Nepal urges Australia to issue visas from its Embassy in Kathmandu (audio report)

August 30, Kathmandu: The second meeting of the Bilateral Consultations Mechanism (BCM) between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Nepal and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Australia was held in the Australian capital city of Canberra on Tuesday.

The Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Nepal, Bharat Raj Paudyal, and the Deputy Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Australia, Justin Hayhurst, led their respective delegations to Tuesday’s BCM meeting.

During the meeting, the two sides reviewed the bilateral relations between Nepal and Australia and exchanged views on further strengthening the bilateral relations and cooperation in different fields including education, energy and investment.

Appreciating Australian assistance to Nepal, Foreign Affairs Secretary Paudyal requested Australia to place Nepal as a priority country for receiving Australian aid.

He also requested the Australian side to extend support for post-COVID economic recovery, realize the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, and consider issuing visa services from the Australian Embassy in Kathmandu.

Meanwhile, Nepal and Australia have signed a Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation on Water Resource Management. As per the agreement, Australia will provide support for capacity development and training of technical personnel in water resource management.