The Government of Nepal has officially requested China to convert the loan taken for the construction of the Pokhara Regional International Airport into a grant. This request was conveyed through a letter from the Ministry of Finance to the Chinese authorities.
During a program held at the Ministry of Finance, Dhani Ram Sharma, the Chief of the International Economic Cooperation Coordination Division, handed over the letter to Yang Weikun, Vice Chairman of China International Development Cooperation Agency.
Before the letter’s handover, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel emphasized that China has been a good neighbor to Nepal and urged the Chinese side to consider converting the loan into a grant, taking into account the current state of Nepal’s economy. He expressed confidence that China would positively respond to Nepal’s request.
The event was attended by Dr. Ram Prasad Ghimire, Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, and Chen Song, the Chinese Ambassador to Nepal, among others.
The Nepalese government had previously signed an agreement with China’s EXIM Bank to secure a loan of approximately NPR 25.88 billion (equivalent to CNY 1,338.74 million) for the construction of the Pokhara Regional International Airport. The loan agreement was signed on March 22, 2016, and construction began on January 11, 2017. The airport was officially inaugurated on January 1, 2023.
During the same program, agreements were signed for several other projects, including the construction of an 8.2-kilometer road from Kalanki to Basundhara-Maharajgunj in Kathmandu, upgrading the Hilsa-Simikot road to a two-lane highway, and the construction of an Integrated Check Post (ICP) and Inland Container Depot (ICD) at the Korla border in Mustang. The agreements also covered feasibility studies for the repair and landslide prevention of the Araniko Highway.
On behalf of the Nepalese government, Finance Secretary Dr. Ghimire signed the agreements, while Vice Chairman Yang Weikun signed on behalf of China.
In addition, Finance Minister Paudel requested Chinese support for the infrastructure development of Bir Hospital, the preparation of a Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the Madan Bhandari University of Science and Technology, and other infrastructure projects. Vice Chairman Yang assured that the requests from the Nepalese government would be studied and further processes would be initiated by the Chinese side.
