Kathmandu, Sept 18: Vice President Nanda Bahadur Pun has expressed Nepal’s unwavering faith in the fundamental principles and ideals of Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) while stating that the movement constitutes one of the guiding principles of Nepal’s foreign policy.
In his address to the 17th Summit of the Heads of State / Government of the Non – Aligned Movement held in Margarita Island of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, VP Pun declared NAM as a voice for peace, justice and equality.
NAM should position itself for the removal of entrenched and systematic inequalities and should continue to stand for global economic justice and shared prosperity for all, he said.
Shedding light on the leading role of the UN in global governance, Vice President Pun stressed the need for comprehensive reform in the UN system in order to reflect the vastly transformed political reality of the present day world. While doing so, he appealed for according equal emphasis on development together with peace and human rights, terming them mutually reinforcing.
Vice President Pun said the trade must contribute to reducing poverty and fostering growth. Tendency to divert from the Doha Development Agenda risks negating the development dividends of the multilateral trading system, the Vice President stressed, adding that multilateral trading and financial systems must not fail to recognize the special and differentiated situations of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Land locked Developing Countries (LLDCs) and should aim at supporting those countries to come forward.
He urged the developed countries to fulfil their commitments of providing 0.7 percent of the GNP to the developing countries and 0.15 to 0.20 percent of GNP to the LDCs as part of official development assistance.
The Vice President took the opportunity to issue an appeal to the international community to translate the motto of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) conference – ‘leave no one behind’ – into a reality.
Furthermore, VP Pun stressed on the need of assistance to the LDCs and LLDCs in particular to overcome structural challenges, eradicate poverty, and promote rapid, equitable and sustainable development. He also laid emphasis on full implementation of the commitments made in the Istanbul Program of Action for LDCs and Vienna Program of Action for LLDCs.
On the occasion, the Vice President shared that the adoption of a new democratic and inclusive Constitution of Nepal on September 20, 2015 marks a historic political watershed in the country. “The constitution,” Vice President said, “adheres to the principles of inclusion, participation and distribution of equitable economic opportunities to all and ensures social justice”.
He expressed satisfaction over NAM’s evolution as a major inter-governmental forum of great moral strength while insisting on the need for peace and harmony among the NAM member states, genuine solidarity, and unity within the movement.
Vice President Pun stressed on the need to adapt with the changing realities of the world to continuously demonstrate relevance.
The 17th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement will conclude on September 18, 2016 with the adoption of a Margarita Declaration and the Summit’s final document. RSS
