Foreign Minister Dipu Moni yesterday invited Nepal to participate in the sub-regional move initiated by Bangladesh for cooperation in water resources management and hydropower sector for the benefit of the people. There was immense potential for cooperation between Bangladesh and Nepal in areas of water resources and hydro-power to harness the synergies in these sectors on a sub-regional basis, she said.
Dipu Moni said this in her meeting with the visiting Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Nepal Narayan Kaji Shreshtha yesterday.
At the meeting, Shreshtha shared his government’s appreciation of the various initiatives being undertaken by Bangladesh involving Nepal and assured that they would be happy to join in any collaborative venture in this regard.
Dipu Moni recalled that Bangladesh had already formally agreed that Nepal should use Chittagong and Mongla seaports and noted that Nepal could start using these facilities once the instruments were in place.
She also noted that Rohanpur-Singabad route was available to the Nepalese traders as an alternative route and hoped that they would use the facilities.
She also noted that the commerce secretaries of the two countries met in July. Issues including deepening of tariff reduction, removal of non-tariff barriers and operationalisation of the standard operating procedure allowing Nepalese trucks up to 200 metres of the zero line inside Bangladesh would have a salutary effect on the bilateral trade, she said.
-With The Daily Star input
