US Assistant Secretary Lu arrives in Nepal on two-day visit

US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Donald Lu arrived in Kathmandu on Thursday on a two-day visit to Nepal.

Lu is scheduled to pay a courtesy call on Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and Minister for Foreign Affairs Narayan Khadka, according to Foreign Ministry sources.

On the first day of his visit, Lu delivered the US Secretary of State's Award for Corporate Excellence (ACE) to Purnaa, a US manufacturing company in Nepal.

The company promotes ethical manufacturing by empowering traditionally marginalized people and survivors of exploitation. This is Lu's second visit to Nepal since November last year and first since Nepal's Parliament ratified the Millenium Challenge Corporation after months-long controversy.

In February, Parliament ratified the USD 500 million Millennium Challenge Corporation Nepal Compact, after weeks of haggling among the political parties.

According to the US embassy sources, Lu will hold meetings with the business community, civil society, and government officials during his stay in Nepal.

''As our most senior diplomat focused on South Asia, he regularly visits the region to discuss a range of issues," said a US embassy statement.

"For this visit, Lu will meet with Nepalis from business, civil society, and government to discuss our 75 years of US- Nepal friendship, our shared commitment to economic development, democracy and human rights," the statement added.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)