Nepal wants more trade facilities from India: Gyawali

Kathmandu, Feb. 17

Minister for Foreign Affairs Pradeep Kumar Gyawali on Sunday said that Nepal wanted more trade facilities to control the burgeoning trade deficit with India. 

“We want more trade facilities, including removal all kinds of trade barriers. Early and comprehensive review of bilateral trade and transit treaty is also our priority,” he said while addressing a seminar on ‘Nepal-India relations: Issues, emerging trends and boosting cooperation’.

He said that infrastructure development was the priority of the government and urged India to support in roadways, cross-border railways, inland waterways and transmission lines.

According to him, infrastructure development is the priority in Nepal-India bilateral relationship.

“We need a huge investment in infrastructure and productive sectors to meet the goal of ‘Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali’ campaign. Therefore, we want sustainable investment in this area in the country,” said Minister Gyawali.

He appreciated robust collaboration with the southern neighbour in Nepal’s development efforts and economic inter-linkages.

He said that terrorism had become serious challenge in South Asia, which needed higher level of collaboration between the countries.

Indian Ambassador to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri said that Nepal could be an automatic beneficiary of the growth happening in its neighbourhood.

“India is the fastest growing economy and will be among the top three largest economies in 15-20 years. Therefore, Nepal can be an immediate beneficiary of that growth. But Nepal should know how to draw benefits from it,” he said.

Stating that the two neighbours have informal and cordial relations, Puri said that with the formation of new stable government, the relations had achieved newer heights.

He also said that development and export of electricity would be the backbone of Nepal-India trade in future.

Nepal is one of the India’s top trading partners with about Rs. 600 billion annual trade.

“We value our economic relations tremendously,” he said.

Former Education Minister Chitra Lekha Yadav said that Nepal-India relationship was charecterised by eternal trust and cooperation which was becoming even stronger now.

Dr. DatteshPrabhuParulekar, Assistant Professor of Goa University, said that Nepal-India relation was based on mutual respect and shared prosperity. “The new initiative inland waterways connectivity has between Nepal and India has given a new beyond the border relations.”

The event was organised by the Asian Institute of Diplomacy and International Affairs (AIDIA).

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 18 February 2019.