USAID says Nepal’s support sector performance is better than expected

The United States Agency for International Development said its support for the economic sector, especially agriculture, had produced better-than-expected results in Nepal, with output increasing by 139 percent.

USAID held a meeting in Kathmandu on Thursday to assess the level of Nepal-U.S. partnership and discuss achievements.

Officials said that among the five key sectors supported by USAID, including health, education, democracy and governance, economic growth and environment, and resilience, the agriculture and small business sector performed better than expected.

USAID reported that projects supported by the agency recorded sales of agricultural products worth $62 million.

USAID’s growth efforts aim to increase the income-generating potential of the poorest, expand access to employment for young people, and improve farmers’ incomes and food security.

USAID’s Economics Department works in the irrigation and agriculture sectors. The Department develops and modernizes the agricultural sector and helps the government improve its policies.

The department is mainly involved in tourism, agro-food processing, and digital services. USAID focuses on rice, corn, lentils, poultry, and goats in the agricultural sector.

It supports five key sectors in Nepal with $125 million annually.

Nepal and the United States are set to sign a new five-year agreement to continue regular U.S. aid to Nepal, which is expected to total $659 million, or about 88 billion rupees.

The proposed assistance is approximately $100 million more than the total amount disbursed by the U.S. government through USAID over the past five years through mid-July 2021.

A democracy, rights and governance official said USAID has allocated $10.20 million for the democracy and governance sector.

“We are providing direct support to the Election Commission of Nepal to strengthen organizational capacity and provide election education to youth, women and marginalized people,” said Bishwas Rana, head of the agency’s democracy, rights and governance department. USAID is also providing technical assistance to the commission.

In the 2017 general election, the number of invalid votes under the proportional representation category was 14.7 percent. In the 2022 general election, the number had come down to 5 percent, which Rana attributed to the support.

USAID representatives said they support strengthening Nepal’s organizational capacity at the local level.

USAID has partnered with a fact-checking organization to curb the spread of fake news through media and social media.

The agency says it spends $60 million a year to improve Nepal’s health system.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, $40 million has been allocated for vaccines and other medical equipment.

USAID spends 15 percent of its annual budget on the environment and resilience sector in Nepal. The organization is helping the government finalize 11 different hydropower projects worth $2.4 billion that could generate 1,200 MW.