Nepal for eCommerce Regulations to Monitor Online Shopping

Here comes another serious topic of debate for Nepalis!

While there is an undergoing debate on social media regulation, the government has come up with another policy announcement related to digital platforms.

The government is coming up with new e-commerce regulations to monitor the rapidly-growing online market space.

Toya Narayan Gyawali, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies informed that the draft regulations would be finalized in a month’s time.

“After the draft is finalized, it will be submitted to the Cabinet for its approval to implement it,” said the official.

With consumer protection as the key agenda, the new regulations are coming in view of the increasing number of consumer complaints.

Under the new regulations, e-tailers and marketplaces will now be liable for any sale of fraudulent, substandard and defective products, adds Gyawali.

Besides monitoring online frauds, the new regulations will also have a close watch on electronic transactions, regulate transactions involving foreign currency and also promote Nepali products to the global market.

According to government, there are a large number of unregistered ecommerce firms operating in the country.

“Our neighbors India and China have made great strides in the development of e-commerce, and Nepal also needs to move ahead by improving services,” said Gyawali.

“E-commerce has massive growth potential, so proper regulations are necessary for the development of this sector. Nepal lags behind in e-commerce because of a poor information and technology infrastructure. With regard to IT friendly people, Nepal falls in the average category among the least developed countries,” adds Gyawali.

Addressing gaps, the government is coming up with draft regulations after a series of discussions with the private sector players.

The regulations also focus on encouraging Nepal ecommerce sector with enhanced ease of doing business in the country.

The Ministry of Information and Communications Technology Spokesperson said that the new regulations also include provisions for management of electronic transactions and international transactions in foreign currency.

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