KATHMANDU, May 14: Nepal has expressed hope that connectivity of Chinese railroad as part of One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative will usher in a new era of possibility in Nepal.
Addressing the thematic session on Connectivity of Development Policies and Strategies in the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing on Sunday, a senior cabinet minister said that economic development induced by connectivity toward China would help Nepal find alternative policy choices. “Nepal's geographical location, as a part of belt and road initiative, provides unique opportunity to synergize the benefit of connectivity with Central Asia, Europe, North and East Asia to South Asia,” said Minister for Information and Communication Surendra Karki.
Minister Karki, who is also the government spokesperson, argued that major reason of Nepal's low economic growth and excessive time taken to implement the development projects is due to poor connectivity between and among the regions. “Therefore, the government of Nepal has accorded highest priority to the development of infrastructure pertaining to connectivity,” he said. Karki is among the three ministers in the high-level delegation sent by Nepal to participate in the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation scheduled for Sunday and Monday.
Karki pointed out the need for exploring the opportunities to enhance connectivity supported by policy coordination for inclusive, sustainable and harmonious development. “We have to formulate our strategies and policies to complement and also to benefit from this grand trans-national initiative. We take this initiative as a geo-economic enterprise and are set to reap geographical advantage and share the benefit to everyone in the process,” he further said.
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Minister Karki also assured that Nepal is ready to work together with all those associated with OBOR initiative to realize the goal of creating prosperous and harmonious society for more equitable and just global order.
