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Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health and Population Upendra Yadav said Nepal will lend full-fledged support to make the United Nations a strong and effective global body.

Deputy Prime Minister Yadav, who is in New York to attend the 57th session of the United Nations Commission on Population and Development, made the commitment in a meeting with the President of the 78th United Nations General Assembly Dennis Francis today, according to the Permanent Mission of Nepal to the UN in New York.

Talking about climate change and the problems facing the least developed countries like Nepal and its impact, the DPM expressed views on the importance of sustainable tourism development, international cooperation and multilateralism.

He pledged Nepal's full support to the priorities put forward by President Francis for peace, prosperity and sustainable development.

Appreciating the significant improvement in Nepal's health sector, especially maternal and reproductive health, the President pledged the UN's support to Nepal in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and mitigating the impacts of climate change.

Also speaking at a program jointly organized by Nepal along with Denmark, Ireland, Sweden, Colombia and the UK in the United Nations, Yadav highlighted Nepal's progress and challenges in the health sector and said that exchange of trust, goodwill, solidarity and cooperation among the nations was important for the improvement of the health sector.

Permanent Representative of Nepal to the United Nations Lok Bahadur Thapa and high-ranking government officials of Nepal were present on the occasion.

The CPN-UML has decisively won the recent by-elections in Ilam-2 for the House of Representatives and Bajhang (A) for Sudurpashchim Provincial Assembly, signaling a significant shift in political dynamics.

In Ilam-2, Suhang Nembang secured an impressive victory with 27,772 votes, surpassing his closest rival Dambar Bahadur Khadka from the Nepali Congress who garnered 21,942 votes. Similarly, in Bajhang (A), Daman Bahadur Bhandari clinched a narrow win over NC’s Abhishek Bahadur Singh with a margin of just 267 votes.

Prior to the elections, uncertainties loomed due to internal divisions within both the NC and UML, as well as the emergence of the Rastriya Swatantra Party, which had shown considerable strength in previous by-elections in Tanahun and Chitwan. However, the latest by-election results underscore the UML’s successful efforts to fortify its organizational structure, reflecting positively on its strategies.

Since the 2022 general elections, the UML has been actively engaging with the public through initiatives like Mission Grassroots and Sankalpa Yatra, demonstrating a commitment to connect with constituents at all levels. Senior UML figures attribute their recent victories to adept management of internal discord in Ilam and Bajhang.

“We are encouraged by the by-elections results. The results show that the party has succeeded in managing the intra-party rift both in Ilam and Bhajang,” a senior UML leader said.  

The UML’s unveiling of the Mission ‘84 campaign, aimed at the 2027 general elections, indicates a strategic push to ascend as the leading political force. The outcomes of the Ilam-2 and Bajhang (A) by-elections hint at a potential shift in power dynamics, with the UML poised to challenge the NC’s dominance.

Conversely, the NC faces a significant setback in the aftermath of the recent by-elections, echoing previous defeats to the RSP in Tanahu and Chitwan. Meanwhile, the erosion of voter support, exemplified by a substantial decline in votes for both the NC and UML in Ilam, underscores the urgent need for both parties to reassess their strategies.

The overall votes of both UML and NC have gone down in Ilam. In the 2022 general elections, the UML candidate Subas Chandra Nembang had secured 30,020 votes, while the NC’s Dambar Bahadur Khadka had garnered 29,006 votes. In the latest by-election, the UML candidate secured around 2,000 fewer votes than last time and the NC lost around 7,000 votes. 

Losing around 7,000 voters should be a matter of grave concern for the NC, but the party leadership seems unfazed.

The rise of identity politics, particularly evident in Ilam’s electoral landscape, presents a formidable challenge to traditional parties like the NC and UML. Independent candidate Dakendra Singh Limbu’s robust performance underscores the resonance of identity-based narratives, posing a challenge for established parties.

Whether they believe it or not, despite UML’s victory in the recent by-elections, major political parties face serious challenges in the coming days. A key challenge for the established old parties is to retain their cadres and supporters.

And while the RSP candidate did not put on a strong electoral show, the party’s rising popularity, especially among young voters, cannot be discounted when Nepal goes to general elections in 2027.  

Looking ahead, both the NC and UML confront an uphill challenge of retaining their support base amidst the emergence of new political forces like the RSP. The need for organizational rejuvenation, coupled with a shift toward younger, more dynamic leadership, emerges as a critical imperative for both parties.

It could be argued that Suhang Nembang won the by-election in Ilam-2 due to the sympathy vote following the death of his father and former UML Vice-chairperson Subas Chandra Nembang. But the party, unlike the NC, has at least realized that there are problems within the party organization and that support base is dwindling. The party is willing to put in the hard work necessary to retain its cadres and voters. 

For the NC, the latest by-election results once again send a clear message that the party needs to wake up and  work hard to strengthen its organizational strength, resolve the intra-party rift, and pick young and fresh candidates. It is no more business as usual.

A Cabinet has been expanded in Karnali Province nearly after three weeks.

CPN-UML leader Yam Lal Kandel was appointed as the Karnali Province Chief Minister with the support of CPN (Maoist Center) and CPN (Unified Socialist) on April 9.

Karnali Province Chief Tilak Pariyar expanded the Cabinet at the recommendation of Chief Minister Kandel.

According to Office of the Province Chief, CPN (Maoist Center)'s Mahendra KC, Bir Bahadur Shahi, Durga Bahadur Rawat and Ran Singh Pariyar have been appointed as Minister for Economic Affairs and Planning, Minister for Social Development, Minister for Industry, Tourism, Forest and Environment and Minister for Water Resources and Energy Development respectively.

Similarly, CPN (UML)'s Sher Bahadur Budha has been inducted in the cabinet as the Minister for Physical Infrastructures, Binod Kumar Shah as Minister for Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperative.

Gamata BK has been appointed as Minister of State for Physical Infrastructure and Urban Development. However, CM Kandel has kept the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Law with himself.

Newly appointed ministers except Binod Kumar Shah have taken the oath of office and secrecy today itself.

Currently, we stand at the crossroads of shifting global alliances, new forms of global power competition, polarity among the traditional and emerging power centers, and the rise of multi-polar world order. The Indo-Pacific region is increasingly becoming the hotspot of the global power contest. South Asia, as one of the growing economic centers, with one-fourth of world population, and the unprecedented rise of China and India, has become the epicenter of global power rivalry.

In this broader geopolitical landscape, Nepal, situated between these two major rivals, is dragged into the power contest of its neighbors. Nepal should carefully navigate the interest of foreign powers and should be able to leverage its geo-political position to realize its agenda of prosperity. Although it is a challenging task, it provides us with ample opportunities.

Formulating proactive foreign policy and smart diplomatic dealing is essential to maximize our national interests. We are clear on isolating ourselves from any strategic, security or military alliances, but we welcome development partnerships that do not undermine our national interests. Now coming to the topic of today’s discussion, we see BRI as an opportunity to materialize our developmental goals, but there are specific issues of concern with the BRI.

China is a long-standing bilateral partner, and one of the countries with strong historic trade, commerce and people-to-people ties. We envision deepening ties with China on mutually beneficial terms. Nepal became a part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative in 2017.

The initial motivation for joining BRI was the prospect of trade and connectivity diversification. However, seven years after signing the MoU, there has been no significant progress on BRI. As the chairman of the International Relations and Tourism Committee of the parliament, I advocate partnerships with any countries to realize our investment needs, but the partnership should be transparent and it should not undermine our sovereignty and should be a win-win situation. With the growing pressure for the BRI implementation plan agreement, we should first have a comprehensive discussion on the provisions of the BRI MoU signed in 2017, which is not yet disclosed by both the governments. The MoU should be brought and discussed in the parliament. And then, we can move onward with the discussion on implementation modality of the projects under the BRI. For this there is a need for national consensus and wider discussion on the modality of partnership under BRI. We have a lot to learn from the global experience of the BRI.

We should be clear on the stance of the financial modality to fund the BRI projects. We cannot simply accept the commercial loans with high interest rates from China with shorter payback periods. Our negotiation with China should focus on grants and concessional loans with interest rates at par with other multilateral financial institutions and should not have any strings attached. The selection of projects under the BRI should be based on comprehensive feasibility study and cost benefit analysis. We should refrain from any projects without economic viability.

There are also concerns on procurement process, financial audit of the investments and construction modality of projects. The projects should be open for bidding to all interested companies globally, Nepal should have the right to conduct financial audits of the projects under BRI. Meanwhile, projects should also procure local resources, manpower and should be able to transfer technology to ensure sustainability of the projects. At the same time, we should consider the environmental and social sustainability of the projects. To ensure this, there should be wider consultations with the multiple stakeholders and detailed study to ensure projects are environmentally, socially viable and do not underestimate the rights of local ethnic communities. I am hopeful Nepal could benefit from the partnership under BRI if China is willing to accommodate our concerns and negotiate on mutually favorable terms. I also urge the Nepal government to clarify the current status of negotiation on BRI and developments in the process. 

The author is head of parliament’s international affairs committee