A total of 175 foreign delegates to participate in ‘Sagarmatha Sambaad’

KATHMANDU:  A total of 175 foreign delegates are participating in the ‘Sagarmatha Sambaad’ (Sagarmatha Dialogue), a multi-stakeholder dialogue forum committed to deliberate on the most prominent issues of global, regional and national significance, to be held here on May 16 -18.

Minister for Foreign Affairs and Sagarmatha Sambaad Management Committee Coordinator, Dr Arzu Rana Deuba, in a press meet here today shared so.

Dr Rana apprised that altogether 350 participants including 175 foreign delegates are taking part in the event aimed at providing a suitable platform for multi-stakeholder, inter-regional global dialogue in Nepal on pressing contemporary issues facing the world.

Delegates will include ministers, high-ranking government officials, diplomats, representatives from donor agencies, climate change experts and environmentalists as well as development actors and leaders from various sectors.

They will deliberate on the burgeoning environmental challenges and concerns facing the world. They will also seek to forge regional and international cooperation for collective efforts towards climate action.

In the press meet organized to update about the event and its preparation, Minister Rana reiterated that the event will bring together a total of 175 foreign delegates and Nepali in similar number.

The three-day event will see participation of high-level delegates from 12 countries, said Dr Rana, adding they will engage in one high-level plenary session.

Furthermore, representatives from a total of 61 national and international organizations as well as representatives from SAARC, BIMSTEC, Asian Development Bank, World Bank as well as civic societies will also partake in the dialogue.

Together they will engage in 12 parallel sessions and other side events, she informed.

The first-ever Sagarmatha Sambaad is themed ‘Climate Change, Mountains and Future of Humanity’.

Hereafter, the government decided, the multi-stakeholder dialogue forum will be held every two years.

Participants will discuss various contemporary issues facing the humanity across the global particularly the climate-change induced adversities and impacts and dwell on climate action and climate justice.

“Preparation to the Sagarmatha Sambaad is in its final stage. We have reached this far completing various rounds of preparation.

Preparation to hold 10 preliminary discussions has been completed,” Minister Rana mentioned.

Foreign Minister Rana, during the press meet, asserted that Nepal has the potential to take on a leading role on neutral and dialogue-driven diplomacy.

Moreover, she highlighted Nepal’s commitment for collective efforts towards climate action and expressed her confidence that Nepal, through this event, can position itself as a key player in promoting peaceful dialogue on the global stage.

Prime Minister KP Sharma will address the event where Minister Rana will deliver keynote address. A short audiovisual content illuminating the participants about the dialogue forum will be shown, it was shared.

A video message addressing the event by the General-Secretary of the United Nations will also be broadcasted in the event.

According to the Sagarmatha Sambaad Secretariat, high-level delegates from India and China and COP-29 President also the President of Azerbaijan will address the event.