National Assembly Approves Cooperative (First Amendment) Ordinance 2083

Kathmandu. The National Assembly, under the Federal Parliament, has approved the 'Cooperative (First Amendment) Ordinance 2083' by a majority. The ordinance was presented by the Minister for Land Management, Cooperatives, Federal Affairs and General Administration, Pratibha Rawal, in the meeting of the Assembly held on Friday and was approved by the Assembly. Responding to the questions raised by the MPs regarding the ordinance, Minister Rawal clarified that the ordinance was issued to address the complex problems seen in the cooperative sector and to legally untangle the knots immediately to secure the depositors' funds. She informed the House that this ordinance was issued by the President on the recommendation of the Council of Ministers in accordance with Article 114 (1) of the Constitution of Nepal. According to Minister Rawal, this amendment is essential to comply with the directive order given by the Supreme Court on Magh 11, 2082, to form a relief and compensation mechanism for the return of savings of affected members of problematic cooperatives and to amend the Cooperative Act. She also stated that the ordinance is focused on strengthening the National Cooperative Regulatory Authority for effective supervision of the cooperative sector to prevent Nepal from falling into the 'grey list' in the context of preventing money laundering. The ordinance has amended the provisions related to the statute of limitations in the Act to expedite the process of cooperative loan recovery, prioritize the return of savings, and control activities contrary to cooperative values and principles. Minister Rawal informed that the definition of 'family' has been further expanded to bring those who misuse and embezzle cooperative assets into the legal framework. The government has also put forward long-term plans to make the cooperative sector more disciplined and reliable. Clarifying the ministry's upcoming work plan, Minister Rawal said, 'The ministry has already started the process of drafting two separate laws: the Cooperative Act for the registration and operation of cooperatives and a new separate law for the regulation of savings and credit cooperatives.' In the meeting, the motion presented by MP Samjhana Devkota to reject the ordinance was rejected by a majority. Immediately thereafter, the Assembly passed the proposal presented by Minister Rawal to approve the ordinance by a majority.