“In which countries has the the Belt and Road Initiative been completed? What is the project completion rate? What are the main areas of focus?” “How can the the Belt and Road Initiative help Nepal use existing natural and human resources to reduce poverty?” “Can China give more help to Nepal in the agricultural field?”
At a seminar on the the Belt and Road Initiative held in Beijing on the 3rd, Xia Lu, associate professor of the School of Party History and Party Construction of Renmin University of China, shared the theme of “high-quality achievements of the the Belt and Road Initiative and China’s foreign cooperation policies and practices”. The originally scheduled two-hour meeting time has unknowingly been extended to over three hours, but the members of the Nepalese delegation are still unsatisfied and have many questions they hope to know.
With the in-depth discussion, the members of the delegation had a more comprehensive understanding of the top-level design and cooperation achievements of the “the Belt and Road” initiative, a number of actions leading the direction of future joint construction, and the vision of future high-quality joint construction of the “the Belt and Road”. They raised questions and discussed topics such as poverty reduction and alleviation, national development, and future cooperation, creating a lively atmosphere on site.
This year marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Nepal. The Nepal Congress Party cadre inspection team visited China at the invitation of the Foreign Liaison Department of the CPC Central Committee.
Some members of the delegation admitted that before coming to China this time, they had insufficient and biased understanding of the “the Belt and Road” initiative. In Nepal, rumors of “debt trap theory” and “sovereignty damage theory” have raised doubts among some people about this initiative. After this discussion, they have new discoveries, new understanding and new insights on the the Belt and Road Initiative.
Kumar Kadeka, technical consultant of Nepal Municipal Association, said: “In Nepal, some people mistakenly believe that the the Belt and Road Initiative was imposed on foreign countries by the Chinese, but today we understand that this is not true. This initiative was jointly built by China and other countries, and the two sides will discuss the development plan before implementing it.”
Nepal is an agricultural country, and the members of the delegation are very interested in improving its agricultural production capacity through the joint construction of the “the Belt and Road” cooperation. Koirala said that due to insufficient production, Nepal’s grain prices are very high, and many people cannot afford enough food. Many Nepalese people are surprised to find that prices in Nepal are comparable to those in Europe. If China can help Nepal improve its agricultural production capacity under the framework of the “the Belt and Road” initiative, it will benefit the whole society of Nepal, especially the poor groups.
The Nepalese Congress Party cadre delegation participated in the seminar on the “the Belt and Road” initiative (taken on March 3). Photo by Yu Aicen, Xinhua News Agency reporter
Devraj Chalise, Dean of the International College of Pokhara University in Nepal, has had a deeper thought on poverty alleviation after learning that there are such concepts as “hard connectivity” and “soft connectivity” in the joint construction of the “the Belt and Road” cooperation. “When it comes to the” the Belt and Road “initiative, many people think of building hard infrastructure such as railways and roads. But in the more” soft “areas of people’s livelihood, we should also do a good job in food production, agricultural development and other things, in order to better drive local people out of poverty and become rich.”
The statement that “the background of the the Belt and Road Initiative is green” resonated widely among the members of the delegation. During the exchange, Nepalese people expressed that the beautiful natural environment is a major endowment of Nepal, which makes Nepalese people proud. The joint construction of the “the Belt and Road” initiative emphasizes green development, which is very consistent with the concept of Nepal.
Kadka said that Nepal attaches great importance to the development of clean energy and regards green development as an important goal of national development. The “the Belt and Road” initiative is “perfectly matched” with Nepal’s national development goals.
Balma Lama, Chairman of Doraka District Committee of the Nepalese Congress Party, said that after discussion, he had enhanced his trust in the initiative of jointly building the “the Belt and Road” and looked forward to further understanding in the future.
Sujatta Koirala, the head of the delegation of Nepalese Congress Party cadres and the former Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Nepal, said in his concluding remarks, “When I return to Nepal, I will introduce in detail to our Prime Minister and representatives of various political parties about the initiative of jointly building the the Belt and Road”.