Promoting Resilient Infrastructure in Nepal

Posted on September 9, 2019 by SAT News Desk

World bank , Kathmandu, 9 September 2019 – A team of experts from the Government of Nepal, development partners and Japan’s energy sector will be meeting in Kathmandu to promote resilient infrastructure in Nepal in the context of the country’s vulnerabilities to natural disasters. The workshop on Enhancing Climate/Disaster-Resilient Renewable Energy Distributed Power System in Nepal is being organized on 10-11 September by the World Bank in partnership with the Government of Nepal and Alternative Energy Promotion Center (AEPC) while benefiting from Japanese expertise in the area.

“Nepal is one of the most vulnerable countries to disasters and the impact of global climate change. The workshop is a valuable opportunity to support both the public and private sector to provide resilient and sustainable energy services in Nepal, especially successful off-grid electricity supply,” said Faris H. Hadad-Zervos, the World Bank Country Manager for Nepal.

The workshop will bring together the expertise, technologies and best practices on resilient distributed generation from experts from Japan with the support of “Japan-World Bank Program for Mainstreaming Disaster Risk Management in Developing Countries,” funded by the Government of Japan and managed by Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery.

The workshop will discuss disaster resilient micro-grid systems in Sendai and Maldives, building resilient infrastructure through Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs), and the future perspectives of resilient mini-grid system development.

“This is a unique platform for Nepali and Japanese experts to share learnings and find common solutions to build resilient infrastructure and disaster risk management in Nepal to benefit the country and its stakeholders,” said Eriko Ichikawa, Jr Professional Officer of the World Bank.

The workshop will ultimately aim to support the country’s effort to improve the overall energy supply situation, through mobilizing energy-service companies to increase capacity of renewable energy mini-grids, capturing private sector efficiencies through PPPs, and encouraging private capital investment in the sector, while ensuring the resiliency of the system.

Contacts

Kathmandu

Akash Babu Shrestha
Communications Officer

+977 9801057566

ashrestha9@worldbank.org

Washington DC

Yann Doignon
Online Communications Officer

(202) 473-3239

ydoignon@worldbank.org

Call for NRN International Journalism Award-2019 nominations

Posted on September 9, 2019September 9, 2019 by SAT News Desk

London— The NRNA International Journalism Award has called for nominations for the year 2019.

The award was jointly established by the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ) UK chapter and Non-Resident Nepali Association ( NRNA) UK chapter.

PThe award is presented to Nepali journalists every two years in recognition of their contributions and coverage of Nepali diaspora related issues.

The nomination has been called under the following terms and conditions :

Nominees residing in any part of the world and covering the Nepali diaspora issues – either in Nepali or English language– at least for five years will be eligible for the award.
The winner of the award will be selected on the basis of news reports, articles and audio-video media contents .
The main basis of the selection of the award will be the news contents that should be related to the day to day life of the diaspora Nepali community, their socio-cultural, rights issues etc.

4 Any person related to the NRNA and its projects and a person related to FNJ UK can’t apply or be nominated for this award.

A committee consisting the members of NRNA ICC , President of NRNA UK , President of FNJ Central committee, President of FNJ UK has been formed to select the winner of the award.
The winner of the award will either solely or jointly receive NRs 50,500.00 along with the certificate of NRNA INTERNATIONAL JOURNALISM AWARD 2019
The news and audio visual media contents of the nominees should reach before the deadline on the following email id: fnjnepal@mail.com.np
The last date for the nomination is : Midnight (Nepal time), 30th September, 2019
10. The selected candidates will be awarded on the occasion of the forthcoming global conference of the NRNA ICC in October in Kathmandu.

UK and US tops global ranking for ‘ease of doing digital business’

Posted on September 8, 2019 by SAT News Desk

The U.S. and the U.K. outranks the rest of the world in facilitating the growth of a digital business ecosystem, according to a new analysis from the Harvard Business Review.

The analysis takes into account 236 variables across 42 countries: Half of the score was derived from the prevalence of ecommerce, digital media, sharing economy and online freelance platforms in each country, while the other half was calculated based on criteria such as data accessibility, government policies regarding data privacy and the presence of the digital and analog foundations necessary for digital platforms to function.

The ranking was inspired by the World Bank’s annual “Doing Business” survey, which, though influential, neglects to factor in how digital-friendly each nation is. Each of the 42 countries’ score on the 2019 survey was also factored into HBR‘s digital business-focused scorecard.

Ultimately, the U.S. ranked first, barely edging out the U.K. They were followed by the Netherlands, Norway and Japan, with Australia, Denmark, Switzerland, Canada and Finland rounding out the top 10.

Nepal has selected Bulbul as its entry for the Oscars international feature film category

Posted on September 8, 2019 by SAT News Desk

Hollywoodreporter—Nepal has selected Bulbul as its entry for the Oscars international feature film category.

Binod Paudel’s debut feature stars Swastima Khadka, who plays a woman truck driver battling myriad challenges, from patriarchy to health care, as she struggles to make a living in the country’s capital city of Kathmandu. Her troubles are compounded because her husband, a migrant worker in Saudi Arabia, faces difficulties in sending her money, throwing light on the impact of migration on women who are left behind by their husbands that seek employment away from home.

The film, which released in the country in February, also stars Mukun Bhusal. Paudel’s credits include the screenplay for 2013’s award-winning Saanghuro.Bulbul picked up multiple honors at the country’s National Awards, winning best director for Paudel and best actress for Khadka.

Nepal has only scored one nomination at the Oscars, with 1999’s Himalaya directed by Eric Valli, which was the country’s first submission in the foreign-language category. The country’s 2017 entry White Sun featured Danny Glover as one of its executive producers. In all, Nepal has submitted eleven films over the years, including last year’s Panchayat

Nepal, China to establish industrial park in Chitwan

Posted on September 8, 2019 by SAT News Desk

KATHMANDU, Xinhua — Nepal and China are planning to establish an industrial park in Chitwan, a southern district in central Nepal, with the aim of developing the area as a hub of comprehensive industrial manufacturing and processing center and supporting facilities.

The Embassy of Nepal to China and the Economic Joint Committee of China Commercial Stock Enterprises jointly organized the program Nepal-China Economic and Trade Cooperation Forum 2019, here on Saturday, a day ahead of the planned visit of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to Nepal on Sunday.

It is the second such event organized after the first was held in April this year in Beijing during the state visit of Nepali President Bidya Devi Bhandari to China.

If everything goes well, it will be the second industrial park being developed with Chinese cooperation after the first one is being developed in eastern Jhapa district, hometown of Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.

Planned Chinese investment in the industrial park has come at a time when China has emerged as the largest contributor of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Nepal in the recent years.

Chinese investors have pledged the highest FDI to Nepal four years in row as the country received more than half of the its total FDI pledges from its northern neighbor in the last fiscal year 2018-19 that concluded in mid-July.

According to Nepal’s Department of Industry, Nepal received FDI commitment of 114 million U.S. dollar from China in the last fiscal while total FDI pledges from around the world stood at 216 million U.S. dollars.

Nepal’s Former Prime Minister and Co-Chairman of the ruling Nepal Communist Party Pushpa Kamal Dahal hailed the efforts to establish an industrial park in Chitwan, which is also his hometown.

“But, we want industrial development in all seven provinces of Nepal,” he said.

Nepali Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supply Matrika Prasad Yadav said that the establishment of one industrial park will attract investors in establishing similar parks.

“My ministry is ready to provide necessary support to such projects,” he added.

During the event inaugurated by Nepali Vice President Nanda Bahadur Pun, the chief ministers of various provinces presented the investment opportunities in their provinces while calling on the Chinese investors to come there to investment.

They also committed creating favorable environment for foreign investors as they wish to attract as much investment as possible in their respective provinces.

Ancient DNA from Central and South Asia reveals movement of people and language in Eurasia

Posted on September 6, 2019 by SAT News Desk

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE —

A genome-wide analysis of ancient DNA from more than 500 individuals from across South and Central Asia sheds light on the complex genetic ancestry of the region’s modern people. “The scale of this data set enables [the authors] to compare genomes across more space and time points than ever before, allowing them to hone in on increasingly specific questions that would have been unanswerable even a few years ago,” write Nathan Shaefer and Beth Shapiro in a related Perspective.

Not only does the study document genetic exchanges between Asian populations and those from the European Steppe, the Near East and southeast Asia, it also reveals a population history that reflects similar and parallel genomic patterns to those found in ancient Europe – findings that illustrate the cultural spread of Indo-European languages. The preserved genetic remains of people who lived long ago can offer a clear window into the movements and interactions of ancient populations, as well as into the spread of major cultural innovations, like farming, herding or language. Vagheesh Narasimhan, David Reich and colleagues analyzed ancient DNA from 523 individuals who lived over the past 8,000 years to better understand the prehistory of human dispersals into and throughout Central and South Asia.

According to Narasimhan et al., the primary source of ancestry in modern Asians stems from near-eastern farmers who arrived following the decline of Indus Valley Civilization and from a group of Bronze Age pastoralists from the European Steppe known as the ‘Yamnaya.’ Previous research has shown that these same people also moved into areas of Eastern Europe, which likely contributed to the wide dispersion of closely related features of Indo-Iranian and Balto-Slavic languages.

Farming in South Asia was not brought by the West, but the locals who were foragers,it was adopted about 5000 yrs ago

Posted on September 6, 2019 by SAT News Desk

Mumbai Mirror, Hyderabad: An international team of researchers including those from Hyderabad-based Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) have discovered that farming activity in South Asia was not brought by the West, but the locals who were foragers, had adopted agriculture about 5000 years ago.

The interesting findings of the study are published in an internationally reputed science magazine Science and Cell.

The team comprising geneticists, archaeologists and anthropologists was drawn from North America, Europe, Central Asia, and South Asia. It analysed the genomes of 524 ancient individuals in the largest ever study of ancient human DNA, along with the first genome of an individual from the ancient Indus Valley Civilization.

The Iranian-related ancestry in South Asians comes from a lineage that separated from Iranian farmers and hunter-gatherers before they split from each other. Iranian-related ancestry is extremely common even in tribal groups in Southern India practicing hunting and gathering, not farming. This indicates that farming in South Asia was not due to the movement of people from the earlier farming cultures of the west. Instead, local foragers adopted it”, said CCMB principal scientist Dr Kumaraswamy Thangaraj, who was part of the study team.

The study revealed “unprecedented detail” of genetic ancestry of South and Central Asia, and Indus Valley Civilisation while answering long-standing questions about origins of farming, source of Indo-European languages in South and Central Asia and genetic affinities of the people of Indus Valley Civilisation.

Dr Thangaraj said they had compared the ancient genomes to one another and to previously sequenced genomes, and put the information into context alongside archaeological, linguistic and historical records.

“This has helped us fill in many of the key details about people, who lived in various parts of this vast region from the Mesolithic Era (about 12,000 years ago) to the Iron Age (till about 2,000 years ago). We could study how these ancient humans (whose skeletons were found) relate to people who live there today”, he said.

The separate studies revealed two of the most profound cultural transformations in ancient Eurasia including transition from hunting and gathering to farming and the spread of Indo-European languages, which are spoken today from the British Isles to South Asia, besides the movement of people.

South Asians have little, if any, ancestry from farmers with Anatolian roots. There was movement of people towards Europe in the west almost 5,000 years ago, and then spread back eastward into Central and South Asia in the subsequent 1,500 years.

The researchers screened more than 60 skeletal samples from the largest known town of the Indus Valley Civilization called Rakhigarhi in Haryana.

“We have shown that the Iranian-related ancestry in South Asians comes from a lineage that separated from Iranian farmers and hunter-gatherers before they split from each other,” Dr Thangaraj said.

( This article was originally published in Mumbai Mirror )

The former President of Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe dies

Posted on September 6, 2019 by SAT News Desk

London— The former President of Zimbabwe – Robert Mugabe has died.

He passed away on Friday in a hospital in Singapore at the age of 95, local media Algo FM reported.

A new cafe in Nepal is seeking to change the lives of trafficking survivors

Posted on September 5, 2019 by SAT News Desk

THOMSON REUTERS FOUNDATION

KATHMANDU: On a busy street in Nepal’s bustling capital Kathmandu, a new cafe is seeking to change the lives of trafficking survivors – one cappuccino at a time.

The Maiti Cafe is the first to be staffed by women who are either at risk of or have been rescued from slavery in Nepal, where thousands of people are trafficked every year, many to neighbouring India.

As well as helping them rebuild their lives, it aims to end the stigma that survivors often have to deal with in Nepal’s conservative, mainly Hindu society.

Among the new waitresses taking orders and serving the cafe’s signature steamed buns is Preeti – not her real name – whose family disowned her after she was rescued from a brothel in India, and who now wants to leave the past behind.

“I don’t want to look back at that dark part of my life,” Preeti, 26, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. “I’m looking forward to building my skills and confidence in what I am doing now.”

Preeti is one of 11 women working as chefs, cashiers, baristas and waitresses and earning about 13,880 Nepali rupees ($120) a month, a modest but manageable wage in a country where one in five lives on less than $1.25 a day.

More than 23,000 people were trafficked in Nepal in 2016, according to the latest available data from the National Human Rights Commission, double the figure for the previous year.

Experts have attributed the rise to an earthquake in April 2015 that killed about 9,000 people and left many more homeless.

Traffickers lure victims, mostly from poor rural areas, with promises of good jobs, only to force them to work in fields or brick kilns, or as prostitutes or domestic workers.

SHUNNED

The cafe is a social enterprise – a business that aims to do good as well as make a profit.

It was set up by local anti-trafficking charity Maiti Nepal with A’fno Nepal, an organisation that promotes social entrepreneurship, and Dutch organisation Free a Girl, which works to free victims of forced prostitution.

Many, like Preeti, are shunned by their families because daughters who left home with strangers are seen as a source of shame.

Customers seem to have no such reservations – since it opened on Aug. 3, Maiti Cafe has attracted up to 150 customers a day.

With its freshly brewed coffee, chicken sizzlers and steamed dumplings, the cafe has earned a nearly four-star rating on Google reviews, with scores of comments praising the service.

“It makes no difference to us what these women did in the past,” said Sunil Bhatta, a 22-year-old college student, as he dined at the cafe.

“They are well-mannered, polite and hard working. It’s good they are running the cafe and making a living for themselves.”

REPRISALS

The cafe plans to increase the number of staff to 15 over the next year and Maiti Nepal’s chairman Bishwa Ram Khadka said the profits would be used to provide further training in sales, accounting and cooking.

“This is an example of how social and business enterprises can help underprivileged people sustain their lives financially and empower them,” he said.

Anti-trafficking activist Sunita Danuwar welcomed the initiative but said it was vital to ensure the women were protected from the risks of re-trafficking and reprisals from those who trafficked them originally.

“It is fraught with dangers … utmost care should be given to protect their identity and ensure their safety,” she said.

Despite months of training, Preeti said she and some of her new colleagues had been nervous about starting their new jobs, fearing customers might judge them.

She was the only member of staff willing to speak to the Thomson Reuters Foundation – the others declined, citing concerns for their safety.

Since she was rescued in 2005, Preeti has received vocational and skills training and gone back to school to make up for what she missed out on in childhood.

She spends her mornings studying before heading out for an eight-hour shift at the cafe, and views her new job as a vital stepping stone that could put her through college.

“Maybe in the future I will be able to have a cafe of my own,” she said.

Bearing the brunt

Posted on September 5, 2019 by SAT News Desk

By: Ngamindra Dahal and Bhagirath Yogi

Historically LDCs’ contributions to climate change is negligible but over a billion people in the low income countries are increasingly bearing the brunt.

Nearly 70 people died due to a monsoon landslide in Myanmar’s Mon State. According to officials, the landslide took place when the mountain side of Ma-lat mountain collapsed due to heavy rainfall in Paung township in early hours of August 9. The remains of the collapse buried residents, houses and vehicles, reports said. Continue reading “Bearing the brunt”

Nepal: Amend Laws Undermining Free Expression

Posted on September 4, 2019 by SAT News Desk

HRW, (New York) – The government of Nepal should revise several pieces of draft legislation that threaten to undermine the right to freedom of expression, Human Rights Watch said today in a letter to Prime Minister K. P. Oli. The government should also amend the recently revised Penal Code, which criminalizes speech on vague grounds, including that it may “annoy” or “trouble” someone.

The draft laws currently before parliament, including the Media Council Bill, Information Technology Bill, and the Mass Communications Bill, contain numerous loosely defined and draconian measures. These include offenses for harming the nation’s “self-pride” or damaging an individual’s “image or prestige.” Provisions controlling online and social media activity are especially sweeping. Many of the new offenses carry fines and lengthy prison sentences.

“Nepal has a proud tradition of public activism, but if these laws are passed in their current form, they will undermine the freedoms that Nepalis fought so hard to achieve,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “After years of conflict and political instability, the laws being passed under Nepal’s new democratic constitution should uphold fundamental freedoms, not set out to curb them.”

Recent attacks on freedom of expression in Nepal show the risk of these laws being misused, Human Rights Watch said. Since the Oli government took office in February 2018, at least six journalists have been detained. Several internet users are believed to have been arrested for their activities on “social networks.”

The proposed laws, along with problematic provisions in the recently revised Penal Code, create a web of loosely defined offenses that could be interpreted to ban almost any speech or online activity the government objects to. Citizens have no way of knowing what will be interpreted as illegal speech, and they potentially face multiple prosecutions for similar offenses, as some are also offenses under other laws.

Nepal’s obligations under international human rights law, especially the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, require it to clearly and narrowly define any limitations on the right to freedom of expression considered necessary to protect the rights of others, maintain public order, or address genuine national security threats. Any such limitations must not jeopardize the right to freedom of expression itself. United Nations experts have recommended abolishing all criminal defamation laws.

The Media Council Bill is under debate in the lower house of parliament. Members have proposed a number of amendments, but whether they are accepted will depend upon the government, which has a two-thirds majority. Both this bill and the Mass Communications Bill propose creating government-controlled media regulators, which could compel media organizations and individual journalists to comply with government directives and as yet unwritten codes of conduct, or face penalties. This is a serious threat to press freedom, Human Rights Watch said.

The Information Technology Bill creates a raft of loosely defined new offenses that could be interpreted to include almost any online activity. Among numerous problematic provisions, the draft law also creates an intermediary liability for internet service providers (ISPs), meaning that they could be held legally responsible for material posted by others on the internet.

The Information Technology Bill is designed to replace the 2006 Electronic Transactions Act (ETA), which the current government has abused repeatedly, often to prosecute online journalists reporting on corruption. In June, the law was used to detain a comedian whose online movie review upset the film’s director. The new Information Technology Bill is even more broadly drawn and draconian than the law it replaces.

A detailed analysis of problematic and abusive provisions in the draft legislation and relating to freedom of expression in the new Penal Code is provided in an annex to the letter to the prime minister.

“Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right and the foundation of a democratic society,” Ganguly said. “The Nepali government should protect free speech and ensure that any legal restrictions are proportionate, narrowly defined, and consistent with Nepal’s obligations under international law.”

Hong Kong leader withdraws extradition bill that sparked protests

Posted on September 4, 2019 by SAT News Desk

AFP— Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam has announced the government will formally withdraw an extradition bill that sparked months of demonstrations.

The move bows to one of the protesters’ demands in the hope of ending the increasingly violent unrest.

But a pro-government politician warned that the bill’s withdrawal was not enough to end the protests, which have increasingly focused on greater democracy and demands for Ms Lam’s resignation.

The bill would have allowed Hong Kong residents to be sent to mainland China for trials.

It has prompted massive protests since June and caused the airport to shut down earlier this month.

Ms Lam said the government would not accept other demands, including an independent inquiry into alleged police misconduct against protesters and the unconditional release of those detained.

Instead, she named two new members to a police watchdog agency investigating the matter.

“The government will formally withdraw the bill in order to fully allay public concerns,” she said in a recorded television message.

“Our foremost priority now is to end violence, to safeguard the rule of law and to restore order and safety in society. As such, the government has to strictly enforce the law against all violent and illegal acts,” she said.

Ms Lam said it was clear that public frustration has gone far beyond the bill and that her government will seek a dialogue with aggrieved groups to “address the discontent in society and to look for solutions”.

She said she will also invite community leaders, professionals and academics to examine deep-seated problems in society and advise the government on solutions.

“Let’s replace conflicts with conversations, and let’s look for solutions,” she said.

Ms Lam made the announcement after meeting with pro-government politicians and members of the National People’s Congress and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.

Politician Michael Tien, who was at the meeting, said the withdrawal of the bill would not change public sentiment if it is not accompanied by other concessions, especially an independent inquiry into alleged police misconduct.

“It is too little, too late. The focus now has completely shifted. Most people do not remember what the bill is about but are more concerned about the escalating violence and alleged police heavy-handedness against protesters,” he said.

The Hong Kong stock market soared 4%, boosted by reports of the bill withdrawal.

Ms Lam has come under withering criticism for pushing the extradition bill, which many in Hong Kong see as an example of the city’s eroding autonomy since the former British colony returned to Chinese control in 1997.

She was elected as Hong Kong’s chief executive by a pro-Beijing committee of Hong Kong elites, and the mainland government has spoken in support of her government and the city’s police force throughout the protests.

Clashes between police and protesters have become increasingly violent, with demonstrators throwing petrol bombs and rods at officers in protests last weekend.

Authorities in turn have employed water cannons, tear gas, rubber bullets and batons.

More than 1,100 people have been detained.

The mostly young protesters said that a degree of violence is necessary to get the government’s attention after peaceful rallies were futile.

Ms Lam’s administration said the violence must end before any dialogue can begin.

In Beijing, the mainland office responsible for Hong Kong condemned the escalating violence and warned that China will “not sit idly by” if the situation worsens.

The prolonged protests have hurt Hong Kong’s economy amid a slowdown in the Chinese economy and its trade war with the United States.

Hong Kong and foreign companies have also been under intense pressure to support China’s ruling Communist Party against the protesters.

On Wednesday, the chairman of Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways resigned, becoming the second top figure to leave the airline since the protests erupted.

Cathay said John Slosar was retiring from the airline, one of Hong Kong’s most prominent businesses.

The announcement comes less than one month after Cathay’s chief executive Rupert Hogg resigned following pressure by Beijing over participation by some of the carrier’s employees in protests.

Boris Johnson loses majority in the first stage of MPs attempt to pass a law

Posted on September 4, 2019 by SAT News Desk

London — Tory rebels and opposition MPs have defeated the government in the first stage of their attempt to pass a law designed to prevent a no-deal Brexit, BBC reported.

The Commons voted 328 to 301 to take control of the agenda, meaning they can bring forward a bill seeking to delay the UK’s exit date.

In response, Boris Johnson said he would bring forward a motion for an early general election.

Jeremy Corbyn said the bill should be passed before an election was held.

In total, 21 Tory MPs, including a number of ex-cabinet ministers, joined opposition parties to defeat the government.

After the vote, Downing Street said those Tory MPs who rebelled would have the whip removed, effectively expelling them from the parliamentary party.

No 10 had hoped the threat of expulsion – and an election – would bring would-be rebels into line

Inequality is growing in South Asia: SAAPE

Posted on September 4, 2019 by SAT News Desk

Kathmandu— South Asian countries have failed to make use of economic growth in the region to improve the lives of the poor and marginalized people, mostly women, girls and members of the marginalised communities and reduce inequalities the region is facing, says a report published by by South Asia Alliance for Poverty Eradication (SAAPE), a civil society group.

The report entitled “Growing Inequality in South Asia,” that was launched on Tuesday, said that extreme inequalities are destroying the region putting a threat to democracy, culture and security, and most seriously posing a threat to women’s human rights,

The report reveals the seriousness of growing inequality in the region as a result of government policies and programmes that benefit a handful of the rich and leave behind a large number of people who are denied access to basic human rights and needs. It analyses the causes and drivers of inequality and demonstrates concrete evidence of widening inequalities in the region.

In South Asia:

– Share of the global poor increased from 27.3 per cent to 33.4 per cent between 1990 and 2013, leaving behind only Sub-Saharan Africa, which accounts for the largest (50.7 per cent) share of the global poor.

– Governments are competing with each other on tax exemptions to the rich and powerful. The two countries in the region, India and Pakistan, feature in the list of top 10 countries losing the most tax revenue. While India loses around USD 41.2 billion in taxes annually, Pakistan tops the list forgoing around USD 10.4 billion, equivalent to 3.5 per cent of its Gross Domestic Products (GDP).

– Health expenditure as a percentage of GDP is low (3.5 per cent) while a global average stands at 10.02 per cent. The quality of primary care is often poor. Total government expenditure on healthcare in 2015 was in the range of 0.4-2 per cent of the gross domestic product, which was among the lowest ones globally.

– Private Health Expenditure (PHE) accounts for about two-thirds of the Total Health Expenditure (THE), similar to the trends in low and low middle-income countries but much higher than the global average (42.4 per cent).

– Over 134 million people still do not have access to safe drinking water. It is currently estimated that people in the region drink from 68 to 84 per cent of contaminated sources of water. Likewise, 600 million people still practise open defecation (over 60 per cent of the global burden).

– The gender pay gap is 35 per cent for women with children compared to 14 per cent for those without.

– Women perform 80 per cent of the total hours of unpaid care work, on average 4.1 times more than men, across Asia and the Pacific.

– Working poverty remains high and this high incidence of informality continues to undermine the prospects of further reducing working poverty. Out of the total workforce, 90 per cent are in the informal sector.

– In South Asia, the Middle East and North Africa, men perform the lowest share of unpaid care work (1 hour and 4 minutes). The regional average for women is 4 hours and 22 minutes.

– Gini coefficient approaching 40.0 of all South Asian countries indicates that inequality is alarming.

– Informalisation of labour is the highest in the region. It is 90.7 per cent in India and Nepal, 48.9 per cent in Bangladesh, 60.6 per cent in Sri Lanka and 77.6 per cent in Pakistan.

– The basic literacy rate of the population aged 15 years and above lags behind all other regions except Sub-Saharan Africa, in spite of the literacy rate rising from 60.84 per cent in 2004 to 71 per cent in 2016.

“The equal society can be imagined only if the governments in the region can guarantee the fundamental rights of the people, mostly health and education and ensure that the basic services are made available to all with due focus on women, girls and marginalised communities without hindrances and discriminations”, said Netra Timsina, Regional Coordinator of SAAPE. He further added, “We ask the governments in the region to understand the urgency for the need of people-centric progressive policies and practices to beat the growing inequalities, and create more equitable societies.”

The report has made wide-ranging recommendations for the South Asian governments to address the issues of growing inequalities by highlighting six key areas of actions to be taken through 1) proving equal opportunity, 2) guaranteeing minimum living wages and labour rights, 3) ensuring the access of people to basic public services, 4) implementing progressive taxation policies and guaranteeing fiscal justice, 5) ensuring gender equality and 6) promoting peace and harmony in South Asia.

The report is available for download at: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1FcQLsKWQItItlbo_Mwi_E1TSFVa5EBde

Five Chinese hackers targeting Nepali banks arrested

Posted on September 1, 2019 by SAT News Desk

Kathmandu, ANI — Nepal police on Sunday arrested five Chinese nationals from Durbar Marg for allegedly being involved in the ATM card forgery.

The hackers were arrested for stealing millions of rupees from the bank accounts of subscribers by forging their ATMcards.
The ATMs of the majority of the banks in Kathmandu, especially those belonging to the ‘A’ class citizens, had turned temporarily dysfunctional earlier in the day along with disruptions inter-bank ATM transactions.
The Central Bank of Nepal, also known as the “Nepal Rastra Bank”, has called for an emergency meeting of all banks across the city today.
The halt in the transaction from the ATM‘s is being suspected as a result of hacking by the Chinese nationals. (ANI)

Hamza can be first British-Asian to play for England, says Michael Chopra

Posted on September 1, 2019 by SAT News Desk

London — Hamza Choudhury is in pole position to become the first British-Asian to play for England, according to Michael Chopra, Sky Sports reported.

The ball-winning midfielder was on the fringes of Leicester’s squad under Claudio Ranieri before making his Premier League debut during Claude Puel’s 14-month tenure following a successful loan spell at Burton.

Choudhury, who is of mixed Bangladeshi and Caribbean heritage, was used sparingly by Brendan Rodgers in the first few months of his reign but has now established himself as a mainstay in Leicester’s midfield, alongside Wilfred Ndidi.

ormer Newcastle striker Chopra remains one of the most recognisable British-Asian players of the Premier League era and the ex-England U21 international believes big things are in the offing for Choudhury, as well as Swansea’s Yan Dhanda.

“If you look at the boy at Leicester, Choudhury, I think he is the only one at this moment in time who has got a chance [of earning an England call up in the near future],” Chopra told Sky Sports News.

“He’s playing in the Premier League as a young boy but you’ve also got the boy at Swansea, Yan Dhanda.

Hamza Choudhury has steadily grown in confidence and reliability since I watched him make his Leicester debut two years ago. He is hugely well-respected and liked within the Leicester squad, and Brendan Rodgers sees him as an important asset going forward.

His performances on the international stage with England U21s have been equally impressive. He was one of the few players to come out of the summer’s U21 Euros with real credit, and I know Aidy Boothroyd feels if he continues to progress as he has so far, he will be a key player for both the junior team and (eventually) the senior team in due course.