there's international demand for Nepal's
homegrown products like these handmade
shawls destined for Japan this is the
finished product and it has to have the
same size but exporter soon dada knows
that getting goods out of Nepal isn't
easy Nepal is a landlocked country lying
between India and China all goods going
overseas must pass through India to the
port city of Kolkata it's a long onerous
journey across the border that seriously
hinders trade so the world bank group is
working with the Nepalese government to
streamline the process starting here
to get goods out of Nepal exporters must
first go to this building to get a
certificate stating whether the product
is an antique or not then they go here
to get documents from the Chamber of
Commerce the handicraft Association and
the trade promotion Center certifying
the product is made in Nepal then it's
off to the customs clearance office
where all these documents are certified
the amount of forms can get overwhelming
once we got the invoice that we make a
certificate of origin GSP generalized
system of prevents once we make this and
then also we make the foreign currency
control regulation from then we feel of
this is the the form for the custom
declares in streamlining the forum's
process will be a good start but only a
first step sundar straws will be shipped
to Japan by air but the majority of
exports leaving Nepal go over land to or
through India and then by sea to
overseas markets so for most exporter's
once the forms are ready it's time to
load the truck and head to the Indian
border the road straight through the
mountains is the shortest path but it's
too dangerous for trucks to cross so
they have to use the longer roundabout
route
it may not look like it but this is
actually the safer Road it's narrow
filled with potholes and it's unpaved in
sections making it difficult to navigate
with no shoulder trucks that break down
take up a whole Lane waiting for a fix
got it was to encounter lower her guard
welding somehow now just upon your pussu
that politics called earlier Barry
written guides along with the karun say
no say they cuttin Santee llama
witnessed the accident from her small
truck stop she's watched drivers
struggled to navigate the stretch of
road for the last 17 years you do a good
water idea difficult for doing divert
all ok to awareness
backroad I'm gonna say it and I knew
about the 12 going on Ibaka nervous
right now potholes aren't the only
hazard to be navigated truckers say
there are anywhere from five to ten
checkpoints along the way after a cure
someone went a Courtin 470 goes in or
something with we had to government
someone bodywork was it goes a negative
one part of the road is particularly
treacherous with help from the World
Bank route the government plans to fix
this notorious 33 kilometers which not
only hinders trade but claims lives an
angled removal in practice tomorrow you
gotta gotta roll truxedo lower case
party kamarag Apache avocado fellow okay
the heights of color saw each other
again before ever getting to the border
town of their guns maybe the end of the
road but for exporter's the travails
continue trucks are weighed and
sometimes everything has to be offloaded
for customs clearance and other border
controls the multiple forms are checked
the process can take anywhere from four
hours to four days que eso problem
documents are you go problem sir hey
Radha teens having locks approve new
patio or the poinsettias it with a clear
work as it is perceived that possible
each of the five major border posts
Nepal uses a different database causing
confusion they aren't connected to the
computer network in India either so any
exchange of information between India
and Nepali customs is either done
through paper or email the nipple ease
government is planning to build a single
windows system so customs and other
agencies will be able to expedite
clearance in addition the World Bank
Group is helping India and Nepal to
automate their data exchange systems the
single window system would you know may
make things much more easier you know
because you know all the documents that
i needed can be finally literally trick
means the documents will be lessened
less manpower will be needed the time
for exports will be much much more less
there's one last hurdle with in nepal
before leaving customs cargo has to be
moved in the nepali truck onto
Indian truck that's because of
regulations and informal hurdles that
make it a hassle to cross the border
once the transfer is done goods go
through Indian customs which can often
be congested when they finally make it
to the port city of Kolkata they'll be
checked again according to the ports
procedures this also takes time so from
Katmandu to kolkata the inland transport
of handling a load of exported goods can
take anywhere from 10 to 20 days to
complete it's taking way too long and we
are really frustrated with it we are
really really frustrated you know the
realistic turnaround time for export
should not be more than maximum
seventies and it's a two-way street
business is important goods into Nepal
face the same challenges making everyday
staples more expensive to address these
challenges the Indian government is
building modern checkpoints on its
borders with Nepal and other neighbors
there will be new roads and better
infrastructure both governments hope the
new checkpoints will allow for increased
trade throughout the region another plan
improvement creating accredited labs
with in Nepal today food products like
tea or coffee must be sent to India or
China for testing because Nepal doesn't
have an internationally accredited food
lab this one in Katmandu is only
accredited for goods within Nepal
waiting for the International
certificate can take up to three weeks
if we have that sort of lab in Nepal
definitely it will boost nebris export
to india as well as turkey and we will
reduce massive cost from excessive
documentation to horrific road
conditions to lack of a centralized
computer system and cumbersome
procedures that prevent unhindered
passage across borders trading goods
between Nepal and other countries is a
bad business but with a multi-pronged
approach the South Asian country has a
lot to offer not only to its neighbor
India but to the world at large