Although the pandemic hit the global market in many ways in terms of businesses, it especially hit start-ups the hardest due to low finances. While this was devastating for many, it provided an opportunity to many young entrepreneurs in Nepal and around the world with more and more gaps in the market. While investors might overlook Nepal thanks to its relatively small population of 29 million and a low GDP per capita, there is an opportunity in the fact that 70 percent of Nepal’s population is under 35 years old. In other words, there are a large number of young individuals who can be catalyzed to tackle Nepal's most pressing challenges through business. IT businesses seem to be the most popular and feasible start-up as IT has the potential to generate high growth, investment, and significant profits in the coming years and is expected to be one of the most significant growth contributors to the Nepali economy. Business process outsourcing is an important emerging area in IT in Nepal.
Nepal may have challenges, but amid those problems, there is great potential for change. Several entrepreneurs and technology industry leaders had gone abroad to work or study for several years, but then returned to Nepal to launch and build businesses. Young Nepalese people want to be agents of change in their country and improve the regulatory and enabling environment for young entrepreneurs, investors, and support organisations, Nepal can continue to be ahead in developing a startup ecosystem to create jobs, stimulate economic growth and facilitate success stories to emerge in this market.
Nepal’s budget 2078/79 has been prepared with a special focus on increasing the number of start-ups in Nepal. These initiatives shall encourage more entrepreneurs in terms of the ease of doing business in Nepal. The government has adopted a policy of income tax exemption for start-up business promotion. Poudel, from the Nepali congress party, has announced a 100 percent rebate on income tax for start-ups for up to five years from the start of business. He also decided to provide a one percent interest rate soft loan to start-up businesses to motivate the youth in entrepreneurship. Included in the initiatives are free company registration, renewal, other taxes for start-ups, and a full discount on the income tax for the initial five years for new enterprises. Start-up loans up to Rs 25 lakhs at a 1% interest rate for start-ups. To qualify for start-up financing, entrepreneurs must provide a detailed business plan and the government will set up a challenge fund of Rs 1 billion to help new entrepreneurs. With the government endorsing this campaign, it can be a good marketing strategy for companies that use the same slogan or theme to promote their products and services.
The same noticeable change is being correlated across the world as the Financial Times reports, citing official state statistics, that a startup boom in many countries has been recorded amid the 2020 coronavirus pandemic. An example is in the United States, in July 2020, the number of business incorporation applications hit an all-time high of 551,657,000, up 95% from the same period in 2019, according to the Census Bureau. Plus, in France, 84,000 new businesses were registered in October, according to McKinsey. This is a historical maximum and a 20% increase from the same month in 2019. This is the moment we want to latch onto here at Nepal Realistic Solutions to contribute to the growing economic the pandemic has left. With the marketing, recruitment, and recognition aid we can offer to some new enterprises, we believe we can make sure the companies pass the survival phase and flourish to profitable and successful businesses. With years of expertise, we are partnering up with investors, eager to put money in the Nepalese market to help some businesses thrive.