KATHMANDU: The fifth meeting of the Nepal-Switzerland Bilateral Consultation Mechanism (BCM) held in Kathmandu today, coinciding with the historic milestone of 70 years of diplomatic relations between the two nations.

According to the press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the high-level meeting was co-chaired by Ganesh Prasad Dhakal, Joint Secretary and Head of the Europe Division at Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Markus Leitner, Head of the Asia and Pacific Division of Switzerland’s Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA).

In the meeting the two delegations reviewed the comprehensive spectrum of Nepal-Switzerland relations, reaffirming their commitment to deepen longstanding ties and expand strategic cooperation.

During the session, the Nepali delegation briefed their Swiss counterparts on the country’s current political and economic trajectories. The briefing highlighted the new government’s core priorities, which focus heavily on institutionalizing good governance and anti-corruption measures, enhancing public transparency and digital transformation and ensuring efficient public service delivery.

Furthermore, Nepal outlined its primary macroeconomic growth targets, identifying hydropower generation and transmission, tourism expansion, and the development of the information technology (IT) sector as pillars for future economic development.

Development partnership and future commitments

The Nepali side expressed formal appreciation to the Swiss Government for its sustained developmental support through the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) framework.

Nepal acknowledged Swiss contributions across diverse sectors, including federalism implementation, trail bridge construction, migration governance, community forestry, technical and vocational training, and disaster resilience. In alignment with its new national goals, the Nepali government requested an enhanced level of cooperation from Switzerland.

Additionally, both delegations exchanged views on pressing regional and global challenges, specifically emphasizing climate change action and mutual cooperation in multilateral forums. To solidify ongoing initiatives, both sides agreed to expedite the finalization of pending Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) and bilateral agreements.

Diplomatic engagements

The meeting concluded with a formal luncheon hosted by Joint Secretary Dhakal in honor Leitner and the visiting delegates.

Later in the day, the Swiss delegation paid a courtesy call on Foreign Secretary Amrit Bahadur Rai at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Both parties expressed mutual satisfaction with the outcomes of the fifth BCM session and looked forward to translating the discussions into actionable progress.

The formal mechanism governing these consultations was established through an MoU signed between Nepal and Switzerland on November 4, 2015.