Proceedings Report - Webinar Series 2022_Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum

Co-organized by Royal Thai Embassy, Kathmandu & Nepal Economic Forum

THAILAND-NEPAL ECONOMIC FORUM WEBINAR SERIES 2022

5 MAY 2022 PROCEEDINGS REPORT

To introduce, and raise awareness of, new economic trends in Thailand, Nepal and beyond.

Objectives

To share experiences of Thailand and Nepal in addressing recent economic issues and developing approaches applicable for other countries.

To explore collaboration opportunities in the areas of mutual interest.

Panel 1

Panel 2

Panel 3

BCG Economy: A Guiding Concept under Thailand's BIMSTEC Chairmanship in 2022-2023

Startup Ecosystem and lnnovation in Thailand and Nepal

Business and SDGs

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Introduction Panel 1 BCG Economy: A Guiding Concept under Thailand's BIMSTEC Chairmanship in 2022-2023

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

The discussion sought to initiate and foster discourse on the concept of bio-circular-green (BCG) Economy through the perspectives of Thailand and Nepal. The session explored the existing BCG economy practices in the two countries for knowledge dissemination, replication, and exploration of investment opportunities. Taking into account Thailand’s BIMSTEC chairmanship since March 2022, the discussion also helped identify areas of possible collaboration to promote a BCG model in Nepal and the region.

Panel 1 BCG Economy: A Guiding Concept under Thailand's BIMSTEC Chairmanship in 2022-2023

Opening Remarks – H.E. Mr. Vosita Vorasaph Ambassador of Thailand to Nepal

H.E. Vosita Vorasaph started the panel discussion by highlighting how the philosophy of sustainable development can be achieved by implementing the concept of the Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) Economy model. The model integrates a bio-economy, circular economy, and green economy, which altogether enhances resource efficiency, transforms waste into wealth and regenerates biodiversity to mitigate the impact on the environment. He mentioned that Thailand adopted the BCG model as a part of its national strategy with the objective of “building back better”. As the current chair of BIMSTEC, Thailand aims to drive BCG cooperation in the region and believes there is room for collaboration with Nepal. He concluded his remarks stating that both Nepal and Thailand can work together by sharing expertise and experience.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 1 BCG Economy: A Guiding Concept under Thailand's BIMSTEC Chairmanship in 2022-2023

Opening Remarks – Ghanshyam Bhandari

Joint Secretary, Regional Organization Division, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nepal Ghanshyam Bhandari, the Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, started by pointing out that the 5th BIMSTEC Summit made some key breakthroughs that are expected to bring fresh momentum to the BIMSTEC process. However, BIMSTEC is far from effectively addressing the challenges that Thailand and Nepal are facing. He added that to effectively address these problems, cooperation in line with the rationalization of sectors and sub-sectors must be enhanced.

Ghanshyam further added that the Bio Circular Green (BCG) approaches and strategies are suitable for countries that are rich in biological and natural resources, like Thailand and Nepal. It can accelerate their transition towards a regenerative growth model. The need is to focus on the key sectors such as food and agriculture, energy, tourism, and creative economy with an aim to migrate from low-value commodities to value-added products.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 1 BCG Economy: A Guiding Concept under Thailand's BIMSTEC Chairmanship in 2022-2023

Lily Eurwilaichitr

Vice President, National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), Thailand Lily Eurwilaichitr introduced the Bio Circular Green (BCG) model action plan as a plan based on promoting sustainable biological resources, strengthening grassroots economy, enhancing competitiveness, and building resilience to global changes. She explained that the BCG model is expected to reduce greenhouse emissions, improve income inequality, raise the economic value of the BCG industry, and enhance the skills of the workforce. Considering this, she highlighted the importance of innovation in the BCG model which requires a joint collaboration of the government, community, researchers, and the private sector.

Moving on, she mentioned Thailand’s introduction of tax breaks for electric vehicles which will help the country become a regional EV hub. Along with the tax break, she underscored the need for considerable investment in research to build the capacity of the industry. She shared one of the recent developments in this sector in Thailand where an EV with swappable batteries is being developed in a public private partnership (PPP) model and global partnership.

She further notified about the RCMBCG platform which promotes collaboration in the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) region to enable capacity building and technology sharing via workshops and joint research. She added that the platform can also be used to exchange knowledge and experience on BCG Sustainable Development Goals. She emphasized the need for knowledge sharing for innovation-based businesses. She also suggested the need for creation of a fund to provide technical and financial aid to facilitate technology transfer.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 1 BCG Economy: A Guiding Concept under Thailand's BIMSTEC Chairmanship in 2022-2023

Raghavendra Mahto Co-founder, Doko Recyclers, Nepal Raghavendra Mahto began his remarks by emphasizing on the implementation of the BCG framework through transformation from a make, take, and waste economy to a reuse, repair, refurbish and recycle economy.

According to Mahto, the major challenge for the BCG framework for waste management in Nepal is the lack of reverse logistics and waste take-back mechanisms in the supply chain. Nepal has limited technology and infrastructure for managing complex waste such as electronic waste. The gap in technology has led to a loss of resources that could have been utilized within the country. Due to this, he claimed that switching to green energy via solar panels and electric vehicles without a proper solution for managing electronic waste, such as lithium-ion batteries, would create problems.

Thus, he suggested the transfer of knowledge from countries that have built infrastructure for recycling such waste or searching for countries that will accept and recycle electronic waste to learn about and build the capacity to follow a similar path.

Raghavendra further noted that despite the presence of the engineering and environment departments in municipalities of Nepal, these departments lack the technical competence required to add to the existing value chain and work with the private sector. He concluded that for developing a suitable policy design to create a circular economy, a proper understanding of Nepal’s entire ecosystem is needed which creates opportunities for exchange between municipalities, universities, the private sector, and delegation for better understanding. Currently, however, such an understanding is clearly lacking.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 1 BCG Economy: A Guiding Concept under Thailand's BIMSTEC Chairmanship in 2022-2023

Sujit Acharya Chairperson, Energy Development Council, Nepal Carrying tremendous experience in the field of clean energy and sustainability, Sujit Acharya talked about the need of implementing a BCG model to unleash 10% economic growth in Nepal annually. He claimed that while many countries revert to sustainable energy to specifically combat the negative effects of climate change, Nepal's economic development is reliant on the BCG model; therefore, it's personal to Nepal.

BCG is generated from using and producing renewable energy which has not been done in Nepal yet due to the lack of sustainability in Nepal’s current economic model. The Nepali government has depleted its foreign currency reserves by 45 percent to purchase petroleum, diesel, and vehicles that require the use of fossil fuels. This has led to a potential financial crisis in Nepal’s economy. A significant amount of reserve currency is used for “dirty energy” that is not produced in Nepal.

This model has a dual effect as it hurts Nepal’s economy and environment. As a result, he emphasized the importance of diverting away from the use and purchase of fossil fuels.

Sujit argued that the major roadblock to the BCG model is red-tapism which is perpetuated by politicians who do not understand the BCG model and the importance for Nepal to shift to clean and renewable energy sources. Nepal has the resources to make this shift on its own without foreign help. Nepal harbors a substantial hydro-power potential of about 400,000 megawatts, robust biomass in its southern belt, a decent amount of solar energy, and one of the biggest hydrogen reserves in the world. The abundance of these resources highlights Nepal’s ability to produce renewable energy on its own, making it suitable for the BCG model since it is centered around a domestically generated economy that is created through the production and use of domestically generated energy.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 1 BCG Economy: A Guiding Concept under Thailand's BIMSTEC Chairmanship in 2022-2023

Racha Aribarg

Director, Division of International Economic Relations and Cooperation, Department of International Economic Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Thailand Racha Aribarg started his remarks providing an overview of Thailand’s role as the current chair of the BIMSTEC. He emphasized bilateral relations through technical and developmental cooperation between Nepal and Thailand to promote mutual relations.

As Thailand has assumed the chair of BIMSTEC, it has envisioned a new concept called BIMSTEC PRO. He explained the concept by starting from ‘P’ that stands for ‘Prosperous’. He mentioned that all member states will benefit from shared propensity under BIMSTEC. It can be materialized by focusing on post-pandemic economic recovery by initiating the cycle of economic growth and development through support to the business to promote a sustainable system. Further, he elaborated on ‘R’ for ‘Resilience and Robustness’. It focuses on the security aspect in member countries by planning for future crises. Policy measures should be taken to support economic restoration in terms of food security and public health security.

Likewise, the last letter ‘O’ stands for ‘Open’, it means inclusiveness among member countries. Through the BIMSTEC platform, Thailand will promote people-to-people relations through cultural ties and cultural exchange. Nepal can take the lead in the tourism industry, as it has a wide range of cultures which is a major attraction point for tourists.

By laying down the core meaning of BIMSTEC PRO, he underscored his confidence and belief in the concept as it will strengthen BIMSTEC connectivity under trade cooperation for the sustainable economic recovery of Nepal. Thailand, being the lead country for connectivity, will support the economic development of Nepal through assistance in technology transfer under BIMSTEC Technology Facility.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 1 BCG Economy: A Guiding Concept under Thailand's BIMSTEC Chairmanship in 2022-2023

Moderater – Mark Perin

Technical Lead, Himalayan Circular Economy Forum (HiCEF), Nepal Economic Forum Mark Perin, the moderator of the panel, set the context to the webinar by highlighting the increasingly negative impact of human activities around the world, a significant proportion of which can be attributed to the way economies around the world work. He drew similarities between the BCG framework of Thailand and the GRID initiative in Nepal, both of which aim to shape growth so that economies recover sustainably.

Overall, Mark underscored the need of addressing wider systematic issues through policies to support innovation and technological transfer to transition into a green economy.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 1 YouTube Video

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Introduction Panel 2 BCG Economy: A Guiding Concept under Thailand's BIMSTEC Chairmanship in 2022-2023

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

This panel focused on the startup ecosystems and innovation of Thailand and Nepal, with discussions centered on topics such as the startup culture, the future of startups, as well as entrepreneurship and innovation in both countries. The speakers from both sides shared their knowledge and lessons learned in building an efficient and effective startup ecosystem and promoting innovation in a sustainable manner.

Panel 2 Startup Ecosystem and lnnovation in Thailand and Nepal

Opening Remarks – H.E. Mr. Vosita Vorasaph Ambassador of Thailand to Nepal

H.E. Mr. Vosita Vorasaph started the panel by stating that both the Thai and Nepali innovation agencies are keen on fostering entrepreneurship and growth in their respective countries, as evidenced by the fact that both agencies approached the Royal Thai Embassy to reach out to each other and explore possible collaboration. He further stressed that the topics of startups and innovation are key drivers of the economy. Considering this, the Embassy believes that there are tremendous opportunities for Thailand and Nepal to exchange best practices among policy-makers, strengthen science, technology, and innovation cooperation, as well as expand and ramp up partnerships between firms and research institutes.

Overall, he strongly underscored the need to promote exchanges of experts and professionals and develop joint talent and entrepreneurship.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 2 Startup Ecosystem and lnnovation in Thailand and Nepal

Sunil Babu Shrestha

Vice Chancellor, Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) Sunil Babu Shrestha acknowledged the importance of innovation and highlighted the role that NAST is playing in promoting innovation in Nepal. As such, NAST collaborated with the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology (MoEST) to establish Nepal's National Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy in 2019. The policy was groundbreaking in linking S&T to the country’s overall and sustainable development, and is still in practice. Additionally, NAST is attempting to establish an innovation ecosystem in Nepal by providing research and innovation grants to young innovators and thereby, intensifying activities centered on innovation. For instance, some of the rewarded projects that provided the scope of startup business based on innovation included robot and AI (hospital service robot, dead body carrying robot van and disinfection robot during COVID-19).

Further, Sunil also stressed the significance of strengthening international collaboration through science diplomacy, as he believes that the 21st century is the century of science, technology, and innovation supremacy. Lastly, he emphasized the importance of connecting Nepali scientists with Thai scientists and expanding the two countries' connection based on knowledge enhancement and innovation-based economic opportunities.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 2 Startup Ecosystem and lnnovation in Thailand and Nepal

Jittrapon Jirakulsomchok

Innovation Developer, Innovation for the Economy Department, National Innovation Agency of Thailand Jittrapon elaborated on his experience of promoting innovation and start-ups in Thailand. He currently runs two schemes: a granting scheme that distributes government grants without exchange in equity or ownership of intellectual property (IP) and an accelerator program through SpaceF, Thailand’s first global food tech incubator and accelerator, which welcomes global start-ups to establish businesses in Thailand.

His organization, the National Innovation Agency of Thailand (NIA), aspires to be the key stakeholder in advancing national innovation toward sustainable values in Thailand. Because of the work that NIA is doing around building national innovation sustainably, the agency’s ecosystem that started with five to six start-ups and players has now increased to hundreds. Jittraporn attributed this success to Thailand’s government-backed initiatives and policies. He specifically highlighted the establishment of the National Startup Committee (NSC) by the government of Thailand in 2016, which was significant in promoting start-ups. The NSC brings together relevant agencies from different ministries, including the NIA, to fulfill its objective of strengthening the startup ecosystem through awareness, ease of doing business, incentives, and support.

While the Government of Thailand is working on building an enabling environment for start-ups through such efforts, Jittraporn also shed light on how the sector continues to face challenges such as firm capability, human capability, innovation opportunity and regionalization, unification, infrastructure and utilization, regulatory hacking and innovation, internationalization of innovation in Thailand, and immunity to the global challenge. However, there are incubation and accelerated programs in the public and private sectors, including mentorship programs, hackathons, and entrepreneurial university schemes, that are designed to address these issues. Budgets have also been set aside to mobilize people towards entrepreneurship from different regions of Thailand.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 2 Startup Ecosystem and lnnovation in Thailand and Nepal

Rupesh Shrestha

Assistant Professor, Kathmandu University School of Management & Co-founder, Idea Studio, Nepal Rupesh Shrestha gave an overview of Nepal’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and described the entrepreneur system in Nepal as informal.

He stated that the ecosystem in Nepal faces institutional voids, resource gaps, and structural constraints, which are common and evident in any developing economy. Despite such challenges, he noted the progress Nepal has made in building a startup ecosystem through purposive intervention.

Rupesh further explained that since there are market players in the ecosystem, informal level interactions are taking place through the exchange of ideas, information, and networks connecting with limited available resources, which poses challenges to the entrepreneurial ecosystem as these need to happen at a formal level.

Despite this challenge, he argued that the high level of awareness among youth about entrepreneurship opportunities has attracted them to the ecosystem, but despite the abundance of opportunities, prerequisites such as investment still face challenges caused by institutional voids. He suggested entrepreneurship and innovation can be taken to a larger scale through the formalization of institutions through the implementation of an umbrella policy that incentivizes and prioritizes entrepreneurship and innovation within the resources available. He also emphasized the need for government investment in the ecosystem which can be seen in India, Bangladesh, Thailand, and Rwanda. This needs to be a top-down approach where the government not only invests in the ecosystem but also incentivizes. To propel innovation and entrepreneurship, the government should develop policies through collaboration among ministries, the private sector, public sector, and innovation sector.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 2 Startup Ecosystem and lnnovation in Thailand and Nepal

Achyut Koirala Founder, Tree Ventures, Nepal Achyut Koirala underlined the problems regarding entrepreneurship in Nepal. He outlined three barriers to innovation in Nepal. The first problem is that people have ideas, but experienced mentors lack the expertise and knowledge to teach and guide them. As a result, the majority of start-ups fail in the initial stages. The second problem lies due to insufficient funding for startups. Achyut emphasized that startups require venture capitalists, which can be achieved by the government’s encouragement to incentivize the business community to invest in new ideas. The third problem is that Nepal has a shallow pool of experienced entrepreneurs with global success who can teach or mentor local Nepali entrepreneurs. As a result, it is difficult for local entrepreneurs to take their startups global.

The problems highlighted by Achyut illustrate the current state of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Nepal. Nepali startups have limited risk-taking capacity to expand their operations, and henceforth, Nepal does not have any unicorns (private startups with a value of over USD 1 billion or NPR 122.08 billion) yet.

Having talked about the issues facing the Nepali startup ecosystem, he closed his remarks on a hopeful note, acknowledging that a large number of incubators have been established in Nepal, which will likely promote entrepreneurship and innovation in the coming days. However, to make these incubators effective, there must be launchpads that allow experienced entrepreneurs from other countries to teach technical skills and knowledge to local entrepreneurs. The upcoming entrepreneur ecosystem needs collaborative support from universities, government, and the private sector; only then can innovation and knowledge thrive in Nepal.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 2 Startup Ecosystem and lnnovation in Thailand and Nepal

Suman Shakya Co- founder, Nepal Entrepreneurs' Hub, Nepal Citing his experiences as an entrepreneur, Suman Shakya stated that while Nepali people come up with several innovative ideas, those ideas often lack commercial viability. He further explained that one of the key reasons why start-ups fail in Nepal and throughout the world is the lack of a strong foundation. Considering this, he emphasized the need for mentoring and support in making an idea commercially viable. Likewise, he also added that the minimum Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) threshold of NPR 50 million is a major challenge for start-ups, and despite the government’s assurances over the last four years, the threshold has not been lowered yet, which continues to pose hindrances to start-ups.

Aside from these challenges, he highlighted that Nepal lacks a definition for start-ups because of which they are often grouped with other companies in terms of registration and investments. However, he informed that the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are currently discussing how to define what a startup is and what kind of financial support it will require.

Lastly, he also touched upon the aspect of community building in the startup ecosystem. Community building is important for understanding how businesses operate. Hence, he vouched for the creation of an innovation centre with technical resources as well as examples of successful innovations of the past. He further added that institutional backing was essential as start-ups and the private sector have limited capacity. He, thus, reiterated the need for collective efforts from all concerned parties to discuss the areas that need to be focused on and for division of responsibility.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 2 Startup Ecosystem and lnnovation in Thailand and Nepal

Moderator: Dr. Pavitra Pandey

CEO, Catalyst Technology and Herveda & Advisory Board Member, Nepal Economic Forum Pavitra Pandey, the moderator of the panel, set the context for the webinar by highlighting the importance of startups as a means for innovation and productivity for economic development. She drew the panel’s attention to systematic challenges for entrepreneurs, by highlighting policy support to facilitate startup ecosystems. She emphasized two important points majorly; the first was the need to create a platform to bring individual entrepreneurs together to share expertise and experience, and the second was the need for launchpads for entrepreneurs to seek funding to implement their innovative ideas.

To conclude, she underscored the possibility and potential of technical collaboration through technology transfer between Nepal and Thailand in promoting startup culture.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 2 YouTube Video

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Introduction Panel 3 Business and SDGs

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

This session demonstrated how businesses in Thailand and Nepal are applying the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to their business conduct. It also served as a platform to share best practices and lessons learned in achieving sustainable business practices, as well as to explore ways to promote the global sustainability agenda together.

Panel 3 Business and SDGs

Opening Remarks: H.E. Mr. Vosita Vorasaph Ambassador of Thailand to Nepal H.E. Mr. Vosita Vorasaph started his remarks by mentioning how both Nepal and Thailand are making progress and remain committed in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He also talked about multi-stakeholder partnerships being key, and how businesses have played an important role in advancing the SDGs, as part of the whole-of-society approach. He added that Thailand is very fortunate to have the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy (SEP) as a guiding concept in achieving the SDGs. Thailand has introduced the “SEP for SDGs Partnerships” to exchange knowledge, experiences and best practices with neighbouring countries and countries in other regions.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 3 Business and SDGs

Opening Remarks: Sushil Kumar Lamsal

Joint Secretary, South East Asia and the Pacific Division, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nepal Joint Secretary Sushil Kumar Lamsal talked about how it was important to take stock of the new economic trends in Thailand and Nepal especially on how evolving sustainable business practices are likely to promote the global sustainability agenda. He claimed that sustainable business has been gaining traction in Nepal and that Nepal should follow in Thailand’s footsteps towards the Bio, Circular Green (BCG) economic model. He also mentioned the need of promoting collaboration and cooperation between Nepal and Thailand in sectors such as tourism, services, and energy. He believed it would foster better economic growth and lead to new jobs and income rise in both countries.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 3 Business and SDGs

Opening Remarks: Sujeev Shakya Chair, Nepal Economic Forum Sujeev set the context of the discussion highlighting the role of the private sector as a means for achieving Sustainable Development Goals. He emphasised the responsibility of private businesses in achieving goal nine of the SDG; Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure. He further discussed emerging concepts in the business ecosystem and linkages between renewable energy, digitalization and knowledge management. He ended his note depicting the importance of private sector led innovation and the need to create a conducive environment to encourage new ideas to promote SDGs.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 3 Business and SDGs

Anouk Tamrakar Versteeg Co-Founder and CEO of Timro Concept Store and Manufacturing Consultant Anouk, who worked directly with artisans and supply chains, shared her experiences and the challenges she faced in her field. She highlighted how her company aimed to pay livable wages and income but the concept of a “livable income” was challenging because of the diversity throughout Nepal and the Nepali people. She argued that there is no one average income that is livable for everyone and provided examples from her own company.

She shed light on the complications in creating a sustainable supply chain. She claimed that Nepal’s craft industry has vast amounts of natural and high-value resources, however, they are all processed in India. She informed that barely any processing is done in Nepal as these resources are sent to other countries to be turned into final products and then imported back into Nepal to be sold at higher prices. She further mentioned that the production price in Nepal was extremely high, which made it difficult for Nepali products to compete with foreign products inside and outside Nepal. She advocated for policies to facilitate the craft industry by allowing processing to be carried out in Nepal, thereby stimulating the local economies in different parts of the country.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 3 Business and SDGs

Ayshanie Medagangoda UNDP Resident Representative for Nepal Ayshanie elaborated on how the post-COVID-19 era has delayed sustainable development in Nepal and the South Asia region. She claimed that COVID-19 disrupted all three dimensions of sustainable development, i.e. people, economies, and nature. While progress towards attaining the Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs) was already slow in the pre-pandemic era, the pandemic further pushed it back. She mentioned how 124 million additional people face extreme poverty following the COVID-19 pandemic, and how 255 million jobs have been lost, and 1.6 billion informal sector workers have been negatively affected. These problems have made governments around the world rethink their economic priorities at the expense of the SDGs. Ayshanie believed that the private sector has a humanitarian responsibility beyond corporate social responsibility in helping improve capacities and achieving the SDGs. She also emphasised the importance of disseminating data regarding indicators of SDGs at subnational and local levels, as data is imperative to ensure that planning, budgeting, and execution follow the line of SDGs. She ended her remarks by claiming that it is not only the government’s responsibility to finance the SDGs but also the civil society’s and the private sector’s. She also highlighted that the government would be able to get the private sector on board by providing targeted incentives to companies that shift to sustainable practices. Similarly, the government could also provide an enabling environment for businesses working towards SDGs to borrow money and continue their operations smoothly.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 3 Business and SDGs

Dr Netithor Praditsar, PhD Executive Assistant to Group CEO; Senior Vice President, Global Partnership for Sustainability and Communication, Charoen Pokphand Group Co. Ltd.; Deputy SecretaryGeneral, Global Compact Network Thailand Dr. Netithor, emphasised the role of the private sector and measures that can be taken to encourage the private sector in taking part in achieving the SDGs and actively promoting it. He looked into the need to integrate the SDGs in core business strategy. He mentioned how raising awareness to help businesses in understanding risk and opportunity, building capacities and capabilities, and building multi stakeholder partnership to facilitate collaboration and collective action would help achieve SDGs. Further, he discusses the possibility of effective implementation of the SDG agenda by the private sector. He stressed on the need for systematic business engagements which mainstream the principle-based approach of SDGs to provide inspiration for good business practices. Likewise policy dialogues to engage responsible businesses on national SDG action and policies will further integrate business strategies with SDG’s.

He highlighted that the scale of ambition and actions of companies of all sizes, sectors and value chains can contribute to achieve SDGs by creating an ecosystem for innovation and knowledge sharing. In a post-pandemic scenario, it is difficult to commit huge financial resources, so businesses need financial and coherent policy support from the government.

Dr. Netithor also discussed the role of the United Nation (UN) in providing support to businesses, mentioning how the ‘United Nation Global Compact Program’ has ensured that the SDGs’ results are tangible. It has helped businesses adopt sustainable business practices. The program aims to assist businesses in achieving net zero carbon emission and waste management through a circular economy along with achieving corporate governance, transparency and accountability.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 3 Business and SDGs

Prabina KC Sales Director, Yeti Airlines Prabina claimed that Yeti Airlines has joined hands with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) to promote the Sustainable Development Goals in Nepal’s aviation sector. As per Prabina, Yeti has been focusing primarily on the 13th and 17th goals of the SDGs.The 13th goal relates to climate action and the 17th goal promotes partnerships. She claimed that Yeti Airlines had been involved in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities since 2007, when they started allocating four rupees from every ticket for donations to Non-Government Organisations (NGOs). She also mentioned how the airline company had been allocating 20 rupees from each flight to Dhangadi for the plantation of trees. As per Prabina, the company’s efforts are still ongoing, as the company renewed its SDG collaboration with the UNDP to plant an additional 50,000 trees within the coming two years.

Prabina elaborated upon actions Yeti Airlines has been taking to fulfil the 13th goal of the SDGs. Starting in 2018, Yeti promised it would airlift a hundred tons of waste from the Everest region through collaborations with various organisations in Kathmandu. As of now, it has airlifted 82,329 kilograms of waste. Furthermore, she mentioned that such waste gets turned into decorative or reusable items. As per Prabina, Yeti Airlines intends to commit to its 100-ton waste collection goal by 2023 at the latest. Yeti is also planning to renew its commitment to become the first carbon-neutral airline by 2023 in collaboration with UNDP.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 3 Business and SDGs

Moderator: Sneh Rajbhandari

Global Shapers, World Economic Forum, Advisory Board member of Nepal Economic Forum Sneh highlighted the timeliness of the discussion as there were only 3200 days left to meet the Sustainable Development Goals. She informed that 7 years have passed since the countries collectively decided to improve the state of the world without leaving anyone behind. She mentioned that data reporting standards were critical when observing the progress on the SDGs. She shared her belief that while there are enough finances, the mindset as well as policy environment require change. She mentioned that despite the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, there are still opportunities to emulate best practices as new generations have started to demand for companies to incorporate sustainability.

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report

Panel 3 YouTube Video

Thailand-Nepal Economic Forum 5 May 2022 | Proceedings Report