KATHMANDU: The UN Secretary-General’s special envoy Samuel Tamrat on Tuesday met Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal at the latter’s office in Singha Durbar to discuss the ongoing peace process. Tamrat, who is a director for Asia and the Pacific Division Department of Political Affairs at the UN, is on a six-day official visit to Nepal.

According to PM’s foreign affairs advisor Rajan Bhattarai, the duo talked on the future of the peace process and contemporary political situation in the country. “Extension of UNMIN’s term was must to leading the peace process to a pragmatic end,” Bhattarai quoted PM Nepal as saying. Tamrat, on behalf of Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, also congratulated Nepal for being elected the Prime Minister.

“Prime Minister Nepal made it clear that he

would hold consultations with his coalition partners and opposition parties

on the issue before arriving at a decision to officially seek another term for the UNMIN,” said Bhattarai. The tenure of UNMIN ends on July 23.

During the meeting, Nepal and Tamrat also

discussed the UN plan to provide minimum relief package to thousands of unemployed Nepali youths. The UN on Monday had announced that it had launched a “Jobs for Peace” project, which would help 12,200 youths from Parsa and Rautahat district find jobs.

The UN envoy is

also scheduled to meet UCPN-Maoist supremo Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Nepali Congress president Girija Prasad Koirala. Tamrat’s is the first high profile visit by a UN official after the UML-led government was formed.