Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli left for Spain on the evening of Saturday, June 28, leading Nepal’s delegation to the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4), which will take place in Seville from June 30 to July 3.
The conference serves as the only global platform bringing together heads of state and government, international organisations, financial and trade institutions, the private sector, civil society, and the UN system to strengthen cooperation in development financing.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Oli will address the conference in his capacity as Chair of the Global Coordination Bureau of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs). He is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with several global leaders, including prime ministers, presidents, and high-level dignitaries. Courtesy calls on King Felipe VI of Spain and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez are also on the agenda.
On June 29, Prime Minister Oli will address the closing session of a civil society plenary at 4 PM local time, followed by bilateral talks with Spanish Prime Minister Sánchez. That evening, he will attend a state banquet hosted by the King of Spain in honour of visiting heads of state and government. The next day, June 30, he will participate in the official opening of FFD4.
The PM is also scheduled to speak at a Gates Foundation event announcing an Independent Commission on the Future of Development Cooperation. He will also meet Estonian President Alar Karis and address the main conference in his LDC chair capacity. Further bilateral meetings are scheduled with Egyptian Prime Minister Dr. Mostafa Kamal Madbouly, Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro, and UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
On July 1, Oli will chair a high-level meeting of LDCs and speak at a side event titled “Investing in Global Solidarity: A New Approach to Development Cooperation” hosted by Prime Minister Sánchez. He will also address two more high-level side events—one on climate-smart financing for sustainable LDC graduation, jointly hosted by Nepal, Bangladesh, Laos, and the UN Resident Coordinator; and another on mobilising financial resources for water and sanitation, co-organised by Nepal and Burundi. Additionally, he will speak at a session on revitalising international development cooperation.
On July 2, Oli will travel from Seville to Madrid, where he will participate in and address the Nepal–Spain Business and Investment Promotion Forum. On July 3, before flying back to Nepal via Doha, he is scheduled to meet with officials of Real Madrid Football Club and visit the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. He will also meet members of the Nepali diaspora in Spain.
The Prime Minister will be accompanied by a 21-member official delegation, including his spouse Radhika Shakya; Chief Advisor Bishnu Rimal; Foreign Secretary Amrit Bahadur Rai; Finance Secretary Ghanshyam Upadhyay; Secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers Raj Kumar Shrestha; Chief Personal Secretary Rajesh Bajracharya; and personal physician Dr Smriti Shakya, among others. An additional eight members from Spain and New York, including Nepal’s Ambassador to Spain, Sanil Nepal, and Nepal’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Lok Bahadur Thapa, will join the delegation in Spain.
(With inputs from RSS)
