KATHMANDU: In an emphatic tone, Vice President of MCC, Fatema Z. Sumar said Nepal should not delay in ratifying the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) adding, “The country needs to ratify it.”

By saying so, she made it a point to emphasize endorsing the MCC Compact without any delay for Nepal’s economic growth.

“I am optimistic that the political leaders of Nepal understood the urgency of the agreement,” she told a press conference on Sunday before returning to the United States.

With ratification now more than two years past the agreed-upon timeline, there is no better time to act than now, Fatema said, adding that she has shared the message of urgency to political leaders and others during her meetings with them.

Terming the MCC as an opportunity for Nepal’s economic development, she said, “Why should Nepal wait to generate employment opportunities, and create jobs?

“It’s high time Nepal ratified the Compact,” she told the conference, asking, “How long can we afford to wait to be endorsed?”

She, however, said that a ratification stalemate cannot continue indefinitely, and that the Government of Nepal must choose to go forward; or decide that this grant is no longer needed.

She also said that even if Nepal wishes to no longer receive an MCC grant, this will not lead to any souring of the relationship between the United States and Nepal.

Stating that the United States respects Nepal’s sovereignty and recognizes that it is Nepal’s choice to continue the partnership with MCC, she said that the two countries would continue to share values and friendship.

According to her, parliamentary ratification at this time would allow the government to begin implementing $500 million dollars in infrastructure projects over the next five years, boosting Nepal’s economy and directly benefiting nearly 23 million Nepalis through transparency and accountability.

Fatema arrived in Kathmandu on September 9. During her stay in Kathmandu, she held talks with political leaders, including Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, CPN-UML Chairman KP Oli, Maoist Center Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda”, political leaders, government officials, and business and community leaders.

During the meetings, she also discussed the required next steps to implement the $500 million MCC-Nepal infrastructure program, and addressed the clarification questions provided by Nepal’s Ministry of Finance.

Fatema specifically affirmed that the MCC grant program has no military component, will not impede Nepal’s sovereignty, and Nepal’s constitution will prevail over the agreement.

Prior to negotiating and signing the compact in 2017, the Government of Nepal had designed the 5-year grant program to provide more reliable electricity and lower power and transportation costs for all Nepalis.