Nepal Govt. says SAARC Summit preparations have reached final stage

Preparations for the 18th South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC) Summit to be held here on November 26 and 27 have reached the final stage.

Nepal will be hosting the SAARC Summit for the third time, and according to finance ministry officials, a sum of around two-billion rupees has been sanctioned for the event.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) Spokesperson Khagnath Adhikari was quoted by nepalnews.com, as saying that the agenda of discussion have been sent to member-nations through the SAARC Secretariat, which will give a final form to proposals and suggestions received thereafter.

The summit is expected to focus on the implementation of agreements made in the past.

SAARC had determined 16 sectors for inter-region co-operation, including agiculture, heath, forest, environment and fight against terrorism.

In its memorandum to be issued during the summit, implementation of previously made agreements on economic development and construction of physical infrastructure for the extension of relation between member states, development of energy and atrade-facility, will be emphasised on.

Meanwhile, former foreign minister Dr. Bhesh Bahadur Thapa has said that this year's summit must be result-oriented and not procedure-oriented.