By Hou Yanqi
The 800,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine donated by the Chinese government to Nepal successfully arrived in Kathmandu this morning and I witnessed this important moment at the airport. It is my great pleasure to attend the ceremony here and hand over the COVID-19 vaccine full of profound friendship from the Chinese people to the Nepali side. I wish to thank Prime Minister Oli for his personal care, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Health, and Civil Aviation of Nepal for their cooperation in the delivery of the vaccines. This batch of vaccines is not only an implementation of the solemn commitment of President Xi Jinping to make the Chinese COVID vaccine a global public good, but also a vivid manifestation of our two countries’ joint construction of a community of shared destiny and the “healthy silk road”.
The Chinese side is pleased to note that under the leadership of Prime Minister Oli, the Nepali government has taken active measures to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and launched the National Deployment and Vaccination Plan, which fully demonstrates the care and attention of the Nepali government for its people’s lives and health. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, China and Nepal have been always supporting and helping each other, which composed another new chapter of friendship between our two peoples sharing weal and woe in trying times. We hope that the vaccine provided by China will help Nepal to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic at an early date and contribute to the early resumption of normal economic and social life in Nepal.
In recent years, the Nepali government has overcome various difficulties, and has dedicated to promoting economic development and improving people’s livelihood in vigorous pursuance of the goal of “Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali”. With the joint efforts of both sides, China-Nepal cooperation did not come to a halt despite the impact of the pandemic. China Aid Durbar High School project has been completed and handed over to the Nepali side; the third phase of the China Aid Arniko Highway Long-term Opening Maintenance Project, the construction of Pokhara Regional International Airport and other projects have been making positive progress; the feasibility study of the Cross-Border Railway is on steady progress. We believe that once the pandemic has been effectively controlled, the pragmatic cooperation between China and Nepal will actively accelerate its pace and yield more results which will benefit more and more people.
China and Nepal are both developing countries faced with the major task of promoting economic development and improving people’s livelihood. Given the normalization of pandemic prevention and many challenges faced by the world, we should strengthen our solidarity and cooperation even more to achieve mutual benefit and win-win results for the benefit of the people of our two countries, the region and the world at large. China has recently adopted the Outline of the 14th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development and the Long-Range Objectives Through the Year 2035, drawing a clearer blueprint for its future development. China is willing to further enhance strategic alignment with Nepal and deepen practical cooperation in various fields including anti-pandemic, poverty alleviation and infrastructure construction under the framework of the BRI and jointly push China-Nepal friendship across the Himalayas to a new high.
Text of Chinese ambassador Hou Yanqi’s address during the handover ceremony of China donated Covid-19 vaccine to Nepal 29 March at PM’s official residence in Baluatar.
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