INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Kathmandu, February 14
Minister of Foreign Affairs Pradeep Kumar Gyawali is leaving for Bangladesh on Monday on a three-day official visit
at the invitation of his Bangladeshi counterpart AK Abdul Momen.
Gyawali will be accompanied by Foreign Secretary Shanker Das Bairagi and
senior officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies and Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and
Irrigation.
During the visit, Gywali will hold delegation-level talks with his Bangladeshi counterpart
The two foreign ministers will review overall aspects of the bilateral relation and exchange views on various matters of mutual interest
such as energy, trade, transit, connectivity, tourism and cooperation on regional and multilateral issues, according to a MoFA
statement.
The two sides are also expected to hold talks on Preferential Trade Agreement and Bangladesh-Bhutan-India-Nepal Motor Vehicles
Agreement, besides cross border electricity trade
Earlier, the PTA was expected to be signed during Bangladeshi President Mohammad Abdul Hamid visit to Nepal last November
On the sidelines of the 18th NAM Summit in Azerbaijan in October, Bangladesh Prime Minister Seikh Hasina had requested Prime Minister KP
Sharma Oli to finalise the PTA during Hamid Nepal visit.
As far as the BBIN is concerned, Bangladesh, India and Nepal have already ratified
Although lower house of Bhutan approved the agreement in 2016, the upper house rejected it
Bhutan has requested for a cap to be fixed on the number of vehicles entering its territory
During the Azerbaijan meet, Oli and Hasina had agreed to implement the BBIN Agreement among the three countries, if Bhutan needed more
time.
As for cross-border power trade, Bangladesh has already formulated a policy to import 9,000 MW electricity from Nepal by 2040
For this, construction of transmission line, selection of projects and cooperation on alternative energy are in focus.
Nepal and Bangladesh
have also agreed to cooperate on electricity generation, development of hydroelectricity, cross-border transmission lines, development of
efficient human resources in hydropower sector, promotion of government-to-government and private sector investment, grid connectivity and
investment in renewable energy.
Minister Gywali is also scheduled to deliver a speech at the Bangladesh Institute of International and
Strategic Studies on Nepal-Bangladesh Relation and South Asian Cooperation
He will return home on February 19.
The post Minister Gyawali embarks on official visit to Bangladesh on Monday appeared first on The
