The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), the international arm of the Swiss government, which has been working in Nepal for more than five decades, has suspended its projects in Nepal due to security reasons.

“Our projects which are being carried out in Nepal’s rural areas are suspended due to the current insecurity,” Shewan Ngudup, deputy chief manager at the Kathmandu based SDC office told Nepalnews, adding, “Aid has, however, not been suspended. As soon as the security situation improves, we will resume the projects.”

Meanwhile, the Indo-Asian News Service Tuesday quoted Jorg Frieden, SDC country director in Nepal, as saying that they had trouble with the Maoist insurgents for the last eight months, as they (insurgents) had been demanding the SDC to contribute financially or register with the rebels. “These go against our basic guiding principles. When we face such impossible demands, we just have to stop,” the report quoted Frieden as saying.

According to the report, SDC’s assistance in the last year was US$16-17 million. This year, due to the uncertainty, it is feared that a fiscal year might be lost, the report quoting Frieden said.

The SDC currently supports over a dozen transportation infrastructure development projects and programs in rural Nepal with a focus on suspension bridges, road access and maintenance, natural resource management, occupational skills, including governance support and peace building initiatives. nepalnews.com pd Feb 22 05