Nepal and India Forge Ahead with B2B Meeting to Enhance Economic Ties
In a notable effort to enhance economic relations, the Embassy of India, together with the Investment Board of Nepal (IBN) and the Nepal India Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NICCI), organized a Business-to-Business (B2B) gathering. This event saw the attendance of 35 delegates from diverse sectors including energy, agriculture, construction, tourism, cold chain, medical devices, finance, consultancy, and law. The objective of the meeting was to identify prospective areas for collaboration between businesses in India and Nepal.
Shreejana Rana, President of NICCI, highlighted hydropower, tourism, and agriculture as key sectors ripe for collaboration. Ambassador Anil Trigunayat, President of the Millenium India International Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MICCIA), lauded the recent initiatives aimed at enhancing bilateral connectivity and underscored the significance of B2B connections in advancing the India-Nepal Economic Partnership. Ramesh Adhikari, Under Secretary at IBN, extended a warm welcome to Indian investors to explore business opportunities in Nepal.
The assembly additionally commemorated the formalization of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between MICCIA and NICCI, signifying a significant achievement in the continuous endeavors to fortify economic alliances. This occasion formed a segment of a wider involvement encompassing the 3rd Nepal Investment Summit. Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' inaugurated this pivotal summit, drawing approximately 1,800 attendees from diverse nations, with 140 representatives hailing from India.
The summit, themed 'Emerging Nepal', aimed to showcase Nepal as a country ripe for investment from legal, geographical, and strategic perspectives. It facilitated the signing of MoUs between Nepal and its development partners as well as foreign investors. The first investment summit in 2017 attracted investment commitments worth USD 13.5 billion from different countries. The subsequent summit in 2019 saw nearly USD 12 billion pledged for 50 projects. However, only one-third of these commitments materialized into actual investments.
With a participation of over 200 investors from China and more than 140 from India during the two-day summit, it highlights the increasing enthusiasm in Nepal's investment prospects. The B2B meeting and the investment summit together symbolize a substantial advancement in reinforcing the economic collaboration between India and Nepal.