Kathmandu, June 10 (Press Trust of India) : Nepal has decided to invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi to an international donor conference which will be held in Kathmandu later in June to raise funds for reconstruction of the country devastated by quakes.
Nepal is hosting an international conference of donors to gather support and assistance for rehabilitation and reconstruction works in the aftermath of the earthquakes that killed nearly 9,000 people.
Finance Minister Ram Sharan Mahat flew to India on Thursday for a three-day official visit during which he will meet Prime Minister Modi and deliver Nepal Premier Sushil Koirala’s invitation to attend International Donor’s Conference to be held on 25 June.
Mahat, whose India visit comes at the invitation of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, will hold bilateral discussions regarding utilisation and implementation of the financial support announced by Modi during his visit to Nepal last year.
During Mahat’s visit, discussions would also be held on various issues, including opening of bank accounts of Nepalese residing in India, restriction on Indian currency denomination of 500 and 1,000, Indian investment in Nepal and bilateral trade extension.
Mahat is scheduled to meet Modi on Thursday and hand over the invitation letter for the donor conference. Various other Indian ministers will also be invited for the conference.
Finance Minister Mahat is also the coordinator of the donor conference.
Mahat is accompanied by Maha Prasad Adhikari, Deputy Governor of the Nepal Rastra Bank, and Yugraj Pandey, Under-Secretary at the Ministry of Finance, on his India visit.
Nepal government has already set up a USD 2 billion fund for the reconstruction and rebuilding works. Preliminary estimates suggest that Nepal would need around USD 10 billion for post-quake reconstruction and rehabilitation works.
More than 65 representatives from various friendly countries, donor agencies, development partners and multilateral donors will be invited for the conference, according to finance ministry sources.
Two quakes and several after shocks left a trail of death and destruction in Nepal with nearly 9,000 people killed and scores injured in the country’s worst natural disaster.