KATHMANDU: Vice-President, Department of Compact Operations, Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Fatema Sumar, expressed her confidence that the MCC Compact will be approved by the Nepali Parliament soon.
Talking to media today before returning to the United States, Sumar said that the Nepali government and political leadership should now rush to ratify the Compact from the parliament as it is already too late.
“I am optimistic that Nepal understands the urgency of the agreement. MCC is an opportunity for Nepal’s economic development,” she said, adding, “How long shall we afford to wait the Compact be ratified?”
However, Sumar clarified that it is up to Nepal, the government here and political leaders whether or not to accept the MCC Compact grant. “Regardless of the decision that Nepal takes on MCC Compact, US-Nepal relationship will continue to remain better,” she added.
According to her, parliamentary ratification at this time would allow the government to begin implementing $500 million dollars in infrastructure projects over the next five years, boosting Nepal’s economy and directly benefiting nearly 23 million Nepalis through transparency and accountability.
During her four-day visit to Nepal, Sumar held meeting with political leaders, including Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, CPN-UML Chairman KP Oli, Maoist Center Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal.
In a letter to the Finance Minister Janardan Sharma last week, the MCC had clarified that there is no connection between the MCC Nepal Compact and any military alliance or defense strategy as rumored in Nepal and asked the government to complete ratification of the grant from the parliament as soon as possible.