Ambassador of the European Union to Nepal Rensje Teerink opened the Civil Society Forum amid a function on Wednesday.

More than 100 participants from the civil society participated in the event organised by the EU delegation to Nepal in association with the NGO Federation of Nepal and the Association of International NGOs. Representatives of Parliament, the National Reconstruction Authority, the National Planning Commission and the diplomatic missions in Kathmandu were among the attendees.

The organisation of the forum is part of the Civil Society Organisations (CSO) Roadmap developed in consultation with the CSO in Nepal and approved by the EU and its member states in July this year, the EU said in a statement.

The Civil Society Organisations Roadmap exercise is a strategic plan developed by forging partnerships between the EU, its member states and the CSO and the respective governments in every country where the EU has signed partnership agreements.

The forum focuses on ways to promote an enabling environment for the civil society in Nepal, the statement said. Its two specific objectives are to discuss around the roles and functions of the civil society in Nepal.

Its role for the development of the country on one hand, and the legal and institutional framework in place and their performances, available financial

opportunities and the challenges around accessing and managing the resources as well as the future laws under preparation on the other.