Utilise Domestic Timber

Nepal has been endowed with rich natural resources that include snowy mountains, fertile land, rivers, forests, minerals, medical herbs and biodiversity. Natural resources play a critical role in achieving growth and shared prosperity if the country effectively harnesses them. Nepal’s water resources are often touted as the instrument of rapid development. This is true but the country’s other resources need to be fully recognised and exploited to increase revenue and employment. It requires building the state’s capacity and enacting enabling laws to overcome obstacles to this end. Many have heard a popular saying – Hariyo Ban, Nepal Ko Dhan (green forest, Nepal’s wealth). This slogan implies that the country’s vast swathes of areas were filled with forests and herbs. The reasons behind calling forests ‘wealth’ were not purely monetary. The forests were considered a source of clean oxygen. Besides, they protect soil and provide shelter to animals, birds and species.