Political Relations:
Nepal and Canada established diplomatic relations on January 18, 1965, and have enjoyed longstanding friendly relations ever since. Nepal opened her Embassy in Ottawa on October 1, 2009. Canadian Ambassador in New Delhi is accredited to Nepal. Canada has its Consulate in Kathmandu.
Canada has welcomed the promulgation of the Constitution of Nepal 2015. Canada supports Nepal’s commitment to building a stable and democratic society, with the implementation of the constitution and bringing the ongoing political processes to its conclusion.
Major visits:
High level visits from Nepal
- The Right Honourable K P Sharma Oli, the Prime Minister of Nepal met with H. E. Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister of Canada in 24 September 2018 in New York on the sidelines of 73rd
- An MoU on the establishment of Bilateral Consultation Mechanism was signed on 4 October 2018. The first meeting of the mechanism was also held on the same day.
- A delegation led by Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Mr. Rabindra Adhikari traveled to ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) at Montreal, Canada to receive the‘ICAO Council President Certificate’ in June 2018.
- A Nepalese delegation led by Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Mr. Jiwan Bahadur Shahi attended the 39th General Assembly of the ICAO held on 27 September-5 October 2016.
- Member of the Public Service Commission of Nepal Ms. Bindra Hada visited Canada and held meeting with the officials of the Public Service Commission of Canada.
- The Chief Secretary Dr. Som Lal Subedi visited Canada on 2-7 March 2017 and held meetings with his counterpart Mr. Michael Wenrick, Clerk of the Privy Council Canada on March 3, 2017.
High Level Visits from Canada
- Canadian Senate Speaker Hon. George J. Furey visited Nepal on an official visit at the invitation of the Rt. Hon. Chairperson of the National Assembly on 10-11 February 2020.
- Sheila Ray, Justice, Ontario Court of Justice visited Nepal in 2016 and met with Ms. Sushila Karki, Chief Justice.
- Chief Commissioner of Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Mr. Bob Paulson visited Nepal in 2016, and held meetings with the leadership of Nepal Police.
- Canadian Minister of Labor and Minister of Status of Woman Dr. Kellie Leitch visited Nepal in May 2015 in connection with the potentials of recruiting Nepali workers under “Seasonal Agricultural Program”.
- Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and for International Human Rights, Mr. Deepak Obhrai visited Nepal on 13-16 January 2015 on the occasion of the 50th year of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Canada-Nepal Parliamentary Friendship Group
The Canada-Nepal Parliamentary Friendship Group was formed for the first time in the Parliament of Canada on 4 October 2016. Similarly, the Federal Parliament of Nepal also formed a Nepal-Canada Parliamentary Friendship Group (10 members) in April 2019.
Development Cooperation
The earliest cooperation to Nepal from Canada was in 1952 when it joined the Colombo Plan. The official bilateral assistance commenced only in 1970 through the Canadian International Development Agency. In these five decades, Canadian cooperation mainly contributed to strengthening the aviation sector and such other areas as energy, rural development, health, education, geographical survey, agriculture, poverty alleviation, health care and food security.
Some of the Institutions and Groups funded by Canadian Government include International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Grand Challenges Canada (GCC) and Trade Facilitation Office Canada. At present Canadian Development Cooperation Priorities are global peace and security and humanitarian action. Its support to Nepal is now channeled through humanitarian organizations and NGOs.
Trade
While Canada and Nepal share exceptional and longstanding bilateral ties, trade flows between the two countries stand rather modest. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Nepal and Canada in 2003 for duty free and quota free access of Nepali products to Canada. In May 2013, the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) and Indo-Canadian Business Chamber (ICBC) inked a Memorandum of Understanding to establish the Canada-Nepal Business Executive Committee (CNBEC) with an objective to foster business ties.
Exports to Canada include tea, coffee and spices, cheese, plants and parts of plants, pastry products, dog or cat food, grains, skins and related products, fiber products etc. Imports to Nepal from Canada include edible vegetables, paper, apparels, maps and hydrographic and similar charts, live animals, dried fish, vegetables, dried peas, prepared foods, whiskies, lubricating oil, medicinesmachinery and mechanical appliances, parts thereof, Aircrafts and parts, items related, pharmaceutical products etc. The following table exhibits trends of Nepal’s trade with Canada. (In Nepalese Rupees)
| S.No | Year | Export | Import | Balance |
| 1 | 2015 | 831173582 | 6193100683 | -5361927101 |
| 2 | 2016 | 891899362 | 5340493868 | -4448594506 |
| 3 | 2017 | 862098626 | 901169528 | -8156070902 |
| 4 | 2018 | 885865366 | 11688083362 | -10802217996 |
| 5 | 2019 | 310202988 | 6115113457 | -5804910469 |
Source TEPC
Investment: As of 15 July 2020, Rs. 3.3 billion FDI has been received from the Canada, which is invested in 47 different companies and they have generated 2,478 jobs. (Department of Industry)
Tourism
Despite the geographical distance, the number of tourists visiting Nepal from Canada has always been on the rise. There is high potentials to promote Nepal as a favourable tourist destination in Canada. Arrivals in Nepal from Canada is as follows:
| Year | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
| Tourist Arrival | 12,132 | 15105 | 12,491 | 17,102 |
Europe and the Americas Division
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Kathmandu
August 2020