Kathmandu, 8 Oct: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ today said the implementation of the ‘Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)’ project would move ahead with priority.
At a seminar with the theme of ‘A Decade of BRI: Trade, Investment and Connectivity’ organised here on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the BRI by the Nepal-China Friendship Forum, the PM said the project is not a list of wishes, but it is worthy of implementation.
The government has a clear view on advancing development projects by selecting and implementing projects under the BRI, he said. The government wanted to advance development and prosperity at a speedy pace through the implementation of the BRI, he said, adding, “Questions have often been heard regarding the delay of the project. The COVID-19 pandemic, and our system and infrastructural limitations are also blamed for this delay. However, Nepal wants to speed up development and prosperity through the BRI implementation.”
Saying that he was fully agreed with Chinese President Xi Jinping’s statement that now Nepal would become a land linked country from a landlocked one, he said he was raising this issue with determination since a few decades. “Now we must take collective initiatives to turn this strategy into reality. So, we will discuss in detail the financial investment model of such projects. We believe that the Chinese side will review its investment policy and adopt a policy of grants and assistances for Nepal in the context of some projects,” he said.
The unprecedented development of China, an exemplary nation to the world and a good neighbour and friend of Nepal, is both a great learning and opportunity for Nepal, he said. Nepal wants to realise speedy development, poverty alleviation and the concept of sustainable development and common prosperity put forward by China, through the implementation of the BRI, said the PM.
Now, Nepal is in need of big investments for infrastructure development, but there is no situation wherein the need cannot be achieved only through development aids received through traditional sources. The BRI would be an important resource for Nepal in the context that it needed more external capital to accelerate development activities, he said.
Although 1,000 billion USD have been invested through the BRI alone in the past 10 years according to available data, Nepal could not bring in relatively significantly investments, he said. He stressed the need for work at a fast pace by mobilising common mechanisms of both the sides according to the timetable.
