Journal of Management and Development Studies

Nepal-Britain treaty 1923: Nepal's achievements and legacies

Dadhiram Bhandari — 2023-10-12

Nepal’s independent status has largely been shaped by historical events, personalities, treaties, and agreements. Domestic and external events that happened in the first two decades of the twentieth century had and continued to have a direct impact on Nepal’s external behavior and independence. During that period, Nepal was deeply engaged in war with British-India and Tibet as well as in World War-I. Nepal’s deep involvement in regional and global affairs resulted in the conclusion of the treaty between the United Kingdom and Nepal in 1923 A.D. which helped consolidate Nepal’s independent status thereafter. Against this backdrop, a descriptive analysis of the historic events such as Chandra Shamsher's rule in Nepali politics, Lord Curzon’s arrival in India as British-India’s Viceroy, the Lhasa Mission 1903-04, Nepal’s involvement in World War-I and the Hunting Diplomacy of Nepal are described in this article mainly to explain their contributions to the 1923 Treaty. The provisions of the treaty have also been examined with a view to assessing its contributions to the independence of Nepal. In short, it is an effort to argue on Chandra Shamsher's diplomatic success to consolidate Nepal’s independence through a treaty between the United Kingdom and Nepal in 1923. In the short run, that treaty contributed to Nepal’s international recognition as an independent sovereign country setting it aside from other Indian princely states. In the long run, it contributed to building a distinct international identity of Nepal.

Working ethically with gatekeeper and participants: a reflection of an ethnographic inquiry of homestay tourism learning

Chet Nath Kanel — 2023-10-12

A gatekeeper's role in an ethnographic study has hardly been explored. Considering this, this article presents an ethnographic study of Nepali homestays’ learning in which a gatekeeper was used as an intermediary to enter the research site and have access to the research participants. The key steps and processes we adopted while selecting and working with the gatekeeper have been explained along with our reflections on the role and ethics balancing strategies applied during the study. In this reflective article, we have interpreted and conclusively asserted that the eight words ended with 'ty'— intentionality, neutrality, conformity, familiarity, mutuality, reciprocity, anonymity, and sustainability— play significant roles in balancing and ethically working with the gatekeeper and the research participants.

Employability of engineering graduates in Nepal: employers’ perspectives

Amrita Sharma — 2023-10-12

A huge number of graduates are seeking employment opportunities, whereas employers hardly get the suitable employees with the set of skills and competencies that they are looking for. In this context, this paper highlights the employers' perspectives towards employability, especially on the part of engineering graduates in Nepal. To meet the purpose of this paper, 'single case study' research design was adopted. The employers from private companies who employed engineers were interviewed to obtain their perspectives and/or opinions. The employers perceived that the proactiveness of the graduates along with their practical and enterprising skills as well as learning aptitudes were important as a part of employability. Current examination and evaluation systems in the engineering colleges do not exactly help the students in equipping them with those skills. They are rather dependent upon memorization creating an adverse and undesired effect to their employability. This paper reveals that all the expectations of the employers may not be fulfilled; however, the ideas and recommendations derived from the study on improving employability can bridge the gaps between the graduate’s academic performance and the employers’ expectations. Social and cultural environments also contribute to building such skills and attributes among the engineering graduates. Only having academic degree is not a gateway to the job markets in the present scenario of the country. The paper concludes that, in the perspective of the employers, the engineering education must integrate important practical skills into the academic courses in order to make the graduates more employable.

Effects of credit risks on growth of commercial banks in Nepal

Anil Humagain — 2023-10-12

This study aims to investigate the effects of credit risk management tools on the growth of commercial banks in Nepal. The study utilized a descriptive research design with quantitative research methods. The data were collected from System-X, for a period of 12 years from 2011 to 2022. The results of the study indicate that non-performing loans (NPLs) have a significant negative effect on bank performance and growth of total assets in Nepal. The average non-performing loans of the commercial banks during the study period was 1.5 percent. During this period, the average total assets growth of the banking sector was 19.94 percent. Credit to Deposit Ratio, Non-Performing Loan, and Inflation were statistically significant to predict the growth of commercial banks. The study also revealed that credit management practices among Nepalese commercial banks are suboptimal. This study further suggests that the regulatory authority should periodically review the credit risk management tools employed by banks in order to mitigate the credit risks.