Energy, Water Resources, and Irrigation Minister Kulman Ghising has said that Nepal’s economic development is being obstructed due to the ineffective utilization of natural resources.
Speaking at a program organized by the National Youth Council on Wednesday, Minister Ghising stated that the country’s economy has suffered greatly, particularly because of strict and restrictive legal provisions in the forest sector.
According to Minister Ghising, strict bans imposed on forest use in the name of “ecology conservation” have made Nepal increasingly dependent on imports. He said that Nepal has been forced to import wood products worth 300–400 billion rupees (US$ 2.1 to 2.8 billion) annually from countries like China and Malaysia. Meanwhile, raw materials available in Nepal’s own forests are left to rot and decay, he added.
“Today, cutting down a single tree is as difficult as killing a person,” Minister Ghising said. “It takes five years just to get permission to cut one tree. A country cannot develop with such laws. Everything needs to change.”
He also highlighted the problem of not being allowed to use natural resources like stones and soil. Giving an example, he said, “Bangladesh imports 500 truckloads of stones and soil daily from Bhutan, but we are not even allowed to extract them. If resources are used responsibly with environmental balance in mind, Nepal can generate immense wealth.”
Ghising further said that Nepal has sufficient potential, from water resources and forests to stones, gravel, and human resources, and emphasized the need to systematically realise these into economic development.
