In an exclusive interview, His Excellency, SushilLamsal, the Nepali Ambassador to Cairo, shares his thoughts on the dynamics of co-operation between Nepal and Egypt, efforts to strengthen people-to-people ties, and the role of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) in promoting peace and cooperation.
Your Excellency, upon your arrival in Egypt, what were your initial impressions of the Egyptian people and culture?
Visiting Egypt is an opportunityto witness the glorious past of human civilization and ingenuity. Living and working hereis an even greater privilege, and I am so happy and grateful that I have had the honor of representing my country in Egypt. The friendly people of Egypt have welcomed me with great warmth and hospitality, and given me valuable support in my work. There are many commonalities in our cultural values and traditions, and we have similar dreams and aspirations. I look forward towards working in further advancing the excellent relations that subsist between our two countries.
Can you elaborate on the current dynamics of cooperation between Nepal and Egypt? Are there any specific areas of collaboration that you find particularly promising?
Nepal and Egypt are good friends and partners. Bilateral relations between the two countries are characterized by friendship, trust and cooperation. Both countries face similar developmental challenges, and hold similar views on international issues. They collaborate with each other in international forums on matters of common concern including economic development, international trade and climate change.
Nepal and Egypt share many common features and face similar challenges of economic and technological development. The two countries hold similar views on major international issues and cooperate and lend support to each other in multilateral platforms such as the UN, NAM and G77 with a view to promoting and protecting common interests. Both Nepal and Egypt contribute to the promotion of world peace, including through UN Peacekeeping.
Nepal highly appreciates Egypt’s vital role in promoting security and stability in the Middle East. Egypt is playing a critical role in facilitating the transportation and delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza amidst the current conflict. We hope that the ongoing efforts for a ceasefire in Gaza, in which Egypt is trying for conciliation between concerned parties, will be successful.
Diplomatic relations between Nepal and Egypt were established on July 16, 1957. The Embassy of Nepal was set up in 1966 in Cairo whereas the Egyptian Embassy in Kathmandu was established in 1970. Egypt was the tenth country that Nepal established diplomatic relations with, and the firstin the Middle East. Over the years, both countries have been working together in promoting bilateral exchanges in various fields.
To give effect to mutual cooperation, Nepal and Egypt have signed various agreements and memorandums of understanding in various fields such as education, training, and trade and economic exchanges. Our foreign offices carry out ministerial-level consultations on the whole gamut of bilateral relations. Visits and contacts at the high-level from time to time have provided vital impetus to carry our bilateral relations forwards. In the past one and a half years, there have been three ministerial visits from Nepal to Egypt, and they have played an important role in re-energizing our relations.
Both Nepal and Egypt are countries of ancient civilizations and rich cultural heritage. They are major tourist destinations globally.I see great potential for leveraging our unique respective strengths for mutual benefit through the exchange of each other’s expertise and best practices in the tourism sector, especially eco-tourism. Nepal has 23.39 percent of land under preservation in addition to 12 national parks, one wildlife reserve and one hunting reserve as well as six conservation areas.
A land of nature, culture, and adventure, Nepal attracts people of all ages and varied interests. It is a matter of great happiness that both Egyptians and Nepalis are visiting each other’s countries in greater numbers in recent years. In May this year, our Embassy in cooperation with Nepal Tourism Board organized a familiarization tour to Nepal for a team of Egyptian travel and tour operators representing various Egyptian companies. We are working with stakeholders like airlines and tour operators to further promote mutual collaboration in tourism.
Nepal and Egypt signed a trade agreement in 1975, and an agreement economic and technical cooperation was inked in 2007. The current volume of bilateral trade between Nepal and Egypt does not adequately reflect the ample potentials in economic exchanges between the two countries. We need to activate two-way channels of communication and cooperation for expanding trade, investment, and tourism such as through exchange of business delegations and participation in business expos and fairs.
In March this year, Nepal participated in the Cairo International Exhibition. Visitors showed keen interest in Nepali products, especially organic products. On display were various FMCG and certified organic products (mainly super foods and herbal products), including tea (black, premium, gold, and chamomile), cassava flour, organic ginger, organic turmeric, mineral water, rosella, honey, cardamom and coffee. Other Nepali products such as woolen carpets, pashmina and handicrafts have potential markets in Egypt as well.
Energy isa sector where there is plenty of scope for our two countries to collaborate for mutual gains. Both Nepal and Egypt have huge potentials in green and renewable energy. There is scope for enhancing collaboration in the hydro power sector.
Nepal is in a favorable situation for the production of green hydrogen due to abundance of renewable energy, especially hydro power. Nepal is projected to generate 10,000 MW of hydro power by 2030, and part of the excess supply can be channeled to produce green hydrogen. Nepal and Egypt can collaborate on the exchange of expertise and technical know how in green hydrogen as well as in the broad spectrum of the energy sector including wind and solar energy.
Education is an important pillar of our bilateral cooperation.There are currently around 150 students from Nepal in Egypt. Most of them are medical students. The students are a link between the two peoples, and help promote mutual understanding and appreciation of each other’s cultures and values.
Nepal and Egypt collaborate closely on various areas of cooperation, and I see bright prospects for further expanding and promoting Nepal-Egypt bilateral cooperation in trade, tourism, education and many other sectors in the days to come.
What efforts are you making to strengthen people-to-people ties between Nepal and Egypt? Are there any cultural exchange programs or events planned in the near future?
People-to-people relations are an important aspect of our bilateral relations and there is plenty of scope for expanding them further. A major priority of the Embassy is to bring our peoples together by organizing various kinds of activities and events. In September 2023, we hosted our National Day where Vice-Minister for Tourism of the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt, GhadaShalabywas Chief Guest. Egyptian summiteers of Mt. Everest, Manal Rostom and Sharief al-Abd spoke about their experiences of climbing Mt. Everest, as well as the natural and cultural attractions and diversity of Nepal. More than one hundred and twenty participants including former Prime Minister of Egypt, H.E. Essam Sharaf, government officials, ambassadors and diplomats, artists, students, mediapersons and members of various walks of life in Egypt attended the reception.In February 2024, we again organized an event with summiteers of Mt. Everest. The title of the event was “Himalayan Heights: Exploring Nature and Adventure in Nepal”. Around 70 participants including v-loggers and influencers, artists and foreign diplomats as well as representatives of airlines, TV channels and other media attended the program. Also in February this year, we organized a painting competition for Egyptian children under the theme ‘Nepal in the Eyes of Egyptian Schoolchildren.’ Around 300 Egyptian schoolchildren from about 30 schools of Cairo and nearby cities took part in the competition held at the Children’s Park in Sayyeda Zainab. The children’s art works depicted Nepal’s history, culture and heritage and major monuments including Pashupatinath, Swayambhunath, Bouddhanath, Teleju, Kumari, Himalayas, and Buddha, as well as a fusion of typical Egyptian and Nepali cultural icons. The event helped the Egyptian schoolchildren to learn more about Nepal and its culture and traditions.
In April and May 2024, we organized familiarization trips to Nepal for noted Egyptian photographer Mr. Ashraf Talaat. Another FAM trip was hosted in May 2024 a group of representatives from Egyptian travel and tour companies, in collaboration with Nepal Tourism Board and Jazeera Airways. The idea is to encourage Egyptian travel companies to explore Nepal as a travel destination for their clients in Egypt and abroad. I hope that with our collective efforts, the people-to-people exchanges between our two countries will continue to grow further in the days to come.
Nepal has been a strong advocate for the values and principles of the Non-Alignment Movement. How do you see this movement evolving in the current geopolitical landscape, and what role can it play in promoting peace and cooperation?
Nepal pursues an independent, balanced, and non-aligned foreign policy, based on the precepts of sovereign equality, mutual respect, mutual benefit, and peaceful settlement of disputes. Principles of non-alignment constitute one of the fundamental tenets of Nepal’s foreign policy.
The Non-Aligned Movement has made it possible for countries to seek cooperation among themselves while avoiding big power rivalry. It has played a catalytic role in achieving political independence, freedom, decolonization, and sovereignty for many countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. It is an important multilateral platform– in fact, the largest gathering of countries outside of the UN – for developing countries to voice their aspirations for peace and developments well as for solidarity and cooperation between the industrialized North and the developing South.
The Movement is equally relevant today as it was in the past. The challenges facing the developing world have multiplied, not lessened, and it is critical for countries to join hands together in a spirit of friendship, cooperation and mutual help to solve common global problems. Nepal believes that the priority of the Movement should be on attaining the Sustainable Development Goals, making international trade just, fair, and inclusive, and securing climate justice. The theme of the 19th NAM Summit which was convened earlier this year Uganda was “Deepening Cooperation for Shared Global Affluence”, which succinctly describes where the Movement should be heading in the future.
Nepal highly appreciates the historical role played by Egypt in advancing the Non-Aligned Movement.The King of Nepal attended the Second NAM Summit held in Cairo 1964, and the Prime Minister of Nepal participated in the 15th Summit held in Sharm el-Sheikh in 2009. Nepal and Egypt are both committed to the ideals and objectives of the Non-Aligned Movement and have been working together for the cause of Non-Alignment since the very inception of the Movement, and will continue to do so in the future.