Head of the British Diplomatic Service Sir Simon McDonald and Secretary at the UK Department for International Development Mark Lowcock arrived here on Tuesday to celebrate the bicentenary of Britain-Nepal diplomatic relations.

During their visit, McDonald and Lowcock will meet Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, Foreign Minister Kamal Thapa, and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Poudel to discuss bilateral and international issues, the British Embassy said in a statement.  

They are also scheduled to hold meetings with people from business and political spheres to discuss the current political situation, human rights, the economic and humanitarian challenges facing Nepal and ways the UK can help Nepal improve its business environment and boost bilateral trade and investment, and future development partnerships.

Likewise, the visiting British delegates will also visit the UKaid-funded projects—Humanitarian Staging Area at the Tribhuvan International Airport and Red Cross earthquake preparedness programme—to learn more about DFID Nepal’s work on disaster preparedness.

“Reconstruction is a high development priority and the UK stands ready to support the Government of Nepal’s leadership in rebuilding Nepal,” the statement said.

DFID Nepal has had a £65m Business Case approved by the Ministry of Finance for a UKaid programme to support earthquake recovery. This is McDonald’s first visit to Nepal, while Lowcock has already been here thrice—he was last here in 1993 as part of delegation accompanying the late Princess Diana.