Nepal government has planned to set up six industrial zones across the country. The government will finance three zones while foreign investors will be invited for the development of the rest three, The Kathmandu Post reported. 

Nepal’s Finance Ministry has given funding assurance to the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Supplies and Industrial District Management (IDM) to go ahead with plans. Industrial zones in Jhapa, Chitwan, and Rupandehi would seek private investment. 

Others in Makwanpur, Kanchanpur, and Banke will the funds from the government. 

“The Industry Ministry directed IDM to conduct the necessary work to begin construction of the industrial zones,” Narayan Regmi, joint secretary at the Industry Ministry, was quoted as saying by The Kathmandu Post. 

The Industrial District Ministry informed that all pre-construction works have been completed. All six projects are estimated to generate 1,62,000 jobs in the country. 

Nanda Kishor Basnet, the president of IDM, said,  “We will construct the infrastructure required for an industrial area such as roads, compounds, electricity, sewage, and drinking water while interested industrialists will build the necessary infrastructure for them like buildings.”

The necessary infrastructure would be completed within five years. 

However, the government still needs to incentivize investments on the project sites. Basnet said it is uncertain if there would be any takers for industrial plots. To this end, he also suggested Nepal Rastra Bank to provide concessional loans to firms wanting to establish plants and factories in the zones.