Ministry of Commerce And Supplies - Enhanced Integrated ...

N T I S2010Quality of Product: The quality of exported ginger is considered average, but the exporters see good prospects.Nepal is producing two varieties of ginger: “nase” rhizome containing more fibres and “Bose” rhizome, whichis fibreless or with negligible fibrer. From the fresh consumption market perspective, the quality of Nepaliginger is considered lower than those of Cochin and Bangalore in India, Jamaica and elite varieties of othercountries because of Nepal’s high fibre content and dirty look. The Nase variety is preferred by the spiceindustry for making ginger powder, preparing mixed spices and for medicinal purposes. The Nase variety hasan established market. Therefore, there is good potential in improving the product mix for fresh consumption(bose) and industrial use (nase) as most of the produce at present is of Nase variety.Productivity: Productivity of Nepali ginger is comparable with India, but lower than other internationalcompetitors. More importantly, there is a large variance in the yield in different districts, ranging from about20 MT/ha in Tanahu (which is comparable to other countries) to less than 10 MT/ha in Nawalparasi district(ITC 2007a).Availability and Quality of Labour Force: Industry sources report a lack of skills due to a lack of formal training.However, the farm labour and the labour involved at different levels of the value chain have gained longexperience in their professions. Labour productivity is assessed ‘above average’.Labour Cost and Overall Production Cost: There is no indication that Nepal has a significant advantage ordisadvantage in production costs compared to India.Level of Processing Technology: The technology used in this sector is minimal. The drying technology that isused has shown little improvement in recent years. Very little processing is done.Cost and Quality of Infrastructure: Ginger being a bulk item, the weak road infrastructure is a factor affectingthe sector.Efficiency of Domestic Supporting Industries: Supply of farm inputs and transportation services are wellorganized.Domestic Demand: Demand for ginger--fresh or dried--from domestic industries is low because the productdiversification has not been successful. Production of ginger oil and oleoresin is still at an experimental level.Production of other products like candy, spices, ayurvedic medicines and other ready-to-eat food preparedfrom ginger is very small.Business Environment: Industry sources were mainly referring to general problems in the businessenvironment, such as insufficient administrative and judicial services, corruption, crime, and complex borderprocedures.Government Initiatives and Donor Involvement: There is no specific strategy or policy for the sector.However, production expansion and export promotion activities are implemented under the generaldevelopment programmes of the government by agencies such as the TEPC, Agribusiness Promotion andMarketing Development Directorate (APMDD), National Agriculture Research Council (NARC), NationalAgriculture Development and Research Fund (NADRF), the DADOs, Plant Quarantine Directorate, Departmentof Food Technology and Quality Control, National Spice Development Programme, and the Ginger ResearchProgramme.Prospect for Domestic Supply Conditions: Stakeholders of the value chain claim that total production could beeasily doubled within two crop cycles with market assurance to the farmers under the prevailing productiontechnology. Total production could be further increased by changing the crop variety (like the KapurkotAduwa 1 variety, which was released by the Government Ginger Research Farm and by using more of thefibreless variety of seed) and improving farm practices to improve the yield rate.NEPAL TRADE INTEGRATION STRATEGY 2010BACKGROUND REPORT31