Last week I posted on the issuance by OFAC of a license to the U.S. Embassy in Nepal and USAID to continue providing financial support to the Government of Nepal notwithstanding that the Communist Party of Nepal (the “CPN”), an entity on OFAC’s SDN list, had been made part of an interim coalition government in Nepal. At that time, the text of the license had not been released and it was difficult to determine the extent to which it might cover NGOs in Nepal providing assistance to the Government of Nepal.

In an email interview with James Moriarty that was excerpted today on the website of the Kantipur Daily and the Kathmandu Post), Ambassador Moriarty provided additional information on the OFAC license:

The US Mission in Nepal has been authorized to continue providing economic and development assistance to the Government of Nepal and to the peace process, even after the Maoists take up positions in the government. . . . To quote from the license itself, USAID, the Department of State and their US contractors and grantees “are authorized to engage in transactions with the Government of Nepal (GON), including any political subdivision, agency or instrumentality of the GON, notwithstanding the involvement of the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (CPN-M) in the GON, provided the transactions are necessary for the entry into and execution of State and USAID grants or contracts for the provision of assistance or economic support in Nepal, or to support implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement entered into on November 21, 2006 by the GON and the CPN(M), as authorized by the grant or contract. This authorization includes working with or through public international organizations, as authorized by the grant or contract.”

Thus, it is clear now that the license does cover NGOs that are U.S. contractors to the U.S. Embassy or USAID. Other U.S. NGOs or other U.S. firms that are not contractors to the Embassy or USAID will need separate licenses from OFAC to provide goods, services or financial aid to the Government of Nepal or state-owned enterprises.

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