BIMSTEC Summit: Minister Gyawali says it’s time to translate words into action

Kathmandu, August 29

Nepal’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Pradeep Gyawali says it is now time leaders of the Bay of Bengal region to translate past commitments into action.

Minister Gyawali, who was addressing a meeting of foreign ministers of the BIMSTEC region in Kathmandu, said that the regional grouping must focus on trade and transit. The minister, who chaired the meeting, presented Nepal’s vision for the region in the context of partnership in building a sustainable transportation and energy transmission network. He also discussed the possibility of establishing an ‘information highway’ to connect the countries in the region.

Gyawali told his counterparts that BIMSTEC should also look into issues related to disasters, food security and climate change.

The meeting comes a day after the 19th secretary-level meeting of the BIMSTEC states in Kathmandu, which prepared a draft of the Kathmandu Declaration, to be signed by top leaders of the member states later this week. The meeting of the ministers has also endorsed the draft and decided to present to the summit meeting.