Nepal, Australia sign Trade and Investment Framework Agreement

KATHMANDU: Nepal and Australia have signed an agreement on trade and investment. The Nepal-Australia Trade and Investment Framework (TIFA) was signed during Foreign Minister NP Saud’s ongoing visit to Australia, according to the Minister’s Secretariat.

Nepal’s ambassador to Australia, Kailash Raj Pokharel, and Australia’s Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs, Tim Watts, signed the agreement on behalf of their respective sides in the presence of Minister Saud and his Australian counterpart Penny Wong, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Following the signing-in ceremony, both ministers said the moment is significant in terms of taking the friendly relations between the two nations to a new height.

“Australia and Nepal are close friends and our relationship is underpinned by deep people to people links- Nepali Australians are our fastest growing migrant community,” Watts tweeted after the signing of the agreement.  He said that the signing of the TIFA is just another demonstration of strong ties between the two countries.

On the occasion, he reminisced about his last year’s visit to Nepal, adding that he had held talks with the representatives of the government of Nepal and leaderships from various sectors about opportunities and measures to further deepening mutual relations between Nepal and Australia.

He recalled the meeting with Minister Saud regarding further deepening the economic ties between the two countries and expressed his happiness for the opportunity to sign in the economic and investment framework.

Following the discussion, the high-ranking officials of the both countries had repeatedly discussed formal agreement so as to further strengthen the economic relations between the two countries.