The World Bank has approved the concessional loan mentioned under the 'Nepal Clean Air and Prosperity Project'.
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The World Bank has approved a loan worth US$52 million (7.69 billion) to reduce industrial pollution and strengthen air quality management in Nepal. The World Bank has approved the concessional loan under the ‘Nepal Clean Air and Prosperity Project’.
The project will help reduce fine particulate matter emissions from industrial sectors. The World Bank has stated that this will help strengthen the air quality management system at the national level. The program under the project is mainly focused on the Kathmandu Valley, Terai and surrounding hilly areas, where air pollution is posing a serious risk.
David Sislen, Division Director for Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka at the World Bank, said that air pollution is not only a public health crisis for Nepal, but also a major economic burden, so they are working to control it. “More than 6 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) is lost every year due to health costs and loss of labor productivity. The project aims to protect millions of people from harmful pollution by helping Nepali industries adopt cleaner and more efficient technologies, he said. “It will also reduce operating costs, increase competitiveness and support sustainable industrial development.”
As Nepal moves towards industrialization, industrial emissions are expected to become the largest source of air pollution in the coming years, according to a World Bank statement. Therefore, adopting cleaner production technologies has become imperative, and the World Bank has stated that this project will support about 400 industrial and commercial enterprises to adopt air emission control technologies through financial facilities, incentives and technical assistance for clean technologies. The World Bank expects this to significantly improve air quality.
Martin Hager, Senior Environmental Economist for the South Asia Region at the World Bank, said, “The adoption of clean technologies in Nepal has been limited by high initial investment costs, lack of long-term financial access and limited technical capacity in industries. The project will combine long-term financial facilities, targeted capital incentives and direct technical assistance to help industries transition to cleaner production.
The project will be implemented through the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies and the Ministry of Forest and Environment. The financial facilitator is the National Bank of Nepal.
The project will also receive a $5 million grant along with a World Bank loan, the statement said. Which is being provided through the World Bank's 'Resilient Asia' program.
