<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111413110/63722e8a9c7e80680e0c24cejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2500" height="1667"/><figcaption>Nepali art makes Venetian debut. All photos: RICCARDO TOSETTO.</figcaption></figure>Through the windows of a traditional Venetian building, one catches a glint of bronze. Drawing closer, it begins to take shape: a dramatic knot of hands and feet, in various mudra, with coils curling around and through them. It floats in mid-air, like a yellowish-red mass of cloud – defying gravity, defying expectations.Muted Expressions is one of three components of <a href="http://nepalinvenice.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the inaugural Nepal Pavilion</a> at the 59th Venice Biennale this year. Further in is a loom installation Entangled Thread which weaves together the rich stories and languages of the artisans behind Nepali rugs and textiles. Then in the back is Views of Luxation: 24 canvases that together show a fragmented Garuda – a playful spin on iconography with frames that hold eyes, limbs, beaks, a vajra, all in a puzzling order.Together, the pavilion is titled ‘Tales of Muted Spirits – Dispersed Threads – Twisted Shangri-La’, curated by Sheelasha Rajbhandari and Hit Man Gurung, and exhibited by artist <a href="http://www.tsherinsherpa.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Ang Thserin Sherpa</a>. The project is co-commissioned by Nepal’s Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, the Nepal Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA) and the <a href="https://www.siddharthaartgallery.com/siddhartha-arts-foundation" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Siddhartha Arts Foundation</a>, with lead global support from the <a href="https://rubinmuseum.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Rubin Museum of Art</a> in New York.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111413110/63722e8e9c7e80680e0c24cfjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2500" height="1667"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The ongoing Biennale is hosting 202 exhibitions, and Nepal is among the 82 countries to have <a href="https://www.labiennale.org/en/art/2022/nepal" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">national shows</a>."Ours is a modest pavilion in comparison to other countries, many of whom have permanent pavilions in Venice,” says Chancellor of NAFA, Kanchha Kumar Karmacharya. “Regardless, it is a matter of great pride that Nepal could participate this year. We feel that our pavilion was able to represent the state and history of Himalayan art."In 2019 Nepali art was also featured at the Weltmuseum in Vienna, one of the most renowned ethnographic museums in the world. This was a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepali-art-going-places/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">first-of-its kind exhibition</a> to bring the best of Nepali contemporary and traditional art to the global audience, and the first major exhibition of Nepali art outside Nepal showcasing 100 artworks by 37 Nepali artists, including Ang Tsherin Sherpa.“And because Venice is close by, we also got the opportunity to go to the Biennale that year,” says Sherpa.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111413110/63722e919c7e80680e0c24d0jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2500" height="1667"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>There were several first-time pavilions that year, from Pakistan, Ghana, Madagascar and Malaysia. “We wondered how we could possibly have Nepal participate in the Biennale, especially as it would shed a huge spotlight on Nepali art scene,” Sherpa says of the time.But Sherpa was also aware that it would be difficult to get funding domestically. Given that art is not often prioritised, he was not sure the government would be willing to set aside a budget for the project.In Spring 2021, Sherpa and his gallerist <a href="https://www.rossirossi.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Fabio Rossi</a> approached the Rubin Museum in New York where, back in 2010, he had had his first international exhibition. Sherpa himself was also appointed to the Rubin Museum Board of Trustees this week.Says Jorrit Britschgi, the executive director of Rubin: “When we heard of the project, we realised that it aligned with what we are trying to do as an organisation, to further the understanding, to promote the Himalayan art.”<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111413110/63722e959c7e80680e0c24d1jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2500" height="1667"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The objective of the pavilion is not about a single artist getting the spotlight. With focus on collective memory and the rejection of the fetishisation of a spiritual highland, it is rather that Nepal, as a centre of art, the confluence of multiple ethnicities, indigenous cultures and histories, take ownership of its voice and identity.“The driving question behind the pavilion was what story we wanted to tell about Nepal, and from what angle,” explains Sherpa. “Wherever we are today is rooted in the past.”Indeed, contemporary and traditional art forms co-exist, reacting to one another. To this effect, Sherpa collaborated with local artists Vijay Maharjan, his team, Mt Refuge, Asha Rai and Sunil Bahadur Moktan, to create, with curators Rajbhandari and Gurung, a striking response to the contradictory conceptualisation of Nepal, challenging the stereotype of it being both an impoverished backwater and a Shangri-La.In the last few decades, Sherpa adds, the artwork, metal craft, wood carvings have all been commodified and collectively termed as 'handicraft' and ' souvenirs'. “But that is not who we are, and even though these industries have economic value, that is not what our art is limited to,” he says.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111413110/63722e999c7e80680e0c24d2jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2500" height="1667"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>So, Sherpa worked with sculpture, metal work, painting and weaving, which complete the Pavilion, although he was unable to add wood-carvers due to the tight schedule.But paperwork and bureaucratic dillydallying were not all the challenges. How would they transport a 214 x 68.5 x 61cm bronze sculpture all the way to Venice? Or the 60-year-old traditional loom and tools originally from Chyalsa in <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-building-a-highway-to-everest/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Phaplu</a>? Even the canvases would not be easy cargo.“Further, our space was in an old house where we could not add nails to the walls,” adds Sherpa. “But we were lucky that the place we found looked exactly like a house in Nepal, with exposed bricks and everything. People thought we had created it ourselves, and this worked really well with the works on display as well.”Britschgi agrees: “I think the curators have come up with a great way to display the works and collateral materials in space to highlight the context of the project.”<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111413110/63722e9d9c7e80680e0c24d3jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2500" height="1667"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The venue is a strategic choice as well, on one of the main access points between the two foci of the Biennale: the Venice Giardini and the Arsenale – where visitors passing between the two locations are most likely to see the Nepal Pavilion.“The variety of objects shown directly relates to the diversity and richness of art practices in Nepal,” Beatriz Cifuentes Feliciano, assistant curator of international art at <a href="https://www.tate.org.uk/visit/tate-modern" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Tate Modern in London</a> told Nepali Times. “This is an important introduction to the arts of Nepal for those who might not know the country’s heritage and current artistic trends in detail. For those more familiar, it is a great showcase of the high-quality artworks being produced in Nepal.”She adds, “The visual vocabulary shared across the artworks is unique to the Himalayan region, and as such Nepal has a fantastic opportunity through this Pavilion to capture international audiences hungry to learn.”This is in line with the concept of the pavilion and speaks to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/redefining-art-at-kathmandu-triennale-2077/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the interest in decolonisation of the artistic canon</a>, moving away from the Euro-centric view of art and art history.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111413110/63722ea09c7e80680e0c24d4jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2500" height="1667"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Chancellor Karmacharya also noticed that walking around Venice he was reminded of the narrow streets of Bhaktapur and centres like <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/rebuilding-kathmandu-after-the-1934-quake/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Indra Chok</a> or Mangal Bazar – except for the canals.He says: "One finds art in every corner in Venice, in every wall, even between houses over the canals. In Nepal we need to come up with a mechanism, from the government and the community, to support and appreciate our artists in the country, and showcase their work."At the 60th La Biennale di Venezia in two years' time, Sherpa hopes more Nepalis will take the initiative and participate. He says art is not just for an artist, but also the community.Nepal Pavilion at La Biennale di VeneziaSant’Anna Project Space OneCastello 994Fondamenta Sant’Anna 30122 Venice, Italy.On View till 27 November 2022 Open Tuesday through Sunday, 11AM to 7PM.

Ashish Dhakal

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Nepal’s pavilion afloat in Venice

<figure><img width="2848" height="1518" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114101120/637209089c7e80680e0b551djpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption></figcaption></figure>After being put off by the pandemic, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/art-on-the-city-kathmandu-triennale,3607" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepal’s largest art festival</a> is finally being held from 11 February - 31 March in venues across Kathmandu Valley.The Kathmandu Triennale 2077 will be held in three historically significant clusters of Patan, Kathmandu and Boudha with over 300 artworks by national and international artists, collectives and groups from over 40 other nations, including the Philippines, Haiti, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Myanmar and France. Initially slated for 2020, this will be the fourth edition of the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19783#.WNOrCdJ97IU" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kathmandu International Art Festival</a>, as it was known previously, and second in the Triennale format.  <figure><img width="2692" height="2089" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114101120/6372090b9c7e80680e0b551ejpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The curatorial team is led by Artistic Director Cosmin Costinas and co-curators Sheelasha Rajbhandari and Hit Man Gurung, and the Triennale by its founder Sangeeta Thapa and director Sharareh Bajracharya. The artists will display a diverse range of media from photography, paintings to installations, and explore the issues and themes of displacement, migration, the People’s War, tantrik practices, identity and more.The curatorial concept of the Triennale is rooted in acknowledging the local and indigenous multiplicity of Nepal, moving away from an Eurocentric canon of art history and appreciation. The name of the event, Kathmandu Triennale 2077 is itself a significant shift in locality and perspective. Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/review/art-and-resistance-in-south-asia/">Art and resistance in South Asia</a>, Sushmita Preetha and Priyanka Singh<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/how-art-empowers-nepals-women/">How art empowers Nepal’s women</a>, Anita Bhetwal <figure><img width="1240" height="1754" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114101120/637209109c7e80680e0b551fjpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>“Originally we had planned to call it Kathmandu Triennale 2020, but then the pandemic hit,” explains Sheelasha Rajbhandari. “That called for a reorientation of sorts and rebranding. We risked confusing people outside the country, but it was a step towards reclaiming our place in the art world.” The Gregorian year 2020 is 2077 in the Bikram Sambat calendar officially used in Nepal. It is also a little playful, since 2077 is still half a century off in the future in the Gregorian calendar. “That was intentional,” Rajbhandari says. “It adds a futuristic element to the show, we wanted to consider time not just as a linear concept.” Hit Man Gurung adds that the Triennale is not just an exhibition, but includes research projects, conversation programs, with long and detailed behind-the-scenes preparation, which began in 2019. So, even though the Triennale is taking place in 2022, the number 2077 more closely symbolises the confluence of past, present and future that has shaped it.  “It was a strategic decision,” Gurung adds. “Referring also to the real beginning of the preparation has helped create a unique identity of the Kathmandu Triennale.” <figure><img width="1507" height="896" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114101120/637209139c7e80680e0b5520jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Founder Sangeeta Thapa who also established <a href="https://www.facebook.com/artgallerysiddhartha" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Siddartha Art Gallery</a> describes the two years of pandemic that re-routed the Triennale as "a wrinkle in time”.“Time stood still, and the Triennale stood still. It was important also to acknowledge the stillness, the global suffering,” she says.So the title stayed. In addition to looking back, the curators also continued the practice of inclusive and diverse practices that have shaped the Triennale since its beginnings in 2009.“Artists will cover a diverse range of topics, such as reclaiming identity, decolonisation, voices of the LGBTQ community and activism,” she says. “It is also a reflection of the diversity around us.”<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/Taking-art-out-in-the-open,3250" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepal and Nepali artists</a>, especially those who hail from Indigenous communities, are often left out of the global discourse of art, and sometimes even in the native South Asia. The Triennale aims to celebrate the diverse backgrounds, explore deep-rooted interconnectivity between communities, while rejecting the colonial-inspired exoticisation of the Himalaya as a mythical utopia. <figure><img width="1024" height="429" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114101120/637209179c7e80680e0b5521jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The Triennale does not have a theme as such. Gurung thinks they can be distracting.  “They may give a semblance of specificity, but the artists, their works and the collective behind the Triennale are part of a process, and the discourse initiated or informed should continue beyond the event itself,” he adds. The Triennale will also feature bilingual curatorial cards, says Sharareh Bajracharya, who brings her experience in art education. “We are bringing communities together and making conscious efforts to reach out to schools and people from different disciplines,” she says.Workshops, discussions, talks and tours are integral components of the Triennale, and it will blend virtual and physical events. Online program will take place from 11-28 February before the physical venues open on 1 March 2022.“The online programs will be very discursive and will focus on contextualising the exhibitions, sharing narratives, presenting publications and thoughts by contributors who have worked on the Triennale,” says Bajracharya. <figure><img width="1857" height="2192" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114101120/637209199c7e80680e0b5522jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The first three days of March will feature programs at the venues, which have been chosen for their historical and cultural significance. Exhibitions will take place at the Patan Museum, the Bahadur Shah Baithak, Nepal Art Council, Taragaon Museum and Siddhartha Art Gallery.“We will try to go live on social media so that more people can join,” she adds, “but we do want to maintain the physical exhibition. There will nonetheless also be a 3D documentation of the exhibitions.”Kathmandu Triennale 2077 promises to foster a healthy art ecology based on the exchange of knowledge through an expansive exhibition combined with a strong educational outreach program. It is a non-commercial, non-profit exhibition which is free of charge and open to all.The Triennale is presented by Siddhartha Arts Foundation and Nepal’s Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation, and supported by its partner institution <a href="https://www.para-site.art" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Para Site in Hong Kong</a>, where the precursory exhibition <a href="https://www.para-site.art/exhibitions/garden-of-six-seasons/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Garden of Six Seasons</a> was presented in 2020.The Kathmandu Triennale 2077 is also taking place at a time when Nepal is preparing to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-art-debut-in-venice/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">inaugurate its pavilion at La Biennale di Venezia in April</a>. Co-incidentally, after the Triennale is over, a selection of works will travel to <a href="https://savvy-contemporary.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Savvy Contemporary in Berlin</a> in June. “We had planned to make a travel exhibition before the pandemic, partnering with institutions all over the world,” Gurung recalls. “It is very lucky and encouraging that Berlin is happening now.”<a href="https://www.kathmandutriennale.org/">Kathmandu Triennale 2077</a> 11 February-31 March<a href="https://www.kathmandutriennale.org/">https://www.kathmandutriennale.or</a>

Redefining art at Kathmandu Triennale 2077

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114101116/6372083f9c7e80680e0b54d8jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="4231" height="2744"/><figcaption>The curators of the Nepal Pavilion set to make its Venice debut in April (from left) Hit Man Gurung and Sheelasha Rajbhandari with the exhibiting artist Ang Tserin Sherpa. All photos: CHHIRING DORJE GURUNG.</figcaption></figure>Nepal is set to make its debut at the 59th International Art Exhibition (<a href="https://www.labiennale.org/en">La Biennale di Venezia</a>) with the inaugural pavilion titled ‘Tales of Muted Spirits – Dispersed Threads – Twisted Shangri-La’.The exhibition is curated by Sheelasha Rajbhandari and Hit Man Gurung, and will feature the work of <a href="http://www.tsherinsherpa.com">Ang Tserin Sherpa</a>. The project is co-commissioned by Nepal’s Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, the Nepal Academy of Fine Arts and the Siddhartha Arts Foundation, with support from the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/rubin-to-return-nepal-antiquities/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Rubin Museum of Art</a> in New York.“There is a lot of projection onto Nepal internationally, and often our own voices are not taken into account,” Sherpa told Nepali Times on Friday. “The main agenda behind the<a href="https://www.instagram.com/nepalinvenice/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> Nepal Pavilion </a>is to express these projections and their impacts in our own language, and take ownership of our own voice and identity.”The pavilion will focus on the contradictory conceptualisation of Nepal and the broader Himalayan region brought about by the ‘fetishisation of a spiritual highland’. The multimedia installation will feature Sherpa in collaboration with local artists across the country to expose the intricate reality of interconnected communities with shared experiences of loss and displacement beneath the Shangri-La of bliss and longevity.The Nepal Pavilion will also explore the systemic oppression and exclusion of the many indigenous groups of Nepal by colonial and regional powers in the 19th and 20th century.‘International understanding of Nepali art remains plagued by a Western conceptualisation of the Himalayan region,’ Sherpa said. ‘A pervasive, romanticised vision that frames Nepal as static, pure and untouched by time and modernity. We need to create a space to reflect and re-evaluate these biases.’Indeed, the Himalaya has often been seen through the lens of exotic mysticism that masks the complexities and diversity that give the region its identity. The communities of Nepal are often portrayed as wise but primitive, sturdy but poor, lacking in historical data but rich in spiritual wisdom.“While it has been encouraging and inspiring to see the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/thamels-new-art-street/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">art scene thrive in Nepal</a> at present,” says co-curator Rajbhandari, “there is still a disconnect in dynamics between the global art world and Nepal. Venice can be a platform to mediate that lack of communication.”<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114101120/637208449c7e80680e0b54d9jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2592" height="1944"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/The-world-beyond-thangkas,3139">Ang Tserin Sherpa</a> was born in Kathmandu and trained in thangka painting by his father Master Urgen Dorje. Influenced by his own experience in the Himalayan diaspora and the nomadic history of its peoples, Sherpa’s œuvre has grown to feature a rich vocabulary of Buddhist iconography paired with pop-culture references, to reflect the interplay and tension between what is sacred and secular, and what is traditional and contemporary.This is related also to the increasing commodification of traditional art in Nepal whereby artworks have been reappropriated as mere objects to be marketed and showcased.“These are our cultural heritage as well,” says Sherpa. “We cannot rely on other people to uphold and preserve our culture, our history when we ourselves overlook and forget them.”To renegotiate and reexamine this trend is a larger theme with Sherpa’s work at the Biennale. He adds, “My plan is to collaborate with many Nepali artists and artisans, and initiate a dialogue about our heritage, skills and contemporary art.”The application process for Nepal’s pavilion at the Biennale began in June 2021, and was pushed forward by seed money from the Rubin Museum in New York. But because of various delays, it was not until November that the work finally began.“In Nepal there is no proper support system for artists to get international exposure,” Sherpa added. “But this is not a one-time thing. Funding is still an issue but hopefully this initiative can inspire artists, communities and corporate bodies to be involved together.”This resonates with the burgeoning push for the global visibility of Nepal’s contemporary art scene in the international arena, as was seen at the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepali-art-going-places/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepal Art Now exhibition at the Weltmuseum Wien in 2019</a> and the ongoing <a href="https://www.kathmandutriennale.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kathmandu Triennale 2077</a> set to begin on 11 February.“The inaugural Nepal Pavilion at the Venice Biennale is a historical moment for the contemporary art of the region,” said Fabio Rossi of Rossi &amp; Rossi who represent Ang Tserin Sherpa. “Though Tsherin will be the focus of the pavilion, it will also be a collaborative effort which will bring greater visibility to the diverse artistic and curatorial expressions that can be found in Nepal.”Jorrit Britschgi, the Executive Director of the Rubin Museum of Art, believes that the pavilion will help to raise the Nepali profile as a vibrant country for the production, promotion and presentation of contemporary art.He said in a statement: ‘The Nepal Pavilion will provide artists with an invaluable international platform to showcase their work whilst positioning the country to contribute to a broader narrative on contemporary art that moves away from a Eurocentric art history and discourse.’First founded in 1895, La Biennale di Venezia is one of the most visited art exhibitions in the world today. The Nepal Pavilion will be presented at Sant’Anna Project Space One, located on Fondamenta S. Anna in the area between the Arsenale and Giardini – the two main venues of the Biennale, which will run from 2 April through 27 November 2022.Ang Tserin Sherpa is hopeful of the precedent this attendance sets. “It is not that there are fewer artists in Nepal or less production of art, but that there are fewer avenues,” he said. “Venice is a first and I believe this can inspire our second involvement to be an even more organic event, bringing together communities, artists and institutions.”

Nepal art debut in Venice

With Saturday's deadline on Malaysia’s announcement of new criteria for selecting private recruiting agencies for migrant workers having lapsed, Nepal and Bangladesh have rejected the conditions.
The Malaysian move three weeks ago came in the aftermath of deadly GenZ riots in September, when Nepal’s interim government does not have designated heads in the Foreign Ministry and the Labour Ministry.
Interim Prime Minister Sushila Karki instructed the Labour Ministry to examine the implications of the standards and recommend appropriate steps to address them, but it has said it cannot send Nepali workers to Malaysia based on those criteria.
“In line with Nepal’s foreign employment policy and regulations, we are currently unable to accept or implement the proposed criteria,” says Pitambar Ghimire, spokesperson at the Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Security in Kathmandu.
In response to the government’s request for their opinion on the Malaysian stipulation, the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies (NAFEA) has also flatly rejected the criteria, saying it could create a harmful syndicate and restrict fair competition, violate Nepal’s Constitution and laws, and increase recruitment fees that workers must pay.
On 25 October, the Malaysian Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent letters to the governments of Nepal, Bangladesh, Burma, Pakistan and India with 10 criteria meant to ‘rationalise the number of licensed private recruitment agencies permitted to facilitate recruitment and placement of workers to Malaysia’.
The proposed criteria include: at least five years of operating experience, deployment of 3,000 workers in the past three years of operation, experience sending workers to at least three countries, valid licenses and good conduct certificates, five employer testimonials, operating their own training and accommodation centres, and even a requirement for the staffing agency to have a 10,000 sq m office maintained for three years.
“We have communicated our views to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and have proposed discussing various labour related matters with our Malaysian counterparts diplomatically through bilateral dialogue and negotiations including renewal of the Nepal-Malaysia labour agreement,” Pitamber Ghimire said.
NAFEA has urged the government to prevent this measure from moving forward using diplomatic channels, and has held &nbsp;several gatherings and press conferences opposing the proposal since the Malaysian letter was received three weeks ago.
“We have taken commitment letters from members that they will not be engaged in activities related to the syndicate,” said Sujit Shrestha of NAFEA. “And if they break the commitment, they will face consequences including the revocation of their NAFEA membership. These letters also send a strong message to the government that this is irrevocably and collectively rejected by the industry.”
Bangladesh has also not accepted the proposal despite the 15 November deadline to send a list of recruiters that meet the criteria. That in itself would have been an impossible task to complete to begin with even if the government had accepted the proposal.&nbsp;
According to media reports, Bangladesh has sent a letter to the Malaysian government requesting that three of the proposed criteria be relaxed. This includes flexibility regarding the requirements for a 10,000 sq ft office, a dedicated training center, and the condition of having deployed 3,000 workers in the last five years. Despite the official request to Malaysian authorities, the Bangladeshi Government has also been collecting applications from recruiters who meet Malaysia’s proposed criteria, raising confusions about the contradictory stance.&nbsp;
Just like NAFEA, the recruitment association in Bangladesh, the Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA) has also outright rejected the proposal including in a letter to the Bangladeshi government, calling the criteria ‘unprecedented and exclusionary, unreasonable, discriminatory and syndicate-driven &nbsp;that would effectively disqualify 99% of legitimate agencies from participation’.&nbsp;
Now that the ball is back in Malaysia’s court and the proposal has not gained much support from two of the major origin countries, it will be interesting to see how they respond.

Nepal, Bangladesh reject Malaysian conditions

Nepal’s September protests and regime change created two major unexpected costs that Prime Minister Sushila Karki’s interim government is scrambling to deal with: reconstruction of destroyed government buildings, and holding elections on 5 March.
The buck stops at the desk of economist and former bureaucrat Minister of Finance Rameshore Khanal about where and how to spend limited resources.
“Rameshore-ji is a fresh face and the right person for the role. He is capable and interested, and he knows the system,” says Kalpana Khanal of the Policy Research Institute (PRI).
But Minister Khanal has to grapple not just with the immediate budgeting needs for elections and reconstruction, but also initiate longer term measures to restore investor confidence badly dented by arson and vandalism of 9 September, and mend the economy.
Immediately after taking office, he had set up a three-member task force to cut programs and free up budget to meet immediate expenses.
“We have to hold elections and we have to reconstruct. Both need money, and they are equal priorities for us,” said Ministry of Finance spokesperson Tanka Prasad Pandey. “It is important to find these funds internally, and not look to aid from abroad.”
But Minister Khanal flew into heavy flak last week for his decision to restore investor confidence by giving a strategic capital gains tax break to Nepal’s only foreign private equity fund.
The Mauritius-based Dolma Impact Fund has invested venture capital into Nepal’s hydropower, construction and biotech sectors as well as solar farms and hospitals. It said in a statement that its capital gains are only taxable in Mauritius as per its double-taxation avoidance agreement with Nepal, which predates and overrides the Income Tax Act of 2002 subsequent to the Treaty Act 1990.
“When you have investors from all over the world, you have to choose a domicile and Mauritius is probably the most popular for development finance institutions due to strong governance, AML, and treaties with developing countries like Nepal,” Tim Dolma Investment told Nepali Times on the phone from London.
He added: “Last June we applied for the government to uphold its treaty with Mauritius which under all country laws including Nepal treaty act supersedes any disagreement with domestic laws. But there were delays. It was when the new government decided to uphold the treaty that the whole hoo-hah started.”
Leaks to the media possibly by bureaucrats fearful of being hauled over the coals by the CIAA has set financial circles abuzz for the past week. The Internal Revenue Office refused to grant the exemption, citing the 2002 Act.
Prime Minister Sushila Karki asked Chief Secretary Eaknarayan Aryal for clarification, and learnt that the Cabinet’s decision was not official since it was not recorded in the minutes.
“We were raising a fund that could have brought $1 billion in for energy and we had to stop it due to the reputational damage to Nepal by not upholding an international treaty,” said Gocher.
Gocher added: “Under Nepal’s Treaty Act, if there is ever disagreement between an international treaty and domestic law, then international treaty takes precedence so it is crystal clear and the way international treaties are dealt with all over the world.”
Some experts worry that gifting the fund such perks can set a dangerous precedent and a loss in tax revenue. Professor and economist Pushkar Bajracharya says: “The most important thing is to have a consistent policy about tax cuts and not do it piece-by-piece. Besides, the evidence just isn’t strong that tax cuts lead to higher investment, or more jobs.”
Others hark back to the capital gains dispute of the sale of Ncell ownership, which went to the Supreme Court and all the way to the international tribunal in The Hague.
Khanal has said privately that he is responding to the damage to Nepal’s investment climate from the dramatic visuals beamed worldwide of an international hotel chain and government buildings set ablaze in September. Western embassies are also said to be lobbying to allow Dolma tax exemption and smooth profit repatriation.
There are tradeoffs. Private equity funds like Dolma could funnel foreign funds more efficiently towards successful Nepali companies than the government, which is slowed down by many layers of bureaucracy. The downstream multiplier effect of such investments would outweigh taxes to the government since much of it is misused and wasted.
For example, the government is not taxing income in FY 25/26 generated by the US-funded $697 million Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) projects to build transmission lines and upgrade highways.
Strategic tax exemptions do provide incentives to investors, to make sure these projects are carried out effectively, which in turn helps Nepal’s development which has been affected by corruption and mismanagement.
The main demand of the GenZ protests that led to the downfall of the government coalition two months ago was to control corruption and make government more efficient so there is investment and job creation. The interim government seems to be responding to that sentiment.
The Dolma issue has distracted from the larger and longer-term need to reform the country’s financial systems and streamline public expenditure. How to reduce corruption and spur development is going to be the main agenda for elections, and the criteria by which voters will select candidates and parties.
TASKED FORCE
Shortly after Rameshore Khanal was appointed he set up a three member task force made up of the heads of Budget and Program, Foreign Aid, and Revenue Management Divisions. The team sent through the budget culling items DOGE-style — projects deemed ‘inadequately prepared,’ ‘fragmented,’ or ‘included through political pressure.’
Khanal hoped to save up to Rs100 billion by cutting all projects less than Rs30 million. However, such a slash and burn method would hurt rural and remote area projects for health and education more, and much bigger corruption-ridden infrastructure projects would be unscathed.&nbsp;
Says Bajracharya, “There are thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of low-return programs in the budget that are there because of political or personal influence. But the criteria for cutting them needs to be properly defined. Doing it arbitrarily is unacceptable.”&nbsp;
Kalpana Khanal of the Policy Research Institute was involved in the taskforce, and explains: “The decision to mobilise internal funds is a pragmatic move to fund elections and reconstruction.”
However, she also singles out the massively-funded Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport as being particularly problematic: “Time and cost overruns are historically the norm, and many are ‘vote bank’ projects that are politically motivated rather than done for return on investment.”
For example, politicians use their influence to build roads to their home districts to secure popularity even if the funds would have been better spent elsewhere.
“Another problem is the amount of funds that are transferred randomly for things that outside the budget,” continues Khanal.
Bajracharya adds, “While reconstruction and elections are big financial commitments, Nepal could easily find the funds. Cancelling low impact programs is a good move by the ministry of finance, and another option could have been to raise customs or taxes by a few percent. The main problem is that a huge amount of funds are lost to corruption.”
Kalpana Khanal and Dilli Raj Khanal co-authored a technical report last year titled Improving Public Expenditure System in Nepal: Critical Areas of Reform which did a forensic examination of such wasteful projects.
The conclusion: recommendation to have stricter accountability measures in place to check the actual use of funds and merit-based appointments in the National Planning Commission, Ministry of Finance, and the CIAA.
The technocrats in Prime Minister Karki’s cabinet resonate with the latter point. Nepal is so entrenched in the ‘afno manche’ culture of nepotism and connections that it has become the norm.
The report also refers to the well-known off-budget ‘re-allocations’ of big outlays during the seventh and first months of the fiscal year that undermine in-built check and balance. Almost a quarter of the budget is spent in the last month, which results in low quality and low impact work.
The authors call for reward and punishment systems to prevent these practices. The CIAA could also be supercharged to build transparency into the digital Line Ministry Budget Information System, instead of being an agency for political vendetta.

Nepal needs to use its money better

At the opening plenary of COP30, which stands for the convolutedly named 30th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), in Belém on Tuesday, Nepal brought up the threats to the Himalayan watershed. Nepal’s delegate Rajendra Prasad Mishra, Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also spoke on behalf of Bhutan and Bangladesh after the three countries formally called for tripling grant-based adaptation financing from 2015 levels to at least $120 billion per year by 2030, and to ensure a more simplified, scaled-up access to finance their National Determined Contributions (NDCs) to reduce emissions and adapt to climate impacts. “Bhutan has already graduated from Least Developed Country (LDC) status, while Bangladesh and Nepal are in the process of graduation,” said Mishra. “Graduation reflects development progress, but does not reduce our climate vulnerability nor the scale of support required to safeguard development gains.” The Loss &amp; Damage Fund is also finally coming into effect, so countries can now apply for $5-20 million to make up for damage from climate impact. But claiming damage and linking disasters to climate breakdown has not been an easy process. “When a 200MW hydropower plant is destroyed by a glacial flood, it is a big loss for Nepal’s GDP. Every megawatt costs us $20 million to build,” says energy entrepreneur Kushal Gurung. “Our lobbying should be top-notch, and hydropower can make a good case for us.” Belém marks the tenth anniversary of the Paris Agreement that brought the world together to pledge to keep global average temperature to ‘well below’ 2°C above pre-industrial levels and limit it to 1.5°C.&nbsp; COP has also returned to Brazil after 30 years of the Rio Conference in 1995. Since then there have been numerous summits, which have been criticised for being just hot air and being hosted by fossil-fuel exporting countries like UAE and Uzbekistan. Belém was selected because it is a gateway to the Amazon, but Brazil has now also become a major oil producer after new offshore finds. A recent report shows that compared to 2019, the world is set to reduce its emissions by 12% in 2035 if countries are to implement their Nationally Determined Contributions even though the figure needs to go up to 40% to meet temperature targets. There has been progress. Before the Paris Agreement the world was on a path for 4°C increase during this century, and this has now come down to 2.5°C because of the clean energy transition. But a lot more needs to be done to meet the Paris 1.5°C target. “This progress is proof that multilateralism is working, it is delivering,” Manjeet Dhakal of the Climate Analytics South Asia told us from Belém. “Having said that, it is simply not enough. Emissions need to go down much further, and a lot of it is tied to developed countries providing climate finance to do so.” Many developing countries have adopted ‘conditional NDCs’ which means their emission reduction targets cannot be met without international climate finance. In its third NDC, Nepal set a target of a 17.1% reduction in net greenhouse gas emissions and 26.8% by 2035. But achieving that has a price tag of &nbsp;$73.74 billion, with much of it from international climate finance. UNDERFINANCED However, the climate for climate finance is getting worse. The United States has exited from the Paris Agreement for the second time under President Trump, and there are cutbacks in foreign aid by European funders. Even so, the EU has committed to reducing its emissions by 90% in the next 15 years, 85% of which will be domestic emission cuts. The silver lining in all this is that the leadership in climate action is increasingly being taken by Nepal’s neighbours China and India with both investing heavily in renewable energy. China is the world leader in solar panels, wind turbines and electric vehicles, and Nepal has already taken strategic advantage of this.&nbsp; With expensive hydropower plants increasingly at risk from glacial lake outburst floods, experts say Nepal must diversify its energy mix and invest in solar power which has 10 times more potential than hydropower at 432 gigawatts with over 300 days of sunshine a year. Solar farms can also power pump storage, which are cheaper and quicker to build.&nbsp; China has drastically reduced the cost of photovoltaic cells, making such schemes more feasible. Nepal just needs to ease up its restrictive domestic energy policies, boost investment and resist geopolitical pressure on electricity generation. “First, we need to increase the cap on solar energy from 10% to 30%, and next, the bidding process should be made easier, or just have the first past the post system like that for hydropower,” says Kushal Gurung. The disadvantage of solar power is that it generates only daytime energy, but this can be solved with grid-scale battery storage or pump storage. But first, the government needs to fix the rate for solar purchase so that entrepreneurs are incentivised. “This is not happening because our government officials and engineers are comfortable dealing with hydropower, and are not just updated about the latest advances,” says Gurung. “As a result, we have no clear policies when it comes to solar.” Hydropower has become one of the biggest industries in Nepal with an installed capacity of over 3,400MW and the government’s target is to produce 28,500MW in the next ten years. But the recent climate disasters have made it clear that relying only on hydropower alone is too risky. The Nepal-Tibet glacial flood in July destroyed and damaged four hydropower plants and substations along the Bhote Kosi, and last September’s floods slashed the country’s total generation by half. Nepal now needs to build on the widespread adoption of battery-powered vehicles by extending it to electric public transport and for household appliances like stoves, rice cookers and refrigerators. Not only would this reduce Nepal’s per capita carbon footprint, but it would also reduce the country’s annual Rs300 billion petroleum import bill. At global platforms like UNFCCC, it is easy even for individual developed countries to get lost without an alliance. Now that Nepal is graduating from LDC status, it needs to have strong partners with a common goal to move forward in international negotiations. Says Kushal Gurung: “We won’t have privilege that came with LDC status anymore, which means climate finance will be even more limited. But there are a few things we can urgently do on our own like regulating the carbon credit market.”&nbsp; This article is brought to you by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/" target="_blank">Nepali Times</a>, in collaboration with <a href="https://inpsjapan.com/en/" target="_blank">INPS Japan</a> and <a href="https://sgi-peace.org/" target="_blank">Soka Gakkai International</a>, in consultative status with UN ECOSOC.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20251118101116_30c3782f9c09219bf1c249b51483a3cfb7a53a06d117d2aebd23ca7080d12758.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20251118101116_30c3782f9c09219bf1c249b51483a3cfb7a53a06d117d2aebd23ca7080d12758" data-rendition-name="original" width="680" height="103" loading="lazy" alt="Nepali Times SDG"> </figure>

Global warning bell in Belém

As people move out of Nepal’s trans-Himalayan districts, their faiths migrate with them to the cities and all over the world. The ancient animist faith of Bon Po predates the advent of Buddhism in Tibet, and its last remaining priests and devotees are found in villages like Lubra in Mustang and Samling in Dolpo. But as those villages empty out, Bon centres can now be found as far afield as Kathmandu, New York and Tokyo. The first Triten Norbutse Monastery was founded in Tibet in the 14th century by the Bon Master Shen Nyima Gyaltsen. Its monastery in Nepal is below the forested hills of Ichangu on the western outskirts of Kathmandu.&nbsp; Many are surprised to hear that there is a Bon centre in Kathmandu, and that it is located so close to Swayambhu. This Triten monastery was established by Yongzin Tenzin Namdak Rinpoche only 40 years ago to cater to adherents of the faith who lived in the capital. True to its reverence for nature, the shrine is verdant, with plants and flowers amidst a contrasting backdrop of Kathmandu’s ugly urban sprawl below. The monastery practices Bon culture and passes on teachings to students as well, who after completing 15 years of study graduate to become ‘Gese’.&nbsp; It is believed that Bon Po was brought to Nepal from Tibet by Tonpa Shenrab Miwoche. Over the centuries, Bon and Buddhism have become syncretic in Dolpo and Mustang, despite the differences in their belief systems. Followers worship nature and consider the human body, speech and mind as jewels. The human body is said to be composed of five elements: earth, water, fire, air, and the cosmos.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20251113111148_ce5d50db6757c4f5a7259c10d2879ee5f5b7b990e987bf3734378ba464afc9d5.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20251113111148_ce5d50db6757c4f5a7259c10d2879ee5f5b7b990e987bf3734378ba464afc9d5" data-rendition-name="original" width="5712" height="4284" loading="lazy" alt="The Bon Po way of life NT"> </figure>  The Bon faith was much more widespread during the reigns of Nyathi Chenpo, the first king of Tibet to Namri Srongchen, the 32nd king. But it was after King Srongchen Gompo that Buddhism started making inroads on the plateau, and spread also in the Himalayan rimlands. There are also Bon followers in Humla, Jumla, Baglung, Mugu, Kaski and Chitwan, as well as in the United States and 50 other countries, indicating the movement of people within Nepal and outside.&nbsp; The Bon religion believes in reincarnation and that everything, including positive and negative thoughts are a result of past life karma. Buddhism focuses more on attaining Nirvana, a state of no suffering, where the subject is released from all his/her karmas. Bon has also inducted some Tantric practices and rituals, some of which are in parts similar, yet still different from Buddhism.&nbsp; “In Buddhist culture, circumambulation of shrines is clockwise, but in Bon culture, circumambulation is in an anticlockwise direction,” explains Chhiring Lama of Triten Norbutse Monastery. “The main Bon mantra is Om Ma Tri Mu Ye Sa Le Du, while followers of Buddhism chant Om Mani Padme Hum. Buddhism emphasises enlightenment by meditation and moral behaviour, while Bon beliefs centre on nature and ancestor worship, and placating the spirits. In religious texts, it is mentioned that there were 1,008 Buddhas throughout time. Tonpa Shenrab is believed to be the 8th Buddha, and Bon practitioners are guided by his teachings contained in 140 sacred writings known as Kangyur and 300 more scriptures known as Katen.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20251113111152_9813ce72805941af4b3bfb3c80c7e45ffc8aca4f2612eb967e84204f3a28bc07.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20251113111152_9813ce72805941af4b3bfb3c80c7e45ffc8aca4f2612eb967e84204f3a28bc07" data-rendition-name="original" width="4032" height="3024" loading="lazy" alt="The Bon Po way of life NT"> </figure>  “We worship nature and its elements and the prayer flags contain religious texts and when the wind blows through it we consider it a prayer,” says Chhiring Lama. “We also worship ponds for the water and consider fire as a sacred element as well. We also consider snakes sacred, therefore worship ponds, considering them as the place of residence.” The interdependence between human beings and nature is clearly depicted through such traditions and practices which carry relevance today as the planet faces the crisis of climate breakdown.&nbsp; Important gods worshiped include Satrig Ersang, Shenlha Okar, Sangpo Bumtri, and Tonpa Shenrab Miwoche. But what is similar to Buddhism is an offering known as ‘torma’, a cone shaped ritual offering made from flour dough. Many Bon faithful are vegetarian, or abstain from meat during festivals.&nbsp; Over time, the rise of Buddhism in Tibet and beyond overshadowed Bon, pushing many of its practices to the margins. Yet, the tradition continues to live on, carried by those who see in it a deep connection to nature, the spirit world, and the roots of Tibetan culture.&nbsp; In many ways, the endurance of Bon is a reminder that even the quietest faiths hold timeless truths, waiting to be remembered and valued. Followers of Bon today are far fewer, and the knowledge about its traditions is not as widespread.&nbsp; “As time goes on, people adopt rituals and cultures that are more convenient to their daily lives,” says Chhiring Lama. “But that means forgetting or leaving behind one’s indigenous and ancestral roots.”

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The Bon Po way of life