By A Staff Reporter

Kathmandu, Nov. 22: The government has set up a separate secretariat of Sagarmatha Sambaad (dialogue) within the premises of the Department of Passport of the Foreign Ministry.
The secretariat was set up on Thursday to coordinate Sagarmatha Sambaad, a multi-sectoral dialogue forum, committed to deliberate on the most prominent issues of global, regional and national significance.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Pradeep Kumar Gyawali officially inaugurated the secretariat at the office located at the western gate of Narayanhity Palace.
Earlier, the Policy and Planning Division of the Ministry of the Foreign Affairs had been utilsed as the secretariat of the Sambaad.
Kumar Raj Kharel, chief of the Policy and Planning Division of the MoFA, will work as coordinator of the secretariat, said Minister Gyawali, who is also the director of Sagarmatha Sambaad and coordinator of the organising committee.
Addressing a press meet following the inauguration of the secretariat, Minister Gyawali said that the directorate and organising committees had already approved the preliminary concept of the programme, and the model of Sagarmatha Sambaad that was prepared by a taskforce of experts.
The ministry has already started listing out the potential participants of the dialogue and sending them invitation, he added.
As a part of this, the ministry has already invited the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, and

Finish Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto to participate in the first episode of Sagarmatha Sambaad, Nepal’s international forum on the theme of climate change scheduled for April next year in Kathmandu.
Nepal is one among the countries that are on the front lines of dealing with climate change, said Minister Gyawali, adding that during the first episode, the government was planning to voice its problem on climate change on the mountains. The government would forward its plans to mitigate the impact of climate change and promote green economy and would further ask the international community to support Nepal in this move.
“This forum will be more open and collaborative dialogue, which will help flourish new ideas, views and perspectives on various issues of common interest. Through this forum, Nepal will try to draw the international attention toward the issue of the climate change,” he said.
He further added that Sagaramatha Sambaad would focus on climate change issues this time and the gender issues, Nepal’s effort on peace keeping, cultural dialogues and other burning issues would be discussed in the future episodes.
As a platform, it brings together people from all walks of life from broader spectrum, having the stake, influence and capacity to shape and drive the discourse for positive change.