KATHMANDU: The Prime Ministers of India and Nepal have affirmed their resolve to promote cooperation in the field of agriculture and allied sectors. According to a statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, today, Nepal and India will co-work in agricultural science and technology, agricultural production and agro-processing in line with the Memorandum of Understanding between the two countries for mutual benefit of farmers, consumers, scientific community as well as the private sector.

The two Prime Ministers agreed to give fresh momentum to bilateral cooperation in the agricultural sector and decided to launch a New Partnership in Agriculture, said the statement.

Nepal and India will focus on collaborative projects in agricultural research & development, education, training and scholarships; strengthening of supply and value chain; climate resilience; research in seed technology; soil health; strengthening infrastructure of plant protection laboratories; research in indigenous genetic resources; animal husbandry; veterinary research and development facilities; agro forestry; bio pesticides, bio fertilizers; cooperative farming, and promoting exchanges between the Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR) and the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC).

The Partnership will be anchored by the Ministers for Agriculture of the two countries.

The first meeting of the Partnership will be organised at the earliest possible which will identify and materialise areas of mutual interest and develop a work plan for joint implementation.

On the occasion, the Indian side also announced a pilot project on organic farming and soil health monitoring for implementation in Nepal.