South Asia Watch on Trade, Economics and Environment (SAWTEE) organized
a Public-Private Dialogue (PPD) on Enhancing Export Competitiveness of Nepali
Silver Jewellery in collaboration with German Cooperation for Development and Ministry
of Commerce and Supplies (MoCS) on 14 January 2015. The PPD aimed at
identifying export related barriers in the silver jewellery sector, and preparing an action plan to address them with a view of submitting them to the Nepal
Business Forum.
The programme was divided into three
sections: introductory session, thematic session and group work. The
introductory session started with welcome remarks and programme highlights by
Dr. Hiramani Ghimire, Executive Director, SAWTEE. He mentioned that despite
rising demand in international markets and inclusion of silver jewellery in the
Nepal Trade Integration Strategy (NTIS), it is unfortunate that Nepal’s export
of silver jewellery has declined dramatically in recent years. He identified
several key structural and administrative problems in the sector and mentioned
that the day’s programme was aimed at preparing an action plan towards issues that
can be solved in immediate future.
Addressing the participants, Dr.
Peter Ritcher, Chief Technical Advisor of the Trade Promotion Programme, GIZ have
a brief highlight on the area of operation of the Trade Promotion Programme. He
mentioned that the German Government is closely working with the Government of
Nepal to promote products identified by the NTIS. According to him, GIZ has
promoted these products at micro- meso- and macro-level ranging from promotion
of products to capacity development of the MoCS.
Introductions were followed by
presentation on silver jewellery sector by Mr. Purushottam Ojha, Former
Secretary, MoCS who analysed various supply side related constraints in
Nepalese trade sector and also highlighted the importance of overcoming
non-tariff barriers to promote trade. Mentioning the dramatic decline in
exports of silver jewellery in past three years, he remarked that improvement
in the supply side; trade promotion and marketing; and quality enforcement are
crucial for promoting Nepali silver jewellery abroad. He also urged the silver
jewellery exporters to vie into trading with India and China, our closest
neighbours.
At the end of the introductory
session, Mr. Hari Bhakta Sharma, Senior Vice President, Confederation of
Nepalese Industries (CNI) mentioned the need to improve the competitiveness of
manufacturers of Nepali silver jewellery to promote its exports to India and
China. He reminded the government that encouraging entrepreneurship was crucial
towards increase in investment and overall growth of the country. He suggested
the possibility of joint-venturing with Indian jewellery manufacturers to
utilize their market reach. He also urged the private sector to formulate
market strategies to target affluent international markets by capitalizing on
uniqueness of Nepali jewellery.
In the next session, commenting
on the findings of the study, Mr. Toya Narayan Gyawali, Joint Secretary, MoCS accepted
that while the progress on NTIS has been slow, improvement in trade sector
definitely has been realized in the past few years. He thanked SAWTEE for the
important research in the field of silver jewellery and mentioned that the
document would serve as a reference document for the Ministry. He also recommended
the private sector to utilize favourable relations with important export
markets in promoting our jewellery in those countries. For improving the
competitiveness of the sector, Mr. Gyawali stressed on the need for modernizing
technology being used in the sector while maintaining the authentic designs. He
also mentioned that quality assurance and branding are crucial for promoting
the sector. He also stressed the overarching commitment of the government of
Nepal to promote the sector.
Representing the private sector,
Mr. Swayambhu Ratna Tuladhar, Managing Director, Yak and Yeti Enterprises
stressed on the need for improved support from the government in order to
promote the sector. He pointed out that problem with acquiring Certificate of
origin (COO) while exporting to India and China, lack of export incentives, and
problem of inspection at customs are some of the major hurdles for export
promotion of silver jewellery. He also requested the government to stop the
supply of silver jewellery to international markets through unofficial channels
to keep check on the quality of such exported products.
About 50 participants
representing policy makers, private sector representatives, researchers and
media came up with an action plan to improve the sector. The action plan to be
submitted to the Nepal Business Forum (NBF) focuses on improving policies to
enhance the production and export of Nepali silver jewellery in international
markets.
Programme Agenda
List of Participants
Presentations:
Public Private Dialogue on Enhancing Export Competitiveness of Nepalese Silver Jewellery
Media Coverage
