UAE and Nepal enhance growing trade, investment opportunities

President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal Ram Chandra Paudel received Dr Thani Bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of Foreign Trade, in the presence of Abdullah Bin Jarwan Al Shamsi, UAE Ambassador to Nepal at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in Kathmandu.

At the start of the meeting, Al Zeyoudi conveyed to President Kast the greetings of President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan; His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai; and His Highness Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Presidential Court, along with their congratulations on his assumption of office and their wishes for continued progress and prosperity for Nepal and its people.

President Paudel welcomed the UAE delegation and conveyed his greetings to the UAE leadership, along with his wishes for its continued progress and prosperity. He expressed his country’s appreciation for the strong bilateral relationship and his aspiration to strengthen and develop it across areas of common interest, particularly trade and investment.

During the visit, which is part of ‘UAE Trade Days’, Al Zeyoudi held separate meetings with Dol Prasad Aryal, Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Federal Parliament; Shisir Khanal, Minister for Foreign Affairs; Dr. Swarnim Wagle, Minister for Finance; Gauri Kumari, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies; Sudan Gurung, Minister of Home Affairs; Asim Shah, Advisor to the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers; and Chandra Prasad Dhakal, businessman and former President of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce. The meetings focused on identifying practical avenues to grow trade and investment flows between the two countries.

Al Zeyoudi said, “Nepal is a market of considerable potential and our visit this week was firmly focused on translating it into concrete commercial outcomes for the private sectors in both nations. The UAE is committed to deepening our economic partnership with Nepal, particularly in hydropower, tourism, agro-processing and technology, all sectors in which our private-sector expertise can combine with Nepal’s unparalleled natural resources. By strengthening trade, investment and people-to-people ties, we can unlock new avenues for shared, long-term prosperity.”

Al Zeyoudi also participated in a business roundtable, which brought together senior UAE and Nepali business leaders to explore concrete investment opportunities and strengthen private-sector engagement. Discussions centred on Nepal’s priority investment sectors, including hydropower generation, tourism infrastructure, agro-processing, information technology and large-scale infrastructure development, alongside the importance of enhanced air connectivity between the UAE and Nepal in supporting continued growth in trade, tourism and business travel.

The UAE’s non-oil foreign trade with Nepal reached $438.4 million in 2025, a year-on-year increase of 90.1%. Nepal’s non-oil exports to the UAE totalled $348.6 million in 2025, up 109.4% on the previous year, while re-exports from the UAE to Nepal reached $84.6 million, an increase of 44%. This growth builds on a trade relationship that reached as high as $480.0 million in 2021, underscoring the considerable scope for the two countries to build a more diversified and resilient economic partnership going forward.

The visit to Nepal forms part of the UAE’s ongoing efforts to diversify its global trade partnerships and deepen engagement with high-growth markets across South Asia. Both nations expressed a shared commitment to building a more structured, forward-looking economic relationship, with Al Zeyoudi reaffirming the UAE’s dedication to open, rules-based trade and the pursuit of increasing the UAE’s non-oil foreign trade to $1.1 trillion by 2031.

Separately, the Embassy of Nepal in Abu Dhabi organized the Nepal-UAE Economic Partnership forum on Thursday, bringing together senior United Arab Emirates (UAE) officials, business leaders, investors, and policymakers to promote Nepal as a destination for trade, investment, tourism, technology, and business collaboration.

In a message to the event, Minister of Foreign Affairs Shisir Khanal welcomed greater participation by UAE investors in Nepal’s priority sectors and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to facilitating long-term, mutually beneficial partnerships.

The forum was attended by Fahad Al Gergawi, undersecretary of the UAE Ministry of Foreign Trade, Juma Mohammed Al Kait, advisor to the UAE Minister of Economy and Tourism and Treasurer of the Abu Dhabi Chamber, along with senior government officials, chief executive officers, entrepreneurs, and investors.

In his keynote address, Nepal’s Ambassador to the UAE Tej Bahadur Chhetri highlighted the longstanding friendship between Nepal and the UAE and emphasized opportunities for expanding bilateral economic cooperation. He showcased Nepal’s investment potential in clean energy, hydropower, tourism, agriculture, information technology, manufacturing, and infrastructure, while encouraging UAE businesses to explore Nepal’s emerging market.

Agencies