Prime Minister Balendra (Balen) Shah is set to lead a 15-member delegation to participate in the United Nations General Assembly. The delegation will include key officials from the Prime Minister’s Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
According to sources from the Prime Minister’s Office, the delegation will comprise Prime Minister Shah, Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal, and the Prime Minister’s Chief Advisor, Kumar Ben, among others.
Sources from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs further indicated that Foreign Ministry Secretary Amrit Bahadur Rai, UN Division Chief Krishna Prasad Dhakal, Chief of Protocol Kumar Raj Kharel, two Under Secretaries, and one Section Officer from the ministry will also join the team.
In addition to Chief Advisor Ben from the Prime Minister’s Office, the Prime Minister’s Chief Personal Secretary Subash Sharma, Personal Secretary Pradip Pariyar, and an Under Secretary from the Prime Minister’s media team are also part of the traveling group.
The Prime Minister’s security detail will also be represented, with two Nepali Army officers and one Nepal Police officer participating in the visit, sources confirmed.
Foreign Minister Khanal, Secretary Rai, and Division Chief Rai, along with their team, are scheduled to depart for New York on September 20. Foreign Minister Khanal will participate in various sideline meetings during the General Assembly.
Prime Minister Shah, however, will depart from Nepal on September 22 and is slated to address the General Assembly on September 24.
Sources revealed that Prime Minister Shah is expected to address the UN General Assembly between 3 PM and 9 PM on September 24. On the same day, 24 heads of state/government or foreign ministers from around the world will address the assembly, with Prime Minister Shah scheduled as the 17th speaker. This places his address within the afternoon to evening timeframe.
Initially, the Cabinet had approved a delegation led by Foreign Minister Khanal to attend the UN General Assembly. However, following significant loss of life and property due to floods in Rasuwa, Prime Minister Shah decided to attend the assembly himself.
Sources indicate that the Prime Minister plans to raise the issue of climate change’s negative impact, specifically the Rasuwa floods, and seek compensation from the global community during his address at the General Assembly.
Nepal has also organized various sideline events related to climate change during this period, sources added. However, the Prime Minister will not participate in these specific meetings.
After delivering his address on September 24, Prime Minister Shah is expected to return to Nepal on September 25, sources confirmed.
