CIDCA chairman visits Nepal

Chen Xiaodong, chairman of the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA), led a delegation to visit Nepal from July 20 to 22, during which he made a courtesy call to Nepal's Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli and met with Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel.

Chen Xiaodong, chairman of the China International Development Cooperation Agency, makes a courtesy call to Nepal's Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli during his visit to the country from July 20 to 22.

Chen said that China and Nepal are friendly neighboring countries connected by mountains and rivers, with a long-standing tradition of amicable exchanges. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations 70 years ago, their relationship has continued to develop in a healthy and stable manner, he said. In particular, he added, the two countries elevated their relationship to a strategic cooperative partnership oriented toward long-term friendship, development and shared prosperity in 2019, injecting strong momentum into China-Nepal cooperation.

China is willing to work closely with Nepal to effectively implement the important consensus reached between the two countries' leaders, enhance the alignment of their development strategies, accelerate the construction of a Trans-Himalayan three-dimensional connectivity network and carry out more cooperation projects in key areas such as agriculture, new energy, health and education, according to Chen. These efforts aim to promote Nepal's economic and social development, improve people's livelihoods, and ultimately benefit the people of both countries and advance the building of a China-Nepal community with a shared future, he said.

He also expressed sincere appreciation to Nepal for its active efforts to search and rescue missing Chinese personnel following the recent mudslide disaster on the China-Nepal border. China stands ready to continue providing support and assistance to Nepal in that regard, he concluded.

Chen Xiaodong, chairman of the China International Development Cooperation Agency, meets with Nepal's Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel during his visit to the country from July 20 to 22.

The Nepalese side emphasized that the friendship between the two nations is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. Nepal is indebted to China for its continuous and valuable support over the years, which has contributed significantly to Nepal's transformation from a landlocked country to a land-linked one, they said. Nepal remains committed to the one-China principal and is willing to further strengthen bilateral exchanges, learn from China's successful development experiences, consolidate traditional friendship, deepen practical cooperation across various fields and jointly promote the sustained growth of bilateral relations, they added.

During the visit, Chen signed a number of cooperation documents with counterparts of related Nepalese departments, and conducted field surveys of cooperation projects in Nepal.