ADB_book_18 April.qxp - Himalayan Document Centre - icimod

objects of archaeological, historical, andartistic importance, and empowers theGovernment to declare any area where anancient monument is located as a ProtectedMonument Zone.(vii) Nepal Drinking Water Supply Corporation Act1989: sets up Nepal Drinking WaterCorporation, a body responsible forsupplying clean drinking water tomunicipalities and to areas specified by theGovernment, and to manage drainagesystems in municipal areas.(viii) Local Administration Act 1971, LandAcquisition Act 1977, and Vehicle andTransport Management Act 1992 haveprovisions that are relevant for urbanmanagement.(ix) The National Solid Waste ManagementPolicy, National Water Supply and SanitationPolicy, and Shelter Policy are important in theplanning, development, and management ofurban infrastructure.(x) The Nepal Urban Sector Strategy 2000 is animportant step towards recognizing theincreasing significance of urban areas inNepal.While these policies and legislation provide abasic framework for urban planning andmanagement as well as environmental safeguards inurban areas, there are difficulties at theimplementation level. First, these acts need to bestreamlined, made coherent, and ambiguitiesremoved. Provision of urban infrastructure in Nepalhas been largely driven by central institutions such asthe Nepal Water Supply Cooperation; Department ofRoads; Solid Waste Management and ResourceMobilisation Center; Nepal TelecommunicationsCorporation; and Nepal Electricity Authority. Asresponsibilities are scattered and many agencies areinvolved in the planning, provision, and managementof urban infrastructure and services, coordination isextremely difficult. Institutional confusion arisingfrom provisions in various legislations regarding theresponsibilities, authorities, and handling ofresources is a prominent issue. Urban developmentand management in Nepal lack an integrated holisticapproach, and long-term vision. Recently, afterenactment of the Local Self-Governance Act,municipalities are being increasingly empowered tomanage their urban areas and to assume the urbangovernance role. The municipalities, however, aregenerally constrained by a lack of capacity andresources. As a result, urban areas of Nepal continueto grow spontaneously and haphazardly.At present there is no information availableregarding the level of investment by municipalities inthe environmental and infrastructure sectors.However, solid waste management, building drains,and plantation are some areas in whichmunicipalities commonly invest.Lack of financial resources is a criticalconstraint currently faced by Nepalesemunicipalities. Local development fees (LDF) andgrants are the two major sources of revenue formunicipalities (Table 8.3). LDF are collected by thecentral Government and transferred to themunicipalities through the Ministry of LocalGovernment. Almost all municipalities are highlydependent on LDF and grants; they are generallyweak in mobilizing local revenue sources. Bhaktapurmunicipality has introduced a “Tourist Entry Fee”,which generated more than 44% of its revenue in oneTable 8.3: Consolidated Revenues and Ex penditures of Municipalities FY 2004RevenueExpenditureOwn sourceHeading Amount (NRs‘000) Heading Amount (NRs‘000)Current/administrativeLocal development fee 986,099 Salaries 465,030House/land and propert y tax 142,044 Allowances 55,873Other tax revenue 109,072 Services 52,978Fees and fines 359,770 Fuel 50,538Property rental 82,666 Contingencies 63,549Other revenue 85,841 Other 147,043Miscellaneous income 63,370 Debt payment 62,478Grants (HMG, D DC,TDF, and other) 288,986 Social program 243,991Loans 26,348 Ordinary capital (furniture, equipment) 35,150DDC = District Development Committee, HMG = His Majesty’s Government of Nepal, TDF = Town Dev elopment FundSource: Chhetri and Pradhan (2005)Capital investment (Public expenditure) 983,523114 Environment Assessment of Nepal : Emerging Issues and Challenges