Environment
Change is the only constant
This opinion piece is being written at a time when we have a ninety-day pause on USAID in Nepal. To start with, we must recognize that the American people are some of the most generous and do not hesitate to step up when challenges make demands from them. In Nepal some readers may need a little reminder that the forestry and agricultural colleges, the ropeway from the terai to Kathmandu, the Janak education materials facility at Thimi, the east-west highway between Hetauda and Narayanghat are all gifts to Nepal from the American people.
Today the USA is led by individuals who have not seen the real value of what they have done for Nepal and the people, mostly because they have never travelled outside the USA. They also see poverty at home and feel that their government is not doing enough for them. Charity should begin from home. The combination of these two factors has led to a new politics that is based on “America first” at the core. Like the Government of Nepal which pays itself and its recurring costs by levying tariffs on imported goods, there are people in the White House who believe that USA can become rich and create a sovereign fund to buy Tik Tok by putting hefty tariffs on imported goods.
The ninety-day pause for USAID is part of this narrative that the whole world is taking advantage of the USA and not giving back enough to it. The USA is being treated like the world’s garbage can. We heard the same conversation after 9-11 when many Americans could not explain why anyone in the world would want to do any harm to them.
Moving forward, clean air should be a priority for all of us whether USAID funds a project or not. If we do not want to see Nepal go through another armed conflict, we have to embrace inclusion whether or not the US leadership likes it. We must to ensure a healthy forest with all its globally unique biodiversity whether it gets external funding in general (USAID in particular) or not.
The pause in USAID should be used to have a broader debate in Nepal beyond how many airline tickets and hotel room cancellations have happened or how many houses are going to be empty if the projects that housed them cannot pay the rent. During the pause, we shall have to ask ourselves many difficult questions. The first of which would be if we, as Nepalis, are okay with all the conditions that will come with the new USAID. Can we or should we endorse US claim to Greenland, Canada being a state of the USA, and the forced handover of the Panama Canal so the Chinese will lose control? Should the Ukraine war be financed in exchange for access to its rare earth mineral deposits?
If not, we have a real challenge. Denmark, China and Canada have also helped Nepal in the past and are our friends. The second question that we need to ask is if diversity, equity and inclusion are removed from USAID, what are we going to use aid resources for? The third question we need to ask is if we have a cohesive and shared development strategy for Nepal, the resources we have and a clear picture of the gap?
Making a wish list by compiling smaller wish lists at Singha Durbar is not a development strategy. We are weak in governance and improving governance does not require foreign aid. The ninety-day pause may be an opportunity in disguise if we use it to find answers to these and other related questions. Shortage and crisis often brings out creativity and innovation. We do have money to build view towers. Let us get our priorities right.