the leadership of all different fields in Nepal.

After the 1990s, he remained somewhat ceremonial, leaving others in the family to intervene. Little was publicly known about challenges in his personal life. However, people had a good feeling about him. He earned the respect of the people, as he was seen as an icon of hope when the country started to see intra-party feuds become Nepal’s definition of multi-party democracy. Leadership is about the way people perceive you—a lot of wrongs can be overlooked if you press the right buttons or just stay disengaged. After all, people have very short memories.

Big events result in big changes

When we study history, we are always told that big events result in big changes. We have witnessed this in our lifetime. The way the then government handled the royal massacre, it was clear that some major events were on the way. When Gyanendra was crowned king, many speculated that he would not be the same as his elder brother but a shrewd ruler—owing to his reputation as a good businessperson. Insiders who knew how he conducted his businesses also started to wonder about the results if he replicated the same model as the head of state.

The prognosis was clear. He intervened in October 2002 by taking over the reins of government; by February 2005 he was directly ruling. The writing was clear, if he continued on that path, the end of the Shah dynasty would be accelerated. But megalomania makes people blind. In Unleashing the Vajra, I talk about how king Gyanendra had the greatest opportunity as a ruler to transform the nation like President Paul Kagame started doing in Rwanda around the same time. A big event had to have big consequences. This one ended a 240-year-old dynasty, with the last king having no one else to blame apart from himself.

The 2015 earthquakes brought about an acceleration of the pace of adopting a new constitution. At the same time, Nepal’s geopolitical relations with its neighbours changed, with China becoming closer. The Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in major changes in politics around the world and surely we will see one in Nepal. I hope it will be for the better and not for the worse

All events make one reflect and connect. Each year, when June 1 comes, there is rarely a Nepali of my generation who would not pause and think about the changes. 

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Society’s handling of the pandemic reflects on the government’s performance.

When I was younger, my cousins with high-income, high-worth parents found it much easier to ask me, who was working, for money rather than talk to their parents. The thought never crossed them that the gold and cash being locked up could actually be used when there was a crisis. We have also witnessed family members with good assets and income reach out to others when there is money needed for a major illness.

This sort of thought process also emerged during the pandemic, wherein Nepalis, myself included, found it easier to sign petitions and make pleas to foreign governments, institutions and friends rather than to pressure our own government to fight the pandemic with our own funds. These introspections bring in interesting facets of society that find it very difficult to manage crises. There are four key learnings.

We trust citizen groups more than the government

We have very little trust in our government; especially at this time when the people leading the government have been engaged in political parleys. We accept a leader not because he is a great manager but because there are no alternatives to support. Therefore, we rely on volunteer groups. With 70 percent of the population being under 35—a constituency hardly represented in political leadership—such groups emerge.

Even after the Gorkha earthquakes, there was little hope from the government; it was the youth volunteer groups that emerged as the people providing relief and reaching places where governments never could reach. Blair Glencorse, the founder of Accountability Lab, and I penned an opinion essay in The New York Times about how the youth groups questioned the status quo and provided much-needed solutions. This time, when the pandemic started consuming people as we have never seen in our lifetime in Nepal, a new set of groups emerged. The politicians see these groups as potentials that can be influenced by the opposition members and benefit, therefore create red tape measures to make volunteering difficult. During the earthquakes, it was about not allowing Nepali organisations to receive money but to channel donations to the PM Relief Fund. This time, it was about creating difficulties the import of oxygen or other necessities. I keep wondering why the government can’t ride on these volunteer efforts.

Philanthropy is complicated

I have written a lot on people who find it easier to engage in donations or philanthropy without accountability rather than work with organisations that want to be transparent and are purely voluntary. People do not mind giving money for a cause, especially religious ones, without knowing where the money will lead to. But, at the same time, they find it difficult to even contribute anonymously to people who are doing good work. Support usually entails the provisioning of photo-ops.

So, philanthropy without PR opportunities in the time of social media and the internet does not make sense for many. The mindset of the Nepali investors and business people have also not changed.As Krishna Acharya posed in Kantipur: How can Nepal have over 550 businesses that make over Rs1 billion a year but find very few organisations willing to help? Nepal has many Rupee billionaires, but then how many do really believe in philanthropy with accountability?

Where are the social organisations with networks?

When the oxygen distribution situation was getting desperate, a friend from the US was suggesting that we use the Nepal Red Cross network. There was one message on the website on Covid-19 on May 12, after the Happy New Year message of April 13. It reminded us of the Nepal Society for Earthquake Technology going into hiding after the earthquake to emerge much later. Similarly, social organisations like Rotary and Lions Club that have a network of influential people across Nepal seem to also not be able to rise up to the occasion.

I received a call from a person in dire need from Butwal, and she asked me where my Rotary club was in this hour of emergency. He questioned me about how these clubs and societies can get elected officials and bureaucrats at their installation programmes and social events, but cannot get them together when we need them the most. There are no answers to these questions; our social organisations are designed to move from one election to the other without much thought put to social and humanitarian causes.

Management is not an inherent skill

Management skills will not just emerge in a crisis. When we cannot even manage well functioning homes and communities, with due consideration to choice and well being, it is too much to expect everything to fit into place automatically. Perhaps, the biggest lesson for me during this pandemic—observing countries and communities that have kept mass transmission and deaths at bay—is that we need to learn how to manage our daily lives better. Only then will we be prepared to tackle the next emergency as a unit that works for the individual as well as the whole.

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Every crisis presents an opportunity to recalibrate social patterns.

Last year, around this time, we were already six weeks into the lockdown. Usually, we spend so much time talking about others and making a judgement on others that we forget to look deep into ourselves. But during that first lockdown, I found time to do some reflecting, using tools learnt at meditation retreats. It is easy to meditate for 30 minutes and be in peace, but the challenge is how to manage the rest of the day when your mind is in pieces.

The key challenge is to keep the positive energy flowing in an environment where every conversation is fueled by the negative news floating around. Therefore, it puts more pressure on people to think deeply—not in those thirty minutes of mediation but as we go by our lives each day. There is that deep sense of anxiety, uncertainty and fear, but the awareness of these feelings an important step to move past them. This is easier said than done, but we are better prepared now to anticipate these challenges. Last year, I started voluntarily sessions on internalising and implementing change that I am restarting for people who are open to ask questions relating to themselves in front of others.

For me, the pandemic brought about the need for a deep sense of understanding about oneself and the necessity for change. This time around, there are two major thoughts that I am reflecting deeply on. First, our connection with past and future lives. Second, the need to be part of social functions.

Birth and rebirth

As someone who was born a Buddhist, past lives and future lives are discussed more than the current life. There are functions and ceremonies for the people who are dead and gone. We spend more time correcting our past lives and wanting a better life rather than focusing on this life. So what is the reasoning one can have when someone who went to perform rituals for one’s ancestors in a shraddha ceremony actually dies contacting Covid-19. Is this person’s current life less important than the lives of that person’s ancestors? Or, was it his karma to die this way? Many people believe that our destiny is written when one is born or even when one died in the previous lives.

Similarly, people would not stop weddings as they believed in the auspicious time (saait) of the weddings are pre-destined. But what about the couple who married on this auspicious time and contacted Covid-19 in that bargain and actually died. What if a guest attending contracted Covid-19 this way? So is it important to adhere to the auspicious time, even if it means that people may actually die? I am looking for answers.

Social pressure

There is that immense pressure to be part of social events be it birth, marriage or death. And there are a host of religious functions. All the people who made so much noise even in Nepal and India last year, accusing the Islamic Tablighi Jamaat movement of spreading Covid-19 in the region, kept quiet when millions took a dip in the river during the Maha Kumbha Mela in India; the scale of infection in the latter event was much higher.

One fails to understand what prompted our septuagenarian former king along with the former queen to decide to visit this religious function. Even after lockdown, social media is filled with pictures of people attending weddings, birthdays, baby showers and other social functions—at a time when one is advised to wear masks even at home.

Many in Nepal claim that one’s sanity is more important than one’s safety; therefore, one cannot avoid social functions. The problem here is that Nepalis are rights oriented rather than responsibility oriented; we think attending or hosting social functions is our right. The issue of ethnicity and culture is then brought into the discourse, when people are asked to refrain from organising big-scale events like a jatra.

Is it that our current lives are less important because we have many lives coming up in future that we do not mind sacrificing our own lives, or the lives of others? Or is it that the sense of martyrdom sets in when someone succumbs to Covid-19 when attending a social or religious function? Perhaps the tendency of seeing such people as unlucky martyrs rather than stupid fools who did not follow protocols tend to make people take these issues lightly.

When one is in lockdown, the mind is the only thing that can travel and traverse the world. While it is easy to let the mind wander outside, it is also equally important to lock down one’s mind and let it explore deep within oneself.

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The focus on the individual must be replaced by a culture of organisation-building.

A couple of years ago, an international agency awarded our institution a contract, but they insisted that the contracts and payments will be done to individual consultants and not the institution itself. We did not agree and we decided to forgo that contract. They were perplexed and rather insisted we should change our ways. We responded that if international agencies in Nepal are propagating this, it is no wonder that there are few institutions being built in Nepal.

In Nepal, besides banks and a few international agencies, every sector is run through individuals, not institutions. In the development sector, the practice is even more common where the design is to promote a culture of individual consultants rather than consultant organisations. The procurement processes are designed to promote the hiring of individuals rather than organisations. These are so visible from all the job vacancies posted publicly. Many times, I have been asked to sign off as an individual consultant; that apparently would make procurement processes easier. We also hear about organisations who bill their people individually, ask them to collect the money individually and give it to the promoter of the organisation.

We hear of many great individuals in many fields. But what of the organisations these individuals have built? How have they ensured that the knowledge repository is institutionalised? In a country of 40,000 NGOs, why is it that we cannot even name ten that have been exemplary institutions? Dr Bhekh Bahadur Thapa decades ago managed to secure endowment money for the Institute for Integrated Development Studies (IIDS). That has ensured the institution builds on the endowment and institutionalises it. Currently, Swarnim Wagle is trying to continue to build IIDS.

There are many lessons to learn from global institutions that have built endowments for sustainability and carried on for centuries. Harvard University has existed for four hundred years, and the or University of Heidelberg for more than six hundred. Even in Nepal, at the Hiranyavarna Mahavihara in Patan, the institutional management of the temple has been passed down from generation to generation for more than nine centuries. In contrast, so many Buddhist vihara institutions established by monks in the 20th century have already disintegrated.

Just a year ago, I wrote about the need to reform these religious institutions. The United States has transformed in the past two centuries based on the concept of institutions. So, Apple exists after the death of Steve Jobs and Microsoft survives even after Bill Gates stepped down.

Corporates should show the way

My wife and I both grew up in the corporate culture at the offices of the Soaltee Hotel, where the late Prabhakar Rana was leading the first corporatisation effort in Nepal. We learnt the concept of corporation ownership being different from the management. We learnt how corporation management comprises of many individuals, where no single one is indispensable and succession planning is key. Three decades later, we are grappling to teach others these simple issues.

For clients, we need to continually tell them how it is important to hire a company rather than an individual. Deliverables in a company can be handled by a succeeding employee, but such deliverables come to a halt if an individual contractor is sidelined by an emergency. We insist on having non-poaching clauses in our contracts, since we find that some clients find it easier to poach one of the team members than hire the company. In a country where such basic corporate culture has not seeped in, we jumped to the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to better use available funds when donors have allotted it. Hopefully, we will find some development partners interested in pushing this corporatisation culture in Nepal and perhaps their operations also promote the culture of organisation building rather than the easy way out of working with individuals.

We have seen the weak corporate culture in Nepal making business leaders reluctant to open up the Nepali economy for international firms, as they will have to compete with corporates with deep global institutional knowledge and competencies. Even in large business organisations, it is difficult to name one or two exemplary professionals in their management team. This has been reflected in many private sector institutions in Nepal.

I have pointed out how it is important to build a strong secretariat like the Chambers and Private Sector Federations in many countries and even offered to volunteer to handle such reforms. But anything that is to do with institutionalisation, there continues to be tremendous reluctance. When I was working on reform of the Non-Resident Nepalese Association (NRNA), I had some hope of recalibration, but was proven wrong; building strong secretariats is what people do not want, as the focus moves from the individual to the institution.

The politics in Nepal is a result of the lack of institutional accountability. If the greater politics is to change, the focus will have to shift to building institutions and people leading institutions have to sacrifice their greed of wanting to be the centrepiece at the cost of the organisation. I am always open to working with those that have the drive to strengthen their institutions for the long run.

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Can Nepal compete in attracting this new segment of visitors?

In these times, it is not difficult to spot people working out of cafes in Kathmandu or Kigali who have made it their virtual office for the work they are doing remotely. I have chatted with people who are working out of Kathmandu for jobs in Myanmar—and one operating out of Kigali for a Swiss pharmaceutical company. These people have one thing in common: they love travelling and would like to set up their base in a city and country where they can find people with common interests. There are more Facebook pages that are catering to this segment than ever before, as people search to hear from others who are working remotely.

The office is where you open your device

These are the new breed of digital nomads, who believe in virtual workplaces in a city they love to spend time in. This is not a new phenomenon but has exploded in recent times, as virtual offices become the new normal globally. When high-speed internet connection started in Ubud, Bali, many people started to flock to this city; there are many such cities in different parts of the world that can deliver affordability, great quality of life, and a network with a similar set of people.

With great platforms to connect virtually innovating at a great pace, not only physical offices but the requirement to be in the same city or country of your job or work is becoming less relevant. Having personally been travelling during this pandemic, when the meetings are generally virtual it does not really matter from where you take a call or manage the office. The only key thing to bear in mind is the time zone—one should be ready to join meetings at odd hours. So, if you are willing to take that occasional 3 am or 1 am call without bothering your sleep routine, then you can fit into this new normal. People have been doing personal, social or family calls at hours they never used to communicate earlier. The same mindset just needs an extension towards work calls. The new workplace is the place where you open your computer, tablet or smartphone to connect.

Apart from work, these people connect with people with similar interests and would like to spend time together—be it hiking, cycling, travelling to different countries or just setting up pop-up kitchens to showcase their food and have some fun. The digital nomads do bring back the days of the ‘hippie’ tourists in Nepal, where people from different parts of the world converged in the back alleys of Kathmandu and found their ways to a different part of Nepal. Some of them stayed back to start ventures and some of them continued to visit the country for many more decades.

The competition is strong

Countries like Estonia have had some pioneering e-residency programmes for people in the startup world. Since August 2020, the country has launched a special digital nomad visa that allows people to stay for one year. Croatia has followed suit. In October 2020, Dubai also launched its own virtual working programme where people could get visas to come and work remotely out of the UAE.

Mexico has attracted a lot of digital nomads from the US and Canada. Cities like Tulum on the Caribbean coast is rated as one of the favourite spots by digital nomads. There are specialised companies that are emerging and groups like Selina are putting in more money to build hotel rooms for this segment. In Rwanda, the government is already working on a program that will allow people to get work permits, attracting a new segment of visitors and boosting the economy that has been impacted by the pandemic.

Nepal has all the right ingredients to attract the digital nomad. It has many spots of great scenic beauty. There are many great places where one can just open one’s gadgets, log in and start to work. The internet connection is good, particularly in the last few years. There is enough for people to do in terms of exploring nature. And, of course, there are places for fun, food and music.

Air connectivity through Dubai, Doha and Istanbul airports that have remained open in the last year; this provides easy, one-stop connections to Nepal. And Nepal is located in a spot that makes it possible to deal with timezones across the world—from Japan to the US. The tourism sector that has suffered during the last year may find respite by attracting this new segment. The government only needs to do one thing, and that is to introduce a one-year work visa for such digital nomads and ensure that the security check on people and their tracking is well in place. Every challenge throws in an opportunity. As a digital nomad working for a company based in Kathmandu out of beautiful spots in Rwanda for clients in East Asia and the US, I cannot but vouch for its potential. It is upto the Nepali entrepreneurs and the government to make it happen. 

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Borders should become points of facilitation, not control.

A week ago, the Nepal Economic Forum organised a talk on ‘bordernomics’ that I moderated, where different perspectives of borders and the opportunities around them were explored. No country can change its geography without conquering or ceding to another country, therefore it has to do best the way it is geographically situated. For decades, we have been using the term ‘landlocked’ to define our geographical position but we need to change this narrative and recalibrate our position as being ‘landlinked’ with two of the large economies of the world.

Borders, for those focusing on security and politics, is just a line that defines territory; but for millions of inhabitants who live on either side, it is a line they need to incorporate into their lives. The irony for Nepal is that the folks sitting and discussing borders in Beijing, Delhi or Kathmandu have rarely visited these borderlands whereas for people residing there travelling across the border is part of their day to day life that needs to be managed better but not restricted or controlled. It has been proven that economies have flourished only when borders have been converted to points of facilitation rather than points of control.

For Nepal, it is important to examine and explore the differences between the borders in the north and south. In the north, only a few border areas witness some day-to-day activities such as cattle grazing and village market access, but the large markets of China remain far. On the other hand, in the south, Nepal is integrated very well with the densely populated hinterland of India and is a bed of hot economic activities. Nepal’s market sphere expands therefore to half a billion people in the southern part.

A study of four border points of Bhadrapur and Birgunj in the south and Kodari and Rasuwa in the north examine and explore the similarities as well as striking differences between these borders from political, economic and social aspects. The study also reveals some interesting facts about how political interests steer the economic activities in these borders. For instance, not many know that the Government of China views the Kodari-Zhangmu border region and Araniko Highway as security-sensitive areas questioning the real intent of unleashing trace and economy through this point. However, Nepali border citizens are easily able to find jobs on the Chinese side as busboys, porters, labourers, and restaurant workers as well as restaurant owners. Similarly, the city of Birgunj falls victim to the political tirades between Kathmandu and Delhi, impacting the economy of the area (as evident from the months of blockade between September 2015 and January 2016). However, it is also important to bear in mind the ethnic and linguistic similarities between people along the two sides of the border has promoted significant social exchanges.

Globally, countries that have agreed on reimagining their borders have benefited the most. Europe has led these processes. When I travelled to Basel, it was fascinating to be able to cross over to three countries—Switzerland, France and Germany—for daily walks or just visiting cafes. Likewise, in East Africa, the countries that have worked hard to make the East African Community work have benefited the most. In ASEAN, trade, business and the economy of the border areas have benefited most at the cost of being disliked by the folks in capital cities. Similarly, for Nepal, too, there is an opportunity to rethink how it would like to leverage its borders with both India and China for its own economic gain.

Speaking in a panel at the recent talk, the Deputy Chief of Mission Indian Embassy, Namgya Khampa, was open to the idea of a new imagination in India-Nepal borders where we look at free movement of people, goods and services albeit with adequate digital records to ensure that security of either side is not compromised. We discussed perhaps the starting point to be working on a list of non-tariff barriers that have plagued businesses of both India and Nepal figuring out how we push for better transparency in the rules, regulations and handling of issues. We cannot eliminate all non-tariff barriers, as some of the issues are much localised. But many can be understood through deeper studies as to why Indian eggs, milk, poultry and other products have problems in getting to Nepal markets and why some Nepali agricultural products face hassles at the time of export.

I have been a proponent of Border Economic Zones, where we can leverage the strengths of the border areas collectively to help the local economies. High-quality tea leaves from Nepal can be processed legally and legitimately in the factories of India and sold through global channels. Similarly, Indian workers can legitimately work in factories in bordering towns increasing productivity and production. It is all about reimagining what does a border mean and how it can aide the economy.

The pandemic has taught us many lessons including how having an open border can be a great support system, as people can cross such borders to eke out daily livelihoods. It is important for the policymakers and diplomats in the capital cities to understand how borders are integral to the lives of many millions of people on either side of the border.

Perhaps, policymakers working around trade and economy along with people in the sphere of diplomacy and international affairs should have mandatory immersion programmes to spend a few weeks at various border points so that they can empathise on the challenges of the people and work on viable opportunities. The Nepal Economic Forum is willing to collaborate on this journey.

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Stifling investment laws will now push the next wave of out-migration.

In India, when the economy had all the potential but did not allow Indians to invest abroad legally (or hire international consultants, partners and bring about foreign investments), many felt the need to migrate to a country where they could unleash their entrepreneurial potential. No wonder we see so many second generation Indians, the children of such entrepreneurs, leading global businesses and prominent organisations. Nepal could learn from this and open up to the world. But apart from low-end migration that benefits the agents connected to political powers, there is no legitimate interest to open up anything else. Nepalis by virtue of an archaic law cannot invest outside Nepal. Of course, there are many who are doing it as evident in the reports and various other documents in the public domain. People have to circumvent laws, and the easiest is to give up Nepali nationality to take a foreign one to integrate to the global business world.

Export with hands tied

It is impossible for Nepalis to open subsidiaries or companies outside Nepal and many companies who have export market potential are facing challenges due to these issues. In Rwanda, where one can open a company in less than an hour, they are baffled with the knowledge that a Nepali firm cannot open up a subsidiary or invest legally. With 37 percent of Nepali exports consisting of services export, Nepali companies need to spend money for technology, skills and business promotion abroad like never before. Yet we do not see that being made an easy task.

Companies who are doing great export business, like Goldstar shoes, cannot open an office in another country and have to fight to just remit money to pay for advertising or other expenses. The hiring of consultants has been made into a big nightmare, as if every foreign consultant is either a hidden evangelist or a front for laundering money. Reputed consultants refuse to work with Nepali firms as they do not have the patience for the paperwork and delay in receiving payments.

It is impossible for a Nepali company to recruit on campus at the best universities in the US, as there is no way foreign exchange permits are going to be provided. When we are working in foreign markets with teams comprised of foreign consultants, it becomes very difficult to manage the permits. The current scheme of things makes working as a global company out of Nepal practically impossible. This, even though the added revenue would flow back to Nepal.

With Nepali companies growing in size, there is no other option but to set eyes outside Nepal. Take a Nepali bank—it is impossible to grow at this current pace without opening branches or acquiring banks outside Nepal. The same goes for good restaurant chains that have started in Nepal that can expand to other markets. The high-end handicraft industry is the same; we experienced this first-hand by exploring taking Nepali artisans to Cambodia and setting up a factory producing high-end Nepali gold jewellery using world-class international packaging, marketing and business development.

It is interesting that despite such difficulties, private sector umbrella organisations and other bodies are silent on the matter. We cannot understand whether it is their awkwardness to bring this up with the political masters they do business with or it is the deep sense of protectionist mindset wherein they are least bothered about finding legitimate ways of expanding outside Nepal. Perhaps many family-run firms have set up self-serving superstructures where members of the family hold different passports and have mastered the art of branching.

Mitigate or Perish

Many young Nepalis have started businesses headquartered in global hubs. Their operations in Nepal are barebones, with just enough money to pay salaries and office overheads. These young Nepalis are very clear that if they move the entirety of their operations to Nepal, they will perish. The Non-Resident Nepali Association (NRNA) that could have helped to lobby for change has become yet another political organisation that serious entrepreneurs and professionals want to stay away from. Many of us are in a similar crossroad, where it is becoming increasingly frustrating to deal with the challenges of doing business out of Nepal whilst taking up global work.

On top of this, the treatment that professionals working at such firms get at the immigration counters at departure makes one question why one is living in this country. For young women team members, especially first-time travellers, the questions they have to answer and the way they are treated make one understand why many take the first opportunity to shun Nepali citizenship.

The current politics cannot be an excuse to fix this. Any government that wants economic growth needs to now realise that the economy cannot leapfrog without foreign investments and firms expanding abroad. The story of the large scale migration of talent from India can repeat itself here if the government is not open to change.

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The impact of the pandemic on the Nepali economy is waning.

It is very difficult for people who have recently arrived in Nepal to comprehend how the economy functions and how the pandemic has impacted the economy. We find that people analysing the Nepali economy try to put it in the same basket as the Indian or other South Asian economies or economies in Africa of this size. But little analysis is done on the relationship between society, culture and Nepali economy. One needs to visit the clubs in Thamel that are packed to the hilt on weekends and or observe the swarm of people that come to Kathmandu or other urban centres for political rallies. There is surely a lot of domestic tourism spending fueled by rent money, political party treasures and graft.

While most of the countries in the world are reeling under the impact of Covid-19, Nepal has not shown signs of major impact. There is always a vulnerable group of the population, pandemic or not, that the state does little for in terms of welfare. While there are multiple poverty alleviation programs—albeit lesser than a decade ago—this segment continues to be the begging bowl mascot for the government that they want to do little about resolving.

Much of Nepali income is derived out of assets, and the asset values have not been impacted by the pandemic. We see real estate transactions taking place as more graft money comes out of government spending, remittances continue to flow and people continue to take land and a house as an important part of investment. The construction industry continues to flourish as we have always seen during times of political uncertainty, it is easier to get government, guthi and other private land leased for construction, and approvals for constructions come at a fairly good pace. There are no fears of the government taking over land for projects as the government does not have time to do anything beyond keeping the salaries and regular expenditure flowing.

There is a lot of liquidity in the market as bank deposits swell to an amount equalling 104 percent of the GDP. That is Rs4 trillion in cash lying idle in the banks that can be put to productive use in case businesses or the government wants to. The stock market has broken all records in terms of prices; daily transactions around $70 million fueled by bank loans. If lending for stock investment works, why would banks bother to provide funding for small and medium enterprises? Bank profits have not plummeted, which means a segment that comprises the bulk of the stock market keeps its prices up. With trading in stock going digital and digital payments possible, more people are joining the large number of people who want to try their luck in the stock market. In a recent public offering, more than 1.5 million Nepalis or nearly 15% of the eligible population, filled the required form! So, where is the impact on the economy?

The only sectors that have been hit hard are the ones directly linked with foreign tourists: hotels frequented by foreign tourists, trekking guides and people who deal only with foreign tourists. Hotels in the capital that have been dependent on local conferences, training and social functions are bouncing back as Nepalis have not cut down on their social spending. Nepalis have even decided to not stay away from social functions. People are proud of hosting weddings, inviting a thousand guests. As a nation identified globally with the brave Gurkhas who fight and die in other people’s war, fear is a little understood concept.

We also reside in a society that loves to not follow the rules, led by people who take pride in pushing privileges, breaking norms and ensuring survival at the cost of others. This was clearly reflected in the vaccination priority afforded to some sectors over tourism. Since we do not care about how history will be written, we are pretty reckless in our behaviour.

It is always important to understand that Nepal does not export many goods to the outside world and the 37 percent of IT services that comprise exports have been hit least. They have rather done better, as the world moves to digital platforms requiring more back-end services. World trade fluctuations have little impact on the country. Compared to other countries where we see a stark fall in the consumption of goods, Nepal has not seen such a drop. The major source of money in the system is corruption, which has increased during the pandemic as all major reports show. International development assistance continues as they are aware uncertainty is the only constant in Nepali politics. In many places around the world, we hear of people going vegetarian, cutting down food and other consumption. In Nepal, besides the bottom 10 percent (who are in a constant state of poverty) it is rare to hear people giving up meat, packaged food or alcohol—or any other thing they could do without during the pandemic.

If there is no second wave, Nepal will see itself back on track. Indian tourists, who may face restrictions to travel to other parts of the world, will start arriving in April, whether formally or informally. Graft money will keep coming to the market to keep real estate prices stable, and there is enough liquidity in the system that will be consistently fueled by remittances. Nepal is always unique when it comes to the economy! 

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How can we complain about ugly buildings when Nepalis individually do not care about the rules?

The skies cleared up over Pokhara after the Friday rains, and we were treated to the majestic views of the Himalaya. Everyone was scrambling to take a picture, but the tall buildings in Lakeside blocked the views; the wires dangling from every corner made every picture look worse. But it seems that people do not care. The current political cockfight is much juicier to discuss, and it is something that does not require any individual or collective accountability.

However, the way Pokhara is turning into a ghetto of high rise construction speaks volumes of how we do not look at the future of the city or tourism. My memories of the views of the Flatiron mountains from the streets of Boulder in the US or the views of Table Mountain in Cape Town continues to playback in my mind. In Cape Town, many sections of the construction rules ensure that buildings are built lower so that the views are not obstructed. Could we not have pushed the rules around building heights or ensured that the wires go underground? These are not expensive initiatives, but it requires governments that are not corrupt and business people who do not want to continuously bribe politicians and bureaucrats to disregard the rules.

We hate open spaces

The urban sprawl of Kathmandu from the air and ground is becoming a sad sight and we are replicating this haphazard urbanisation across the country. Bulldozer Terrorism is visible in every part of the country, where roads are built to nowhere—only to be taken down by landslides. The roads are built without drainage, resulting in erosion; the contractors and the government love this, as it consistently creates money-making opportunities. Concrete ghettoes are rising in every part of the country as roads connect one set of concrete structures to another. There are no zoning laws, so every building is commercial as well as residential. Every inch of private land meant for agriculture can be converted to a money minting machine. Open spaces can get converted to private land very quickly if one knows how to take care of the key people. The federalisation of decision making has made this even easier.

Young people who have seen the greening of cities in many parts of the world have begun to ask whether Nepalis hate open spaces. In Thapathali, there is a piece of land that was allocated to the Rotary Club of Kathmandu. Rather than building a public library or a park, this space has been used to create a massive concrete building. Land belonging to government universities, colleges and schools also get converted to concrete structures when they are leased to developers. No wonder people spend millions to get appointments to these institutions.

In Kigali, Rwanda, it is interesting to see how they have vacated an entire industrial area to convert into green space to house public parks and recreational areas. Can we imagine the authorities planning the take over of the Balaju Industrial Area or the Patan Industrial Area to convert to a green public park? While Maitaghar was vacated to convert into an open space, its usage and the way it has been maintained and lit at night now speaks volumes of our sense of aesthetic.

Loathsome structures

In Nepal, any structure that encloses space can serve as an eatery or a meat shop or a motorcycle repair shop—or any other commercial establishment. In my neighbourhood in Patan, there are motorcycles that are parked outside these hole in the wall eateries that function under questionable hygiene standards. Questioning these first makes you a capitalist, and then someone without empathy. The cops along with government officials whose palms are greased well to ensure these guys can operate can turn against you, given any pretext. So, questioning these structures can mean that you are risking your life.

Sometimes, I wonder whether it is this factor or the fear of losing out on a source of household income that keeps the population quite, even when the establishments are obviously flouting standards and laws. Similarly, stores, shops and tea shops operate right outside the gates of many government offices. These are potentially run by the people who work there, or by people connected well with the politics of that government office. So, uprooting them becomes near impossible.

Even now, people all over the world continue to identify Nepal with nature, the bravery of the Gurkhas and the hospitality we offer. But our global image has started to become dented. People are starting to see us, like our neighbours, as a country not used to following the rules. It is important to view the issues of the filth, disorder, and haphazard construction from the perspective of our global image.