The World Bank’s Country Director for Nepal, Qimiao Fan, met with Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli and reaffirmed support for the priorities and programs of the new government. Fan was accompanied at the meeting by Faris Hadad-Zervos, the World Bank’s new Country Manager for Nepal.

According to a press release issued by the World Bank, Fan informed the Prime Minister that the World Bank Group is preparing a new Country Partnership Framework to align with the tenure and priorities of the new government. He said the Bank is fully behind Nepal in its efforts at institutionalizing federalism. Fan said development partners look forward to a government roadmap that could help coordinate their joint support to the federalism agenda, along with all important actors and institutions in the development space. Fan offered the World Bank’s support for the government’s plans at strengthening the delivery and monitoring of development project. He also noted the need for strong government leadership to improve the investment climate.

Later today Fan and Hadad-Zervos also called on Finance Minister Yuba Raj Khatiwada. They welcomed the budget’s focus on jobs, human development, equitable growth and private sector participation.  They reviewed the Bank’s ongoing program of support and discussed priority areas for partnership over the next few years, as well as ways to design new programs to respond to the new federal context, and in coordination with other development partners. Fan and Hadad-Zervos also congratulated the Government of Nepal for exceeding the disbursement targets for the Bank’s investment lending in Nepal this fiscal year, expressing hope that this will continue during the transition towards federalism.