KATHMANDU, Sept 11: Amid criticisms from various quarters that his delegation to New York is unnecessarily big, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has decided to cut the number of Nepali delegation to the 78th United Nations General Assembly by half.

Initially, a 24-member delegation was scheduled to fly to New York to participate in the 68th United Nations General Assembly. Sources said Prime Minister Dahal on Monday directed authorities concerned to cut the size of the delegation keeping in view of the country’s economic situation.

The size of the Nepali delegation to the UNGA is to be reduced by half after Prime Minister Dahal accepted the proposal put forth by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) as per his instruction.

The number of the Nepalese delegation to participate in the UN General Assembly has been cut as per the prime minister’s instruction. An official decision to this effect will be taken by the cabinet meeting scheduled for Tuesday.

A source at the Prime Minister’s Office said Prime Minister Dahal will now lead a 12-member delegation to the UNGA in New York. "I can tell you that the number of the Nepalese delegation to participate in the UN General Assembly has been cut as per the prime minister’s instruction. An official decision to this effect will be taken by the cabinet meeting scheduled for Tuesday,” he said.

Sources said that the number has been reduced in accordance with the policy of not making unnecessary visits and not allowing unnecessary people to participate in the tour group. Prime Minister Dahal is scheduled to fly to New York on September 16. He will address the 68th session of the UN General Assembly.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Narayan Prakash Saud, Foreign Secretary Bharat Raj Paudyal, Head of the United Nations Division at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) Sewa Lamsal, Chief of Protocol Dilip Kumar Paudel, Nepal’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York Lok Bahadur Thapa will be a part of PM’s delegation to the UNGA.

Prime Minister Dahal is scheduled to address the United Nations General Assembly on September 21. After addressing the UN General Assembly, Prime Minister Dahal will leave for China directly from New York on September 22.

Prime Minister Dahal's visit to China will start from September 23. According to sources, Prime Minister Dahal will initially attend the opening ceremony of the 19th Asian Games to be held in Hangzhou, China.

The prime minister will then fly to Beijing after attending the Asian Games curtain raiser.  As per the tentative itinerary, he is scheduled to hold bilateral talks with his Chinese counterpart and pay a courtesy call on Chinese President Xi Jinping on September 25 in Beijing.

 
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