In this regard the Nepali nation is keenly debating about its place in the in international arena as well as its internal issues, as it prepares itself for the Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s speech at 79th United Nations General Assembly held in New York.
This year’s General Assembly is scheduled to be from September 10-28, 2024, and it has special significance for Nepal as it is also going to host the Leaders’ Summit of the Future scheduled on September 22-23 where leaders from across the globe will debate on matters that determine the future of the world.
Prime Minister Oli has come back to the international level after his re-election of the office of Prime Minister on 15th July, 2024. This UN visit is actually the first diplomatic event through which Oli reoccupied his foreign position but at the same time it is also different from Nepali standard by not immediately visiting India as the first foreign country after being sworn as the prime minister.
This change has not left anyone indifferent, the media began to discuss Nepal’s changing foreign policy vector and its place in the modern world. Prime Minister’s office has said that Prime Minister Oli is going to use this forum to speak on behalf of Nepal about the country’s intention towards the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
These goals have been mainstreamed and harmonized in the Nepal’s National Plans, Policies and Programs and the Oli is expected to report on various achievements and gaps within the country’s development agenda including poverty eradication, inequality and environmental protection.
This focus is in sync with Nepal’s vision of moving from an LDC to a developing nation by 2026 which comes with its share of opportunities and threats. It will not be surprising if issues related to the environment take a big chunk of Oli’s address since Nepal is one of the countries that are most sensitive to climate change.
Like many other countries, Nepal is experiencing devastating impacts of climate change ranging from melting glaciers in the Himalayas to floods in low lands and these impacts need collective efforts of the international community.
It will be of interest for the Prime Minister to appeal more foreign help in preservation of biological diversity, reduction of pollution, and combating of climate fluctuations specific to mountainous states.
With the cop-29 climate conference in Baku Azerbaijan to be held on November 11-22 2024, there is pressure on Nepal to on to get its environmental messages across on the UN platform. Oli’s speech can be seen as foreplay to Nepal’s stance at COP-29 where “climate finance” is expected to be dominant.
This makes financial support for climate adaptation and mitigation imperative for Nepal; thus the UN General Assembly will benefit by creating more awareness on such talks.
At home, Oli’s UN trip has raised questions on Nepals foreign policy orientation and its fallout for relations with neighbors notably India and China. While some people consider the focus given to the preparation of the UN visit as demonstrating increasing abilities of Nepal on the interstate level, others are concerned about the consequences impacting the relations with the immediate neighbors.
The Prime Minister’s speech to address this issue is also expected to discuss Nepal experiences and lessons in stability and development of a political system as well as in sustaining economic growth.
As the country went through certain political changes in the recent past, Oli may stress on the democratic values of the Nepalese government and the respect to human rights and other inclusion policies it has vowed to support, in a bid to get international endorsement and funding for the country’s development objectives.
With Nepal currently at the barrel of LDC graduation and amidst emerging precarious international environment, the speech of Prime Minister Oli at the UN General Assembly is more than mere diplomatic formalities.
It is regarded as a chance for Nepal to present what kind of future it would like to achieve, with whom it wants to build partnership for development and demonstrate to the world that this country is capable of contributing to the resolution of problems affecting the world.
The impact of this visit and the reception of the message that Oli carried will determine how Nepals diplomacy and development goes in the coming years and therefore this UN general assembly is a critical meeting for them.
