General policy framework for innovation and growth: IT Policy and strategy of Nepal

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General policy framework for innovation and
growth IT Policy and strategy of Nepal
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• Keywords
• IT, ICT(s), MDGs

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Context

• Facts about Nepal
• Land locked country, developmental challenges
• Population 28.5 M, 2.25 pop growth rate
• Political challenges for the most of the past
  decade

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Government priorities

• Sustainable development and poverty reduction
• Improvement in health, education and agriculture
  sectors
• A conducive investment climate
• Development strategies grounded on MDGs
• Putting ICTs in context.

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General policy environment

• Science and Technology Policy
• Telecommunications Policy
• FDI Policy
• ? Service sector (Tourism, Health, Education)
• 100 equity
• Industrial Policy
• IPR Law
• Foreign Investment Technology Transfer Act
• Information Technology Policy
• Cyber law

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• Hydropower Development Policy 1992, Electricity
  Act, 1992
• FDI in power sector growing
• 40 000 mw potential
• Open license policy for all

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However,

• Concept of innovation and innovation policy
  relatively new
• Key driver WTO membership, increased focus on
  trade, emphasis to move beyond perceived niche
  areasgtgt agriculture, tourism

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Creating conducive policy climate for
growthInstitutional actors

• MOEST Ministry of Environment Science and
  Technolgy
• HLCIT
• NITC
• NAST National Academy of Science and Technology
• MOI
• MOF

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Policy perspectives on ICTs

• First IT Policy in 2000, revision
• ICTsgtgt development enabler
• E-governance, delivery of public services
• ICTs usage in SMEs Inno, eCom, B2B, UNCTAD
  Trade point
• ICTs gtgt economic cluster on its own right
• Value proposition, competitive advantage

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ICT sector

• Growing
• Community interest in ICTs
• Key drivers Liberalization and deregulation
  policy
• Teledensity 3 to 11 in 3 years, Growth in
  ISPs
• Human resources
• Government priority

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Policy outcomes

• Emergence of firms serving clients overseas
• Call centres, Software development outfits
• Growing telecom sector
• Latest technologies, competitive cost of services
• CDMA, EVDO
• More focus on Technology education
• Quality improvement in IT /higher education
• 15 of national budget/ 17 of international
  assistance
• Quality divide (P/P)
• E-governance 34M US - Ist Phase

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Key highlights of IT Policy

• Government commitment
• Institutional arrangement HLCIT, NITC
• Focus on creating conducive environment for
  private sector participation
• Deregulation, privatization
• Export orientation creation of IT park
• Infrastructure development
• FO Link ( India and China)
• Incentivizes IT sector
• Lowering of tariff barriers
• Tax incentives

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Conclusion

• Globalization further underscoring the need to
  formulate innovative responses to meet challenges
  in economic arena
• Need to put in place an innovation eco-system
  grounded on Nepali realities
• Challenge Weak inter linkages in policy
  instruments
• Sustained improvement in telecom and rural ICT
  penetration offers opportunities for expanding
  outreach of education and knowledge resources
• Quality of infrastructure however needs to
  improve, effective strategies to overcome
  infrastructural challenges need to be worked out
• Innovative responses (power, connectivity,
  bandwidth issues, for example)

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Technology is the Easy Part...

• "We have now reached the stage when virtually
  anything we want to do in the field of
  communications is possible. The constraints are
  no longer technical, but economic, legal, or
  political." -- Arthur C.
  Clarke
• (World Telecom Day, 1983)