Nepalese Tea & Coffee Development Board to split

Today’s story comes from Kathmandu where it seems that the Nepalese Tea & Coffee Development Board (NTCDB) is about to separate into two entities, each solely concerned with their designated sector.

The decision is in response to the production and sales of both tea and coffee performing well above previous levels and the current prosperity has pushed the government to split the current group.

“It is relevant to form two separate authorities to monitor the sectors that have grown significantly in recent times,” said Raman Pathak, the NTCDB’s executive director, who added that these specialised and independent bodies could help further the industries grow.

In the past decade, coffee and tea exports to foreign markets have risen seven times over

The Ministry of Agricultural Development will oversee the split.

Originally established in 1993, the Board has expanded over the past 21 years and now operates from multiple offices in Birtamod, Jhapa and Pokhara, and has around 100 members of staff on its books.

Nepal, the landlocked Asian country, earned Rs2.04 billion from exporting tea during the 2012-13 season, compared to just Rs54 million ten years ago. It is a similar story for the coffee industry too which has seen farmers adopting the crop as its global demand skyrockets.

Back at the turn of the millennium just over 300 hectares of land was designated for coffee growing; that figure now stands at nearly 1,800.

But, despite the advances of the agricultural sector as a whole, some people are wary over the move, warning that the government could be artificially creating bureaucratic roles to cement their power:

“Promoting farm produces through separate [entities] will be an inspiring step,” said the former president of the Himalayan Tea Producers’ Association Udaya Chapagain.

“However, the government should not use these bodies…for political appointments.”

photo: “Nepal landscape” by US. Dep.of Agriculture – Licensed under Public domain via Wiki Commons.