ADB President Masato Kanda arrives in Nepal, Set to hold high-level talks with PM Shah

KATHMANDU: Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Masato Kanda has arrived in Nepal for a two-day official visit, marking the first visit by an ADB president to the country in nearly a decade and underscoring the multilateral lender’s continued commitment to Nepal’s economic development and infrastructure agenda.

Kanda landed at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu at around 10:00 p.m. on Sunday, where he was welcomed by Finance Secretary Ghanshyam Upadhyaya.

During his stay on Monday and Tuesday, the ADB chief is scheduled to hold a series of high-level meetings with Nepal’s political leadership and senior government officials. According to officials at the Ministry of Finance, Kanda will meet Prime Minister Balen Shah on Tuesday, making it the prime minister’s first formal meeting with a foreign dignitary since assuming office.

The meeting is expected to focus on Nepal’s economic priorities, development financing, infrastructure investment, public service delivery, and future cooperation between Nepal and the Manila-based multilateral development bank.

Under diplomatic protocol, the president of the ADB is accorded a status comparable to that of a head of government during official visits. During Kanda’s visit to Bangladesh last month, the country’s finance minister personally received him at the airport, reflecting the significance attached to the institution’s leadership.

Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle is also scheduled to meet Kanda on Monday afternoon. Besides official meetings, the ADB president will visit several development projects financed by the bank to review implementation progress and discuss future investment opportunities.

Two New Cooperation Agreements Expected

The visit is also expected to produce tangible outcomes, with Nepal and the ADB preparing to sign two new cooperation agreements covering customs and transit modernization as well as water supply and sewerage infrastructure.

The customs and logistics support is expected to complement Nepal’s ongoing efforts to modernize border management, improve trade facilitation, strengthen regional connectivity, and reduce logistics costs. Meanwhile, the water and sanitation agreement aims to enhance urban infrastructure and improve access to clean drinking water and wastewater management.

These agreements come as Nepal seeks to accelerate capital expenditure, attract greater foreign investment, and improve public infrastructure under its new government’s economic agenda.

Kanda Reaffirms ADB’s Long-Term Commitment to Nepal

Shortly after arriving in Kathmandu, Kanda reiterated the ADB’s long-term commitment to supporting Nepal’s development.

In a message posted on social media Monday morning, he said Nepal stands at a defining moment and has repeatedly demonstrated remarkable resilience in the face of natural disasters, political transitions, and economic shocks.

As Nepal’s largest development partner with an active investment portfolio of approximately US$3.9 billion, Kanda said the ADB would continue working with the country to transform that resilience into sustainable economic progress, create more opportunities, and lay the foundations for long-term growth.

He also noted that Nepal’s new government is currently setting its development priorities and said his visit provides an opportunity to listen, learn, and discuss how the ADB can best support the country’s next phase of development, building on more than six decades of partnership.

First Visit by an ADB President Since 2016

Kanda’s visit is historically significant as he becomes the first ADB president to visit Nepal since former President Takehiko Nakao visited in 2016.

Nepal is one of the founding members of the Asian Development Bank, which was established in 1966. The country began receiving ADB assistance in 1968, initially through technical assistance before obtaining its first concessional loan of US$6 million in 1969.

Over nearly six decades, the ADB has become Nepal’s largest multilateral development partner, financing projects across transportation, energy, hydropower, urban development, education, agriculture, climate resilience, governance, and social infrastructure.

According to government officials, the ADB currently has an active portfolio of around US$4 billion—equivalent to approximately NPR 600 billion (around Rs 600 billion)—supporting dozens of development projects across Nepal.

Strategic Significance

Kanda’s visit comes at a time when Nepal is pursuing higher economic growth, expanding infrastructure investment, strengthening regional trade connectivity, and implementing structural economic reforms. As one of the country’s largest sources of concessional financing, the ADB remains central to Nepal’s efforts to improve transport networks, strengthen energy security, modernize customs administration, expand water and sanitation services, and enhance climate resilience.

The high-level engagements during the visit are expected to reinforce the long-standing partnership between Nepal and the Asian Development Bank while identifying new areas of cooperation aligned with the government’s development priorities and long-term economic transformation agenda.