Remarks by Ambassador Mr. Ghanshyam Bhandari at
‘Pre-event Seminar on the 3rd Nepal Investment Summit-2024’
Organized by the Embassy of Nepal
Dhaka, 30 March 2024
Chief Guest of Today’s Programme Hon. State Minister of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources H.E. Mr. Nasrul Hamid, MP
Hon. Members of Parliament,
Special Guest Chief Executive Officer of Investment Board Nepal
Mr. Sushil Bhatta
Chairman of Bangladesh Power Development Board
Eminent Business Leaders of Bangladesh
Friends from Media, and
Distinguished Guests
Namaste, As-salamu Alaykum, Shuvo Sandhya, and Good Evening!
I extend a warm welcome to you all to this Seminar, organized as a pre-event of the Third Nepal Investment Summit scheduled to be held in Kathmandu on 28-29 April 2024.
At the outset, I express my sincere gratitude to Hon. State Minister of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, H.E. Mr. Nasrul Hamid, MP, for sparing his time to grace this event as the Chief Guest.
I acknowledge the presence of esteemed members of parliament Hon. Ms. Aroma Datta and Hon. Kazi Nabil Ahmed.
My heartfelt appreciation goes to our Special Guest CEO of Investment Board Nepal Mr. Sushil Bhatta and Joint Secretary Mr. Babu Raja Adhikari for travelling to Dhaka to share with us the updates about the Investment Summit.
I would also like to thank you – eminent business leaders from Bangladesh, think tanks, and friends from media, and all our distinguished guests – who have made it to the Seminar.
Dear Friends,
In less than a month’s time from today, the Government of Nepal will hold the third edition of the Nepal Investment Summit, bringing together global investors, policymakers, experts, and development finance institutions.
Its major objectives are to:
- help potential investors witness Nepal’s transformation as an attractive investment destination.
- Facilitate their connection with the local partners,
- Help them discover investment opportunities in Nepal, and
- Secure synergetic partnerships.
But, the ultimate goal of the Summit is to ensure bridging resources and technology gaps for Nepal’s economic development.
Today’s Seminar strives to provide insights into and shed light on expectations from the Summit.
My IBN colleagues will share more information about this a bit later. So, I do not want to go into details now.
But please allow me to highlight a few points:
A country of 30 million, Nepal is a sizable domestic market with 57 percent of working age population and low cost of labour.
Situated strategically between the two economic powerhouses – India and China, Nepal is a gateway to a duty-free access to the markets of about three billion population.
Nepal enjoys preferential trade arrangements with a number of developing and developed nations and regional blocs, including the USA and the EU.
We have made a number of policy, legal, institutional and procedural reforms, including the enactment of the new Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Act (FITTA).
The Act guarantees national treatment of foreign investments and ensures the repatriation of returns.
Nepal offers attractive tax incentives and export structures, along with simplified procedures for land acquisition, company registration, and infrastructure development.
Excellencies, and Dear Friends,
With increasing economic and commercial ties between our two countries, joint venture projects between Nepali and Bangladeshi investors have grown in recent times.
An MoU on the Avoidance of Double Taxation was signed between our two countries in March 2019
As a friendly neighbour, we are happy to witness Bangladesh’s impressive economic development over the decades. It is pleasing to see Bangladesh continue the momentum of robust economic growth.
Nepal has also made significant development achievements in recent years. In this light, Nepal-Bangladesh economic partnership must be further strengthened.
Nepal’s immense hydropower potential presents significant opportunities in addressing Bangladesh’s clean energy needs.
I am pleased to share with you all that we are on the verge of materializing the first-ever power trade between Nepal and Bangladesh, with the initial transaction of 40 MW of electricity.
Negotiations are also underway on a joint investment in the 683 MW Sunkoshi III hydropower project and on the purchase of 500 MW of electricity from the Upper Karnali hydropower project, as agreed by Bangladesh and GMR of India.
Beyond hydropower, Nepal presents a wealth of investment opportunities for our friends from Bangladesh in sectors such as infrastructure, hotel and hospitality, pharmaceuticals, and information and communication technology, among others.
As an Embassy, we stand ready, as always, to facilitate interested Bangladeshi investors by addressing their queries and concerns.
সম্মানিত অতিথিবৃন্দ ও প্রিয় সুধীমন্ডলী,
নেপাল ও বাংলাদেশের মধ্যে বন্ধুত্বপূর্ণ এবং বহুমুখী সম্পর্ক রয়েছে।
আমাদের দুই দেশের মধ্যে হিমালয় এবং বঙ্গপসাগরে প্রবাহিত নদীগুলার মতো প্ৰাকৃতিক যোগসূত্র রয়েছে।
অর্থনৈতিক ও বাণিজ্যিক সম্পর্ক আরো উন্নত করতে বিনিয়োগ একটি গুরুত্বপূর্ণ ভূমিকা পালন করছে।
আসুন আমরা সম্মিলিত ভাবে বিনিয়োগের মাধ্যমে দুই দেশের অর্থনৈতিক সম্পকর্কে আরো উন্নত করি।
পবিত্র রমজান মাস উপলক্ষ্যে আমি আপনাকে এবং আপনাদের পরিবারকে আমার ও নেপাল দূতাবাসের পক্ষ থেকে আন্তরিক শুভেচ্ছা জানাচ্ছি। রমজান আপনাদের জীবনে সুখ, শান্তি, সমৃদ্ধি এবং আধ্যাত্বিক পরিপূর্ণতা ও আশির্বাদ নিয়ে আসুক।
রামাদানে করিম
আপনাদের সবাইকে অনেক অনেক ধন্যবাদ।
*****
