Nepal and SDG 9: Blog 1

Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 9 addresses building resilient infrastructure, promoting sustainable industrialization and fostering innovation. Investments in transport, irrigation, energy and information, and communication technology are all important to achieve sustainable development and empowering communities in many countries. Investment in infrastructure fosters growth in productivity and incomes and improvements in health and education. Technological progress and innovation drive industrialization which in-turn drives development. We need more investments in high-tech products to increase efficiency and a focus on mobile cellular services that increase connections between people (United Nations, n.d.). 


Fig. 1. United Nations (2018).  Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation, [Image]. Retrieved on Feb. 16, 2020, from https://www.isglobal.org/en/-/sdg-9-build-resilient-infrastructure-promote-inclusive-and-sustainable-industrialization-and-foster-innovation.

Nepal is a country in Asia. It is a landlocked country between India to the east, south, and west and Cina to the north. It extends roughly 500 miles from east to west and 90 to 150 miles from north to south ( Proud et al., 2020). 


Fig. 2. Furian, Peter Hermes. (n.d.). Nepal political map with capital Kathmandu, national borders,cities and rivers, [Image]. Retrieved on Feb 16, 2020 from https://www.shutterstock.com/image-vector/nepal-political-map-capital-kathmandu-national-453588196.

Nepal has built 7,767 miles of the strategic road network and 33,933 miles of the local road network. The targets and indicators for 2030 are to increase road density, grow access to telecommunications to 100 percent, and raise the share of industry in total output to 25 percent (Government of Nepal a, 2015). 
Nepal's industrial sector (manufacturing, water and electricity, and construction) has low investment and a lack of competitiveness. The share of the industry in total output is only 15 percent. The goal for 2030 is to increase the share of industry in total output to 25 percent. This will promote labor-intensive activities and create better external sector balances. To achieve this goal, the government intends to upgrade certain sections of roads to address the present-day traffic demand as well as to make road sections safer. The focus will be on upgrading sections of East-West highway and other highways to the Asian Highway standard. The government also intends to initiate flyovers and subways in Kathmandu valley and other major cities (Government of Nepal a, 2015). The country has plans to achieve their SDG goals. However, the results and processes must be monitored to ensure that related policies and actions reinforce the achievement fo the SDGs. A system of macroeconomic policy auditing will be implemented to monitor outcomes along with existing surveys that should be tailored to the SDG monitoring (Government of Nepal a, 2015). 
Nepal will require an investment of Rs. 134.6 billion per year during 2020-22, Rs. 174 billion per year from 2023-25  to implement poverty reduction interventions (Government of Nepal b, 2018). In the process of industrialization to establish infrastructure and create jobs, Nepal also needs to be environmentally conscious. Being a developing country, a lot of its population head towards cities for better opportunities. This may cause overpopulation in some areas. During developmental executions, Nepal needs to use its resources sustainably and make sure that the environment and people in the areas are not negatively impacted. 
Considering Nepal is categorized as a least developed country (LDC), it has faced challenges in attaining SDG goals. There are limited data availability and the absence of a data consolidation platform. Among 380 SDG indicators, only 15 percent are currently available publicly while others will be either estimated using existing data or will be obtained in future surveys (National Planning Commission, n.d.). 
Nepal will have to lean primarily on its government to achieve the SDGs. The country will require scaling-up investment along with developing the county's human resources. The majority of such investments will have to be financed from domestic resources. The country also requires external resources and foreign direct investments to unlock infrastructure bottleneck and promote economic growth (Government of Nepal a, 2015). 

Fig. 3. Shrestha, Ratna Sagar (2017). Nordic development model: Implications for Nepal, [Illustration]. Retrieved on Feb. 16, 2020, from https://thehimalayantimes.com/opinion/nordic-development-model-implications-nepal/.

Nepal has definitely given SDGs implementation a priority. Nepal has committed to SDGs. The National Planning Committee of Nepal has developed a strategy for incorporating the SDGs through 3As: alignment, adaptation, and adoption. The monitoring and evaluation of the SDGs will occur through 4Is: identification, instruments, investment, and institutions (Nepal Planning Committee, n.d.). 

References

Government of Nepal a. (2015). Sustainable development goals [PDF File]. Retrieved from https://www.undp.org/content/dam/nepal/docs/reports/SDG%20final%20report-nepal.pdf.

Government of Nepal b. (December, 2018). Needs Assessment, costing and financing strategy for sustainable development goals [PDF File]. Retrieved from https://www.npc.gov.np/images/category/SDGs_Costing_Final_Version.pdf. 

National Planning Commission. (n.d.). Monitoring the implementation of the IPOA and SDGs: A focus on data challenge. Retrieved from http://unohrlls.org/custom-content/uploads/2018/07/Monitoring-the-Implementation-of-the-IPOA-and-SDGs-Khomraj-Koirala-Nepal.pdf.

Proud R.R., Karan, P.P., Zuberi, M., Rose, L.R. (February 14, 2020). Nepal. Retrieved from  https://www.britannica.com/place/Nepal.

United Nations (UN). (n.d.). Goal 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote sustainable industrialization and foster innovation. Retrieved from https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/infrastructure-industrialization/.