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Finance Minister Barshaman Pun has left for the United States to attend a joint meeting of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.

Minister Pun left for Washington DC via Qatar Airways this morning leading a four-member delegation, Minister Pun's secretariat informed.

The delegation comprises Chief of the Ministry's International Economic Cooperation and Coordination Division Sri Krishna Nepal, Under-Secretary Kanchan Basnet, who looks after the WB desk under the same division, and another Under-Secretary Bhupal Raj Shakya, who is also the personal secretary of Minister Pun,

During the three-day US visit, Minister Pun will meet WB's Managing Director Anna Bjerde, WB's Vice President for the South Asia Martin Riser, WB's Vice President for Development Finance (DFI) Operations Akihiko Nishio, WB's Vice President for Infrastructure Guangzhe Chen, Vice President of International Finance Corporation (IFC) Ricardo Puliti and Assistant Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Bo Li.

Minister Pun is scheduled to hold separate meetings with high-placed officials of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), officials of the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFP), American Chamber of Commerce President Atul Kasyap, representatives of the private sector and non-resident Nepalis,

Minister Pun will address the ministerial meeting of Group V-20 of the countries threatened by the impact of climate change as the keynote speaker. V-20 is a forum to raise voice in the global community to mitigate climate change risks and increase financial support during the transition period in the global economy.

Minister Pun will attend the sideline meeting on high-level climate nexus and session on clean energy transition in South Asia as well as various bilateral and multilateral meetings. In the meeting, Minister Pun will discuss preparations for the International Development Association (IDA)-21 meeting under the World Bank Group to be held in Kathmandu in June, determining the priority of investment partnership to be made by the World Bank in Nepal for the next five years, financial management of the 1,063 MW Upper Arun Semi-Reservoir Hydropower Project to be constructed in Sankhuwasabha and other projects in the pipeline.

Minister Pun had held discussions with Energy Minister Shakti Bahadur Basnet, Managing Director of Nepal Electricity Authority Kulman Ghising and resident chiefs of the World Bank and Asian Development Bank in Kathmandu a few days ago.

It was agreed in the meeting that the financial management of the Upper Arun Project would be done as soon as possible. The World Bank is leading the financial management of Upper Arun, which is a 'game changer' project. In the meeting of the World Bank and IMF, Minister Pun will apprise the development partners and the private sector, including the World Bank, about the reform efforts made by the government to create an investment-friendly environment in Nepal.

Minister Pun said that the development partners would be urged to increase support to Nepal's efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and reconstruction of physical infrastructure, health, education, reconstruction of buildings of private houses and educational institutions damaged due to the earthquake in Jajarkot, Rukum and Bajhang.

According to him, discussions will be held towards making effective implementation of the assistance being received from international development partners for policy reforms and identifying further areas and potentials of the areas of cooperation.

Once again, the House of Representatives (HoR) has become the victim of a tussle between ruling and opposition parties. Amid a weeks-long obstruction from the main opposition Nepali Congress, the winter session of the Parliament has ended without endorsing dozens of long-pending crucial Bills, “to make preparations for the budget session of the parliament”. 

Speaker Devraj Ghimire read out a letter received from the President’s Office announcing the prorogation of the session from Sunday midnight, on the recommendation of the government.   

The current session, which started from Jan 16, endorsed just three bills—Monitoring and Evaluation Bill, Food Purity and Quality Bill and Anti-Money Laundering Bill. The session convened 23 times in 23 days—for 81 hours and 55 minutes.
NC had obstructed the parliament, demanding a parliamentary panel to investigate the alleged involvement of Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane in a cooperative scam, while the ruling parties had maintained that such a panel was unnecessary as there was no proof of Lamichhane’s involvement in the said scam. 

Principally, the main business of the winter session is to make laws, but it was too occupied with political issues, including a vote of confidence for the government.

In particular, the government was preparing to get a Bill on Truth and Reconciliation Commission endorsed through the parliament this time around, to no avail. It is now preparing to make appointments in TRC and Commission on Enforced Disappearances.

Speaker Devraj Ghimire, however, said the third session of the parliament was more successful than previous sessions in terms of law-making and voicing public concerns. 

The main opposition NC has described the decision to prorogue the winter session as an ‘undemocratic move’, stating that there was enough time to prepare for the budget session. 

Nepali Congress President and former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has pointed out the need to strengthen the federal democratic republic in practice.

On the occasion of the ninth memorial day of former Prime Minister and member of the Constituent Assembly, Surya Bahadur Thapa, in a programme organized by the Surya Bahadur Thapa Foundation here today, he said that the current system should be made more acceptable adding that there was no chances of restoration of monarchy.

Former Prime Minister Deuba also clarified that it is impossible to restore the monarchy in the current situation. He said, 'Now Nepal has adopted federal democratic republican governance system.

However, some people have said that the king should be returned, but now it is impossible to restore the king. Therefore, the current system should be strengthened more in practice. 'There is room to improve the deficiencies in the constitution' Deuba said. He recalled the role of Surya Bahadur Thapa in bringing the current political system in the country.

Addressing the program, Rastriya Prajatantra Party leader, Dr. Prakash Chandra Lohoni, said that late Thapa was a skilled politician and a multifaceted personality. He also opined that all political forces should unite to give the country the right direction in the present situation. Central member of Nepali Congress Arjun Narsingh KC said that late Thapa has made a significant contribution in the political and administrative field in the country.

Central member of Nepali Congress, Sunil Bahadur Thapa said that late Thapa himself has made an important contribution in bringing the current political system and stressed that he should move forward by imbibing the example he adopted. Janata Samajwadi Party leader Pradeep Yadav recalled that Thapa, a politician with a simple life and high thoughts, repeatedly raised his voice for the rights of Madhesh and Madheshi people.

Former ambassador Surya Prasad Shrestha, senior advocate Krishna Prasad Bhandari, Prof. Lokraj Baral, registrar of Kathmandu University Prof. Dr. AchyutWagle and others discussed that late Thapa was a skilled politician.

Speaker of the House of Representatives (HoR) Devraj Ghimire has said that the third session of the Parliament was comparatively more successful than the previous sessions.

In the meeting held Sunday in the context of prorogue of the third session, he said that the third session was comparatively more successful than the previous session in terms of law making and voicing issues of public concern among others.

Speaker Ghimire said, "Compared to the previous session, the third session was successful, but it was not adequately long enough. I am confident that the next session will be more effective and result-oriented based on high understanding and prudent decisions between political parties."

He expressed his gratitude to the members who participated actively throughout the sessions and expressed his gratitude to all the mechanisms including security and the staff of the Federal Parliament Secretariat who assisted in the parliamentary business.

"Parliament is the main place where people's feelings are expressed by representatives elected by the people, people's hopes and expectations are expressed here as well as dissatisfaction and anger," he said,

The speaker said that if the voices expressed in the Parliament can be addressed and brought to a conclusion at the right time, the importance and time of this dignified institution could be properly utilized. He opined that the more active and enlightened parliament ensures qualitative impact on law making process.

On that occasion, he expressed his best wishes for the New Year 2081 BS.