Nepalese Ambassador to Pakistan Rita Dhital has called for stronger economic engagement between two countries through direct air links, more frequent trade delegations, single-country exhibitions and business-to-business networking.
Speaking at an interactive session at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), she said restoring direct flights could boost business travel, tourism and people-to-people contacts.
Dhital recalled that Nepal Airlines had previously flown to Karachi, while Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) operated a route between Islamabad and Kathmandu until 2011. She urged Pakistani business leaders to explore investment opportunities in Nepal, particularly in tourism and hospitality, hydropower, clean energy and information technology.
Dhital pointed to several agreements and institutional mechanisms already established between the two countries. Pakistan and Nepal signed a trade agreement in 1982, followed by the creation of the Nepal-Pakistan Joint Economic Commission in 1983 at the finance-minister level.
A double-taxation avoidance agreement was concluded in 2001, while a Joint Business Council was formed in 1996 by the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry and the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry. The Nepal Chamber of Commerce and LCCI also signed an MoU in 1993.
The ambassador stressed that while governments could establish frameworks through agreements, businesses were responsible for converting those arrangements into actual commercial activity. She therefore encouraged companies in both countries to make better use of existing agreements by arranging regular business exchanges and pursuing practical joint ventures.
Dhital said Pakistani companies had previously participated in joint ventures in Nepal’s textile, hotel and banking sectors. She identified textiles, leather goods and surgical equipment as promising areas for Pakistani businesses, while Nepal could increase exports of tea, coffee, herbs, handicrafts and agricultural products to Pakistan.
Tourism and hospitality, she added, offered particularly strong prospects, with Pakistani companies able to explore opportunities in luxury resorts and adventure tourism. She also encouraged Pakistani investors to consider Nepal’s hydropower and renewable-energy sectors, which she described as areas with significant long-term potential.
Dhital invited LCCI to organize a business delegation to Nepal and assured the chamber that the Nepalese Embassy would provide support for B2B meetings. She also offered assistance to Pakistani companies seeking to hold single-country exhibitions in Nepal.
LCCI President Faheem ur Rehman Saigol said the bilateral trade remains far below its potential, with annual trade averaging slightly above $4 million despite the cordial relations between the two countries.
State Bank of Pakistan data showed that Pakistan exported goods worth approximately $1.4 million to Nepal during 2025-26, while imports from Nepal amounted to around $2.8 million.
Pakistan’s key exports to Nepal include surgical instruments, pharmaceutical products, apparel and spices. Nepal’s main exports to Pakistan include plants used in perfumery, cardamom, opium fibre and orthopedic appliances.
Saigol said tourism could provide another significant avenue for cooperation. Referring to Nepal’s Mount Everest and Pakistan’s K2, he proposed joint ventures in hospitality and ecotourism that could help promote a wider South Asian adventure tourism corridor for international visitors.
