Minister's participation in the fest held in Pokhara, observation of innovative materials and emphasis on waste management.
What you should know
Glasses made from old glass bottles. Various materials made by recycling plastic bottles. Bags and other handicrafts made from old clothes. Federal Affairs and General Administration Minister Bhagwati Neupane reached Pokhara to observe the Recycling and Upcycling (RU) fest on Saturday.
She came to Pokhara for the first time after being appointed as a minister and visited the Pokhara event center and observed the fest. She visited the stalls and observed the handicrafts made by recycling (reuse) and upcycling (new use), materials made for household use . She did well with the entrepreneur who produced those materials .
was on the festival premises, an earth dummy made of plastic bottles . A small door was also made to enter it. Entering the 'Earth' prepared by the youth of Pokhara, she said that plastic should be used as little as possible. Observing the fest, she said that the creation of green jobs along with waste management is commendable.
'An example of recycling and upcycling not only waste management, but also job creation has been seen in the festival,' she said, 'This project can become an example for other cities in Nepal.' She also encouraged RU entrepreneurs who had a stall at the festival.
The RU Fest started on Friday under the Green Job Creation Project (GCRU) through recycling and upcycling conducted by the Pokhara Metropolitan Municipality with the support of the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). On the second and last day of the
fest, a dialogue was organized on Saturday to make producers themselves responsible for waste management. Anil Chitrakar held a dialogue on the topic of 'Extended producer responsibility in the green circular economy' with representatives of industry and commerce associations, environmentalists and businessmen. On Saturday, the expert gave his presentation about the technique of making household goods by reusing low-quality plastic, the technique of using recycled plastic as an alternative to wood, and the technique of making blackboard from old plastic . 
The participants of the fest got a chance to understand about the sustainability of the recycling and upcycle industry . Garments made from waste were also exhibited at the fest. Nearly 5,000 people have observed the festival, which ended on Saturday, for two days. The fest was inaugurated on Friday by Dhanraj Acharya, head of Pokhara Metropolitan Municipality, Moheon Kong, country director of Koika and Julien Chevilard, representative of UNDP. The
festival featured an exhibition of innovative recycling and upcycling products from all over the country, a live technical demo show of the process of converting waste into useful goods, dialogue on climate, sustainable tourism development, green entrepreneurship and plastic to road technology, creative workshops for youth, public art exhibition, participatory activities, a special dialogue session on South Korea's success experience, green jobs, market access and sustainable livelihood measures.
Currently, COICA has 9.8 million US dollars and UNDP has 0.87 million US dollars of financial support under the green job creation project through recycling and upcycling . Under the project, Green Venture Zone (GVZ) Center is being constructed at Pokhara Exhibition Center. The project started in September 2023 and will be completed in December 2029.
136 community groups have been formed in the Pokhara metropolitan area and the necessary training and technical training has also been provided to them. Materials produced by trained local entrepreneurs under the project will be kept at the center for sale and exhibition. "This project will connect the youth with employment and will contribute significantly to the development of the green economy," said the city head Acharya.
Green job creation through proper waste management and creative use of circular economy is believed to be very important for the general public . The Metropolitan Corporation will take ownership of the project with the assurance of a sustainable policy to promote RU enterprises that contribute to the green economy . The project aims to create 3,000 jobs in the next 2 years.
