UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to visit Nepal

The UN Secretary-General had postponed his Nepal visit due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

A senior Nepal government official told The Kathmandu Post that Guterres would be on a four-day official visit from October 29 to November 1. As per the preliminary itinerary, the UN chief will land in Kathmandu on October 29 via Qatar and will return via the same route on the afternoon of November 1.

Nepal's Foreign ministry officials said that they are still working on the visit and coordinating with the office of the UN Secretary-General regarding its logistics, programme and function, the formal announcement will be made later.

Nepal's foreign ministry spokesperson Sewa Lamsal said preparation for the UN chief's visit is underway and will be announced once it is confirmed. Though the visit date has been rescheduled, Guterres' programmes and meetings in Kathmandu remain the same, the official said.

Duirng his visit the UN Secretary General will call on President Ramchandra Paudel, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and senior leaders from different political parties. He is also set to visit areas in Nepal that have suffered adverse effects of climate change.

A visit to Everest Base Camp, Annapurna Base Camp and Lumbini are on the itinerary of the UN chief, an official privy to the visit said. Nepal Prime Minister Dahal had extended an invitation to Guterres to visit during his meeting in New York in September and in Rome, Italy in July, as per The Kathmandu Post.

Officials at the foreign ministry said they had been in contact with the UN Secretary General's office since May to arrange for his visit to Nepal.

An official at the prime minister's office said that Guterres might address the Nepal Parliament too.

Officials said they have nearly finalised the itinerary, agenda and all logistical arrangements for the visit. Among the key items on the agenda are climate change, its effects on livelihoods, the peace process and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He will discuss these issues with relevant stakeholders during the visit, said officials involved in the preparations, The Kathmandu Post reported.

Almost all UN secretary generals have visited Nepal in the past.

Prime Minister Dahal, during his two meetings with the UN chief, had invited him to visit Nepal and study the progress the country has made in the peace process and to observe the challenges posed by climate change.

In the last meeting between Dahal and Guteress in New York, discussions involved different facets of Nepal's peace process, UN peacekeeping, climate change, SDGs, concerns of the least developed countries, and development financing, according to a statement issued by Nepal's foreign affairs ministry. (ANI)