KATHMANDU, MAY 5
Nepal and Romania held their first Bilateral Consultation Mechanism (BCM) meeting in Bucharest on Monday, with the two sides discussing economic ties, labour and consular issues, and prospects for expanded cooperation across several sectors.
The meeting was held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania and led by Joint Secretary Ganesh Prasad Dhakal, head of the Europe Division at Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Diana Tase, Acting Director General for Asia Pacific and Latin America at Romania's foreign ministry. The Nepali delegation included Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of Nepal in Berlin Sagar Prasad Phuyal, Under Secretary Uttam Ghimire, and Third Secretary Deependra Prasad Sah.
The two sides exchanged views on people-to-people exchanges, multilateral cooperation, and further cooperation in energy, agriculture, tourism, information technology, education, and culture.
Nepal requested Romania to consider opening a diplomatic mission in Kathmandu, while the Romanian side underscored the importance of Nepal similarly establishing a diplomatic mission in Romania, noting that the Nepali diaspora is the largest non-EU migrant worker group in the country. Over 55,000 Nepalis are estimated to be currently employed in various professions in Romania.
Joint Secretary Dhakal expressed appreciation to the Romanian government for providing opportunities to Nepali nationals and called for smooth consular services for Nepali citizens in Romania.
Prior to the meeting, Dhakal and Romania's Secretary of State Ana Cristina Tinca signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the establishment of the Bilateral Consultation Mechanism at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania.