On 23 July 2024, Chairperson of NTNC Dr Krishna Prasad Oli led a delegation visit to the Rt Hon'ble Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, where a briefing was made about NTNC’s ongoing efforts and preparations to enhance Nepal’s natural heritage and conservation value.
NTNC Board Members in the delegation were Dr Shambu Prasad Dangal, Prof Dr Ram Prasad Chaudhary, Dr Shubh Narayan Mahato, Dr Bijay Kumar Singh Danuwar, Ms Rekha Ghimire, and Member Secretary Dr Naresh Subedi, together with the Director General of DNPWC, Dr Sindhu Prasad Dhungana.
At the meeting, interactions were held with the Prime Minister, who is also the Patron of NTNC, on a range of topics – from landscape-level conservation to ecosystem resilience-building, flagship species management to human-wildlife conflict drivers, climate change capacities to transboundary natural resource management to evidence-based policy feedback.
During his presentation, the NTNC chairman highlighted the institution’s work and impact areas, its capacities and national contributions, new targets and plans, citing also limitations faced. NTNC’s capacity and readiness to become a knowledge center in biodiversity conservation and species research, climate change, ecosystem restoration and community-based conservation in Nepal were made known. Briefings were also made on current policy amendment initiatives being undertaken to situate changing conservation contexts and effectiveness.
In his comments, the prime minister noted about issues arising from human-wildlife conflict and the need to properly establish the carrying capacity for tiger, rhino, elephant, among other flagship species. Responding to ecosystem restoration and resilience-building needs, the prime minister called for improved identification of biological resources, including mines and minerals, to inform future sustainable use and/or extraction measures.
Noting the role of evidence-based research for policy reform, the Rt Hon’ble Prime Minister encouraged NTNC to expand its horizons given its scientific capital and decades of contributions in the nation’s conservation success. [END]
