Of the total assistance amount, the Chinese government is providing RMB 160 million (about Rs 1.78 billion) in grants whereas RMB 154 million (about Rs 1.70 billion) is being provided as soft loans, according to the Ministry of Finance (MoF).[break]
Finance Secretary Krishna Hari Baskota and visiting Chinese Vice-Minister for Commerce Chen Jian signed three different assistance agreements on Wednesday.
Under the first agreement, China has agreed to provide a grant of RMB 150 million (about Rs 1.67 billion) to Nepal for the implementation of mutually agreed development projects. The grant assistance was a part of continuing Economic and Technical Cooperation mechanism between the two governments.
Similarly, in another grant package, China has agreed to provide RMB 10 million (about Rs 110 million) for security equipment for the Nepal Police.
In yet other agreement, China has agreed to provide a loan assistance of RMB 154 million (about Rs 1.70 billion) from the Export-Import Bank of China for the implementation of a transmission line project. The loans will be used for constructing Kathmandu 220 KV transmission line and 132 KV Bay Extension Works Project of the Upper Trishuli 3A Hydroelectric Project, said MoF in a statement.
The Upper Trishuli Hydroelectric Project is expected to generate 60 MW and is under construction with a loan assistance from China through the Export-Import Bank of China.
Meanwhile, China has proposed to Nepal to take relations between the two countries to a new height through cooperation in five different areas.
China´s offer came at the end of the visit of a high-level delegation led by Zhou Yongkang, member of the standing committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Secretary of the Political and Legislative Affairs Committee.
“The two sides [Nepal and China] agreed that entering the second decade of 21st century China and Nepal should work hard to add vigor and substance to their good neighborly relations,” said Yang Yani, assistant minister for International Department, Central Committee of Communist Party of China, at a press conference Wednesday evening.
To achieve the end, she said, China has proposed to extend cooperation and exchanges in five different areas. The first proposed area of cooperation is promotion of exchanges of high level visits. Second, the northern neighbor has proposed Nepal to expand cooperation in trade and investment, agriculture, transportation, information technology, infrastructure development, hydropower construction and poverty alleviation.
Similarly, Yani said China has proposed to Nepal to further expand cooperation in areas of security, education, human resource development, tourism and cultural exchanges.
The fourth area of cooperation proposed by China is broadening of cooperation between Communist Party of China and various political parties of Nepal. The last proposed area relates to maintaining close coordination and cooperation on major global issues like global financial crisis, climate change, energy, food security, security and SAARC.
"These are all areas of cooperation of high interest to both sides," she told journalists.
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