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Envoy hails ties between UAE, Nepal

ABU DHABI - Nepal’s first ambassador to the UAE, Arjun Bahadur Thapa, has said that boosting UAE-Nepal bilateral and economic ties, and addressing the issues of the Nepali community will be his key objectives.

In an exclusive interview with Khaleej Times, the Nepali envoy who took charge as ambassador last month, said, “There are nearly 100,000 Nepali workers here in the UAE. I shall strive my best to address any of the issues they might be having. To ensure better connection with the workers, we are going to set up a joint committee.”

Thapa said he would apprise the UAE government of the key areas of development taking place in Nepal, which is going to elections on April 10.

“We will promote high level visits from Nepal to the UAE and vice versa,” he added.

The ambassador revealed that on the sidelines of the recently held Abu Dhabi Dialogue, a meeting was held between Nepal’s Labour and Transport Management Minister, Ramesh Lekhak and UAE’s Labour Minister Dr Ali bin Abdullah Al Kaabi.

He said the two agreed to constitute a joint committee which would hold its first meeting in Kathmandu in early March this year.

On the need to educate the workers of their rights, he said, “We feel there is a need to educate the workers about their rights in the home country first. I also look forward to cooperation from the Nepali community living here,” he said.

Replying to a question on UAE-Nepal trade ties, Thapa said, “We plan to organise trade and tourism fairs and seminars in both countries. There is a need to disseminate information about our country.”

The envoy praised the UAE government for recognising Nepali workers as honest and hard-working. “This is a win-win situation. Our people are working here and contributing to the development of the UAE and Nepal benefits from the remittances sent by Nepalis.”

On the historical ties between the two countries, he said both Nepal and the UAE share many things. We have many Arabic words in the Nepali language,” he informed.

The envoy also praised the UAE for its phenomenal development and good practices.