Government Requests China to Convert Pokhara Airport Loan into Grant

The Government of Nepal has requested China to convert the loan taken for the construction of Pokhara Regional International Airport into a grant. The Ministry of Finance sent a communiqué to the Chinese government with this request.

Dhaniram Sharma, chief of the International Financial Aid Coordination Division under the Ministry of Finance, handed over the letter to Yang Weigun, vice chair of the China International Development Cooperation Agency, during a meeting held at the Ministry of Finance on Thursday.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Bishnu Prasad Paudel personally requested the conversion of the loan into a grant, citing Nepal's economic condition and the longstanding neighborly relations between the two countries.

Finance Secretary Dr. Ram Prasad Ghimire, Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Chen Song, and other dignitaries were present during the occasion.

During the meeting, officials from Nepal and China signed four separate cooperation agreements. The agreements include the construction of an 8.2 km road from Kalanki to Bashundhara, Maharajgunj under the Ring Road Expansion Project, upgrading the Hilsa-Simikot road section into two lanes, constructing an ICP and ICD at the Korala transit point in Mustang, and conducting a feasibility study for the maintenance and improvement of the Araniko Highway, including landslide control works.

Finance Secretary Dr Ghimire signed the agreements on behalf of the Government of Nepal while Yang Weigun signed on behalf of China. -- RSS