. KATHMANDU — The first meeting of the Nepal-Qatar Joint Business Council (JBC) was held in Kathmandu on Monday. The meeting held in Chandragiri is expected to take economic cooperation between the two countries to a new height.

In April 2024, during the visit of His Highness Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar, to Nepal signed an agreement to establish a Joint Business Council. The joint business council has been established as a structured forum to promote dialogue, business collaboration and direct engagement between the private sector of Nepal and Qatar.

During the meeting, the representatives of the private sector of both the countries held in-depth discussions on investment promotion, trade expansion, private sector-private B2B collaboration and Government-to-Government coordination. The participants pledged to make the economic relations between Nepal and Qatar long-term and result-oriented.

Stating that the government was laying emphasis on the need for legal amendment to improve investment-friendly environment, simplification of approval process through digital system and public-private partnership (PPP), the Nepali side urged Qatari to invest in various sectors of Nepal including energy, mineral, health, education, tourism, agriculture processing, information technology, among others.

The Nepali delegation was ready to facilitate Qatari investment in Nepal and urged the Nepali entrepreneurs to explore opportunities in the service sector, tourism-related industries, skill development and small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

The Qatari delegation expressed positive views on the investment climate in Nepal and expressed their willingness to expand direct collaboration and business exchanges between the private sectors of both the countries. They said that Nepal is really beautiful and there are many possibilities of investment in Nepal.

FNCCI President Chandra Prasad Dhakal said that the meeting would further strengthen Nepal-Qatar economic relations and increase trade and investment in the coming days. Stating that the FNCCI, as an umbrella organization of the private sector of Nepal, was committed to facilitating foreign investment, strengthening institutional collaboration and promoting business-to-business contacts, Dhakal said that FNCCI was committed to facilitating investment process through private sector-private sector collaboration, government-private dialogue and institutional mechanisms.

“This summit is expected to contribute to increase trade and investment between Nepal and Qatar. “The FNCCI is fully committed to facilitating foreign investment, strengthening institutional cooperation and promoting business-to-business contact. He added that the FNCCI would continue to work towards facilitating the investment process through private-private sector collaboration, government-private sector dialogue and institutional mechanisms.

President Dhakal also invited the leadership of Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry to participate in the AGM, stating that the upcoming annual general meeting of the FNCCI would be an effective forum for direct dialogue with policy makers and business leaders.

FNCCI’s senior vice-president Anjan Shrestha stressed on the need to make Nepal-Qatar joint business council practical and result-oriented rather than just a formality. “There is a common understanding that JBC should be a platform that delivers tangible results. It can and should be made an effective means of project identification, problem-solving, and developing a commercially beneficial partnership for both parties,” he said.

Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry Board Member and Head of Delegation Mohd Ahmed M. a. “Qatari investors are ready for long-term investment if Nepal has a stable policy, clear legal framework and banking facilitation,” said Alobaideli.

He stressed on the need to make the JBC’s incinerator more effective for this. “It is necessary to run the joint business council more effectively to make it result-oriented. Qatari investors are ready for long-term investment if Nepal has stable policies, clear legal framework and banking facilitation.”

Treasurer of FNCCI Bharat Raj Acharya said that the joint business council should be developed as an active bridge for long-term economic cooperation between Nepal and Qatar. Recent high-level bilateral meetings have created a positive environment for increasing the participation of private sector, he said.

The delegation includes Minister for Finance Rameshwor Prasad Khanal, Minister for Foreign Affairs Balananda Sharma, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies, Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Anil Kumar Sinha and Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank Dr Yubaraj Khadka. He also met with Director General of Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) Dev Chandra Lal Karna. Matters including Nepal-Qatar bilateral investment promotion, trade expansion, government-to-government and private sector collaboration were discussed during the meeting.

The JBC meeting is expected to institutionalize the economic cooperation between Nepal and Qatar and strengthen direct partnership of trade, investment and private sector in the days ahead.