KARACHI, NOV 2: /DNA/ – Ambassador of Nepal to Pakistan, Rita Dhital, has underscored the need to strengthen bilateral trade, investment linkages, and direct connectivity between Nepal and Pakistan, emphasizing that improved air and business connectivity would significantly boost economic cooperation and people-to-people exchanges between the two friendly nations.
Expressing views during her visit to the Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI), Nepalese Envoy underscored that the Government of Nepal is keen to attract foreign investments and enhance trade, adding that the private sector must take the lead in realizing this goal. “You are the leaders who make things happen. Governments do not always see opportunities the way businesspeople do, which is true everywhere in the world. Therefore, we want the private sector to drive trade and investment initiatives”, she remarked.
The meeting was attended by Honorary Consul of Nepal Mushtaq Chhapra, President KCCI Muhammad Rehan Hanif, Senior Vice President Muhammad Raza, Vice President Muhammad Arif Lakhani, Chairman Diplomatic Missions & Embassies Liaison Subcommittee Ahsan Arshad Sheikh, Former President Majyd Aziz, and Members of the KCCI Managing Committee.
While commenting on the long-standing bilateral relations, the Nepalese Envoy noted that Nepal and Pakistan have enjoyed over six and a half decades of friendship and cooperation. “We are very satisfied with the level of bilateral cooperation reflected through exchange of visits, meetings at the sidelines of international forums, parliamentary exchanges, and people-to-people interactions”, she said.
To facilitate collaboration, she said that Nepal has already established a strong foundation by signing various agreements and MoUs in key areas including trade, culture, tourism, aviation, and agriculture. She noted that KCCI and the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) had also signed an MoU in 2005, which provides a useful mechanism to promote commercial linkages.
Highlighting trade complementarities, she observed that Nepal and Pakistan produce goods that could mutually benefit both markets. “Despite many opportunities and complementarities, bilateral trade remains limited. This is why we are reaching out to provincial chambers across Pakistan to encourage business leaders to explore new avenues of cooperation”, she said.
She also pointed out that in the past, joint ventures were successfully established in sectors such as textiles, hospitality, and banking. However, limited connectivity and lack of information remain key challenges. The Ambassador revealed that efforts are underway to restore direct flights between the two countries, recalling that Nepal Airlines operated flights to Karachi until the 1990s and PIA continued operations from Islamabad to Kathmandu until 2014. “We are actively engaging with private airlines to resume direct flights to strengthen connectivity,” she added.
Encouraging Pakistan’s business community to explore joint ventures, she said: “Geography should not be a barrier, particularly in ICT and digital sectors. We invite Karachi’s business community to explore these opportunities with us.”
She also highlighted that Nepal maintains a liberal visa policy, offering visa-on-arrival for up to 30 days free of cost to citizens of all SAARC countries, including Pakistan. “Language is not a major barrier either, Urdu is widely understood in Nepal, and English is commonly spoken in urban areas”, she added.
The Ambassador expressed full support to KCCI members and assured them of the Embassy’s facilitation. “We are just one email, WhatsApp message, or phone call away. Please feel free to reach out to us for any assistance or to connect with the right people in Nepal”, she said.
Nepalese Ambassador also encouraged KCCI to re-establish contact with the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) and assured that any business delegation from KCCI visiting Nepal would receive full support and facilitation from the Nepalese Embassy.
Earlier, President KCCI Rehan Hanif, while welcoming Nepalese Envoy, stated that Pakistan and Nepal share friendly and cordial relations since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1960. Both countries enjoy deep-rooted cultural, historic and religious linkages as well as shared aspirations for peace, prosperity and regional cooperation.
Reiterating KCCI’s resolve to enhance trade and investment cooperation between the two countries, Rehan Hanif said that Karachi Chamber is always committed to promoting trade diplomacy and fostering stronger economic relations with friendly nations including Nepal. “We believe that vast untapped potential exists to enhance bilateral trade, tourism and investment cooperation between Pakistan and Nepal”, he said, adding that the existing trade volume between the two countries remain modest but there was a great scope to expand it by focusing on areas such as Tourism, Pharmaceutical, Agriculture, Textiles, IT Services, Hydropower and Renewable energy.
Underscoring the need to commence direct flights between the two countries, Rehan Hanif stated that business-to-business interactions, exchange of trade delegations and participation in exhibitions must be encouraged which can play a pivotal role in realizing the potential. “We also believe that promoting people-to-people contact and cultural exchanges can further strengthen the enduring bond of friendship between Pakistan and Nepal”, he added while assuring that the Karachi Chamber stands ready to work closely with Nepalese Embassy to facilitate meaningful engagements between business communities and promote economic cooperation.
