Australian Ambassador Ernst Pledges to Expand Parliamentary Cooperation with Nepal

Dragon Media Correspondent

Australian Ambassador to Nepal Simon Ernst has expressed his commitment to further expanding parliamentary cooperation and people-to-people relations between Nepal and Australia.

During a meeting with Speaker of the House of Representatives Dol Prasad (DP) Aryal, the two sides discussed Nepal–Australia relations, parliamentary cooperation, people-to-people ties and various issues of mutual interest.

Ambassador Ernst said cooperation at the parliamentary level and stronger people-to-people relations would play an important role in further strengthening bilateral ties. He also reaffirmed his commitment to supporting the expansion of cooperation in areas including education, human resource development and parliamentary engagement.

Speaker Aryal informed the ambassador that Nepal’s Federal Parliament has formed a Nepal–Australia Parliamentary Friendship Group. He stressed the importance of effectively mobilizing the group to promote regular exchanges and greater institutional engagement between lawmakers of the two countries.

Aryal said the parliamentary friendship group could play an important role in expanding cooperation in areas of common interest and strengthening mutual understanding.

The Speaker also appreciated Australia’s long-standing contribution to Nepal’s socio-economic development. He expressed gratitude in particular for Australia’s support for human resource development through Australia Awards Scholarships, capacity-building programmes and training opportunities.

People-to-people ties were also highlighted as an important foundation of bilateral relations. Aryal noted that Australia remains one of the major destinations for Nepali students pursuing higher education.

He added that Nepali students studying in Australia, along with the wider Nepali community living there, continue to play an important role in further strengthening relations between the two countries.