Nepal Launches First Trade Portal

Nepal has launched the pilot version of its first trade portal – the Nepal Trade Information Portal (NTIP) — configured with the assistance of SGS. SGS, the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company, was appointed by the Nepal government in July 2015 to supervise the design, procurement and implementation of both NTIP and the Nepal National Single Window (NNSW). SGS also assisted the Trade and Export Promotion Centre (TEPC) with the sourcing, compilation and publication of information on the portal. Funded by the World Bank and operated by TEPC, NTIP was unveiled by Minister of Commerce, Romi Gauchan Thakali, Executive Director of TEPC, Ishwari Prasad Ghimire and World Bank Lead Transport Specialist, Diep Nguyen-van Houtte, as per a media release. NTIP provides the Nepali business community with ‘a secure and personalised single entry point to all Nepal trade-related information, such as information about all regulatory requirements, trade procedures and fees’. According to the release, it also provides a searchable resource library for all available documents and materials related to trade in Nepal. NTIP is based on the World Bank Trade Portal Toolkit, which was originally implemented in Laos and has since been successfully implemented in a number of developing countries to facilitate the rapid deployment of national trade portals.