Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what resources they provided via (1) the embassy in Nepal, and (2) from the UK, to improving the UK’s trade relations with Nepal in the last two years; and what resources they have provided in the current finncial year.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office funds a Prosperity Officer at our Embassy in Kathmandu, who is responsible for commercial and economic diplomacy work. The officer provides support to UK companies looking for opportunities in the Nepali market and is also responsible for working closely with the Department for International Development on economic policy and business environment issues. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office lobbies the Nepal government on various trade policy issues, including simplifying approvals for foreign direct investment and agreeing a double taxation avoidance agreement (DTA), to encourage more bilateral trade and investment. On the back of this work, the Government of Nepal has recently agreed to commence negotiations for a UK-Nepal DTA.

On promoting trade and investment, the Embassy organised trade missions in 2014 and 2016, commissioned scoping studies in hydropower and education sectors which cost approximately £50,000 through the Global Britain Fund and supported the Lord Mayor's visit in early 2017.