Liberty Discussion is a program designed to engage and inform the core members on the ideas of market economy and classical liberal ideas. Discussions are made on contemporary issues (local or national) through open market perspective. The article is selected and shared within the members to prepare oneself for the program.
Bikalpa – an alternative, organized a Liberty Discussion session on 1st March, 2025. The discussion for the topics were titled “From Fishy Aid to Fin-Tastic Venture: Nepal’s Economic Revival from Classroom” and “The Price System and Resource Allocation: A Key to Economic Efficiency”. Around 15 Participants attended the program including the Director General of Chamber of Industries, Morang, Mr. Chudamani Bhattrai. The program was organized at Bikalpa office.
The first topic that we discussed was on the title “From Fishy Aid to Fin-tastic Venture: Nepal’s Economic Revival from Classroom”. During the discussion, participants raised a serious issue of the dependency of our country on foreign aid and why is it important that we should not rely on aid, but on trade and innovation to improve Nepal’s economic condition. Each participant with their unique point of view suggested that it is necessary that the productive population should be engaged in trade and innovation.
It was also reflected that the mindset of the productive population was on towards leaving the country for better opportunities. To generate entrepreneurial mindset, triple helix model can be used where academia, industry and government can go hand in hand to develop entrepreneurial mindset. It was also suggested that as academia entity is the first contact for the population, they should take in charge of the change.
Talking about how can the academia develop an entrepreneurial mindset into population, many ideas were discussed. The participants suggested that the education on entrepreneurship should be for three purposes. The first purpose suggested was to educate the population about entrepreneurship theoretically to the primary level students so that they have basic understanding of the topic. The second purpose pointed out by the participants was to educate the population for entrepreneurship to the students who wants to be an entrepreneur by organizing business simulations and practical knowledge. The third purpose suggested was to educate population through entrepreneurship where schools guide and mentor students who wants to work on their business idea in real market.
The Liberty Discussion on “The Price System and Resource Allocation: A Key to Economic Efficiency” explored how collective bargaining and resource allocation impact the economy. Nepal’s trade-focused economy favors trading over manufacturing due to ease of business, despite available capital.
A key example was the tailoring industry; despite decreasing demand, redundancy issues persist due to fierce competition. Similarly, the increase in hotels catering to Indian visitors, notably after Bihar’s alcohol prohibition, demonstrated Nepal’s inability to realize its full economic potential due to poor infrastructure. Kodak and Fuji Films were also asked to illustrate how resource misallocation may lead to success or failure.
Given that even free markets can misallocate resources, it was unclear if the Pathivara cable car project was a worthwhile investment. It focused on how the government regulates the market to prevent issues like Ponzi schemes. After examining Hayek’s (minimum government interference) and Keyne’s (active government role) economic theories, it was concluded that stability required balanced action.
Netflix’s triumph over Blockbuster underscored market equity and the importance of flexibility in business practices. Nepal’s involvement in international trade was examined, focusing on its jute export activities with Bangladesh and India, along with its reliance on oil imports from India. The legislative barriers that kept Nepal’s honey firm from winning a German contract highlighted the economic effects of bad management.
In conclusion the discussion underlined that Nepal’s economic success may be attributed to efficient resource allocation and well-coordinated government initiatives. Despite the initial expenses, domestic production might eventually improve sustainability by reducing need on imports and increasing self-sufficiency.
