ISLAMABAD: The Ambassador of Nepal in Islamabad, Tapas Adhikari said on Tuesday that Nepal and Pakistan need to work together to mitigate the negative consequences of climate change.

“Nepal and Pakistan have fragile eco-systems. The Hindukush-Himalayan region is prone to natural disasters. The region is a water tower of Asia, which provides water to 3 billion people. Climate change has impacted the ecology of this region.

“Melting glaciers, changing agriculture patterns, migration has impacted the livelihood of people and the recent flood in Pakistan is a living testimony of climate change in our region,” the envoy said at an end-of-year reception hosted for members of the media.

He said that the relationship between Nepal and Pakistan had always been cordial and friendly. “The establishment of diplomatic relations in 1960 further enriched bilateral engagements and understandings. Both countries enjoyed excellent bilateral relations based on goodwill, mutual trust and cooperation.

“Nepal and Pakistan celebrated the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2019. Both countries had similar views on many issues of common interest at various regional and international forums.

“Relations between Nepal and Pakistan were further strengthened by high-level interactions and people-to-people contacts. Bilateral trade, similar cultural and social values based on agrarian economy, tourism and mountaineering, cooperation in education sectors, among others, have further enriched bilateral cooperation,” he added.

“Both countries are founders of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) and have been working towards promoting regional cooperation. We are optimistic about the recent positive trends after the Covid-19 pandemic on bilateral economic engagements and hope it will surpass the pre-covid level soon.

“In 2020, Nepal exported goods worth Nrs100 million and imported Nrs1.04 billion from Pakistan. The embassy is committed towards working with the business community in Pakistan and further enhancing bilateral trade relations between both countries,” he said.

Tourism is a niche product of Nepal and it was a hub of adventure tourism. Many Pakistani friends visited Nepal as tourists and Nepali and Pakistani mountaineers were working together in various mountaineering expeditions in Nepal or in Pakistan, he pointed out, adding: “Nepali and Pakistani mountaineers are working together in various expeditions sharing skills, knowledge and techniques of mountaineering and expanding mountaineering in our countries. I believe continued cooperation between Nepali and Pakistani mountaineers will make a difference to both countries, making it the centre of mountain and adventure tourism.”

Pakistan with a population of 220 million was a big market for tourism. “Every year, a large number of people visited different countries from Pakistan. Pakistan has a rich cultural and religious heritage and it was the place where great religions and philosophies like Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Sufism were established or flourished. There were Buddhist artifacts scattered across Taxila valley, Takhta-i-Bahi and in different areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and other parts of Pakistan. Taxila used to be a centre of learning and propagating Buddhism in different parts of the world. It showed that Buddhism was deeply rooted in these areas,” the envoy said.

Published in Dawn, December 14th, 2022