Chinese courier firms give economic boost to Nepal

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Dayaidhi Khatiwada is a local courier working for a Chinese express delivery company in Nepal. He used to be a waiter at a restaurant in Qatar. But now, the highly demanding job of being a courier has given him an opportunity to stay at home and earn a better salary.

“They’re providing me with better facilities and salary, so now I’m working here. I work 12 hours a day, but the job is easy. I keep doing the same work every day,” Daya said.

China’s "faster-than-ever" express delivery services led to the country’s booming e-commerce industry. And now it’s transforming how the Nepalese operate their businesses.

Aaqib Rather, a scarf store owner in Kathmandu, opened a store on China’s biggest e-commerce platform – Taobao.com with his Chinese partner four years ago.

/CGTN Photo

Aaqib introduced that the delivery service in Nepal was slow and expensive in the past. But Chinese express companies’ fast speed and low prices are helping him to sell 100-150 scarfs a day on Taobao.

STO Express is one of these Chinese express companies in Nepal. Chen Jianhong, manager of the company's business in South Asia, built everything in Nepal from scratch. He said Chinese firms redefined the express delivery industry in Nepal.

Three years ago, the price of sending a standard package from Kathmandu to China was around 25-30 US dollars. But when Chinese businesses like STO Express came, they beat the price down to less than 5 dollars.

“We’re faster, more efficient than them. Before we came here, no one in Nepal could imagine the courier business could be operated like this,” Chen said.

Chen’s company has already grabbed the biggest market share in Kathmandu. But the poor infrastructure conditions in Nepal are a hindrance for further development.

China and Nepal are cooperating under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative. They aim to improve better trade and the construction of infrastructure like roads and railways.

Chen said he has been dreaming of a smooth and high-quality expressway linking Kathmandu with the Chinese border for a long time. He hopes the Belt and Road Initiative will help realize his dream as soon as possible.