Yadav, Gyawali address UNGA meetings

Kathmandu, September 24

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Health and Population Upendra Yadav participated in a high-level meeting on Universal Health Coverage held at the United Nations in New York yesterday.

Speaking at the meeting, Yadav highlighted the importance of universal health coverage and laid stress on ensuring affordable and quality health services for all. He shared Nepal’s progress towards achieving UHC and called for enhanced level of partnership and cooperation at all levels towards this end, according to a press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Earlier in the day, Yadav delivered his welcome remarks at a high-level side event on ‘Universal Health Coverage in LDCs: A Time for Accelerated Action’ co-organised by Nepal with Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Malawi and UN-OHRLLS. Yadav highlighted Nepal’s achievements made in the field of quality health services and underlined the need to further accelerate actions to ensure UHC in LDCs.

Other high-level speakers of the side event included Health and Family Welfare Minister of Bangladesh Zahid Maleque; Minister of Health and Population of Malawi Jappie Mhango; Ethiopian Health Minister’s Councillor Tsion Firew; and UN USG and High-Representative for LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS Fekitamoeloa Katoa ‘Utoikamanu.

The speakers focused on the central role of health-related goals and targets towards the full realisation of SDGs. The event was moderated by CEDAW Vice-chairperson Bandana Rana.

Also on the day, Minister of Foreign Affairs Pradeep Kumar Gyawali attended the inaugural session of the Climate Action Summit organised by the Secretary-General of the United Nations in New York. Minister of Forests and Environment Shakti Bahadur Basnet and other members of the delegation also attended the Summit.

During the Summit, leaders and climate change activists from around the world highlighted the pressing need to accelerate climate action. They cautioned that this issue needed to be taken urgently as the gap between what we should do and what we are doing to combat climate change now widens even further.

On the sidelines of the Summit, Gyawali held separate bilateral meetings with Minister of Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade of Finland Ville Skinnari; Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of the UAE Anwar bin Mohammed Gargash; UN USG for Department of Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix; and UN USG for Department of Operational Support Atul Khare.

During these meetings, matters of mutual interests and ways to further strengthen cooperation were discussed.

In the evening, Ambassador/Permanent Representative of Nepal to the United Nations Amrit Bahadur Rai hosted dinner in honour of the heads and members of the Nepali delegations to the 74th session of UNGA and other high-level events.