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Self-Employment Program Through Cooperatives
By KTM Metro Reporter
January 8, 2014: finally, the long-awaited Youth and Small Entrepreneur Self-employment Program launched by the government has gone into full swing through cooperatives and three state-owned commercial banks, according to the news on ‘gorkhapatraonline.com’.
Investing more than Rs. 2.53 billion in 73 districts of the country, it has created more than 30,000 self-employed jobs. The Prachanda-led government had proposed the program with the aim of providing around 700,000 youths with self-employment opportunity across the country in 2008.
Speaking to the reporter of ‘The Rising Nepal’, Vice-chairman of Youth and Small Entrepreneur Self-employment Fund Prof. Dr. Punya Prasad Regmi said that the involvement of the basic cooperatives in the program had helped expedite the implementation of the program remarkably. “So far, more than 624 basic cooperatives have implemented the self-employment program in 73 districts investing more than Rs. 1.23 billion,” Regmi added.
“The total amount of Rs. 3.82 billion pooled from the banks and financial institutions in the first stage is about to be spent,” he said. The Fund will ask the government for additional money to continue the program in full swing.
Former Finance Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai announced the program targeting the unemployed youths to start commercial farming, animal husbandry, agro-forestry industry, cottage industry and other trade related industries.
The program also provides loans for rickshaw and pushcart services in the urban areas.
Entrepreneurships working on traditional skills, self-employment skills development training and other projects on locally available raw materials and skills, the industry producing goods consumed in the same area, one village one product concept, businesses operated and managed by victims of conflict, marginalized castes, indigenous people, dalits and people from remote areas are given the special priority, he added.
Each individual unable to run any enterprise due to the lack of budget is given up to Rs. 200,000 without any collateral.
