Kathmandu : A US congressional delegation on Monday met Nepal’s House of Representatives Speaker Dol Prasad Aryal and discussed bilateral relations, economic cooperation, climate-related disasters and parliamentary ties, according to the Speaker’s secretariat.
During the meeting, Aryal thanked the US government for its solidarity and support following the flash floods in August, which killed around 1,450 people and left more than 5,000 missing. He briefed the delegation on Nepal’s efforts to manage the situation, the secretariat said in a statement.
The speaker also highlighted the need for greater international and inter-parliamentary cooperation to mitigate losses from climate-related disasters, improve preparedness and strengthen resilience in vulnerable areas, it said.
Aryal told the delegation – led by House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith – that Nepal’s emergency agenda on climate-related disasters was adopted by more than a two-thirds majority at the 153rd Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Arusha, Tanzania, it said.
The agenda called for parliamentary action to address climate-related disasters and strengthen resilience in the Himalayan region and other vulnerable areas.
He called for expanding Nepal-US relations beyond traditional grant assistance to promote investment and economic partnerships, and pledged necessary policy and legal reforms to create an investment-friendly environment in Nepal and boost investor confidence.
Aryal said exchanges of parliamentary visits could help strengthen bilateral relations and parliamentary diplomacy, it said.
The US delegation expressed condolences to the families of those killed in the August floods and said it was interested in continuing US support for Nepal’s economic, social, physical and humanitarian development, according to the Speaker’s secretariat.
The delegation also expressed interest in further strengthening parliamentary ties between the two countries, it said.
