The Nepal Freight Forwarders Association (NEFFA) celebrated its thirteenth Cargo Day on July 29 at Hotel Soaltee Crowne Plaza in Kathmandu. His Excellency Shree Shiv Shankar Mukherjee, Ambassador to Nepal from the Republic of India, graced the inaugural function.
Other dignitaries attending the event were Purushottam Ojha, acting secretary of industry, commerce and supply; special guest Ram Menen, senior vice president Emirates Sky- Cargo; Azad Shrestha, vice president of Federation of Nepalese Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Surendra Bir Malakar, president Nepal Chamber of Commerce; R. M. Singh, IPP, NEFFA; NEFFA 1st vice president and 13th Cargo Day co-ordinator Rameswor K.C. and NEFFA general secretary Rajan Sharma, who was also the master of ceremony.
In his speech, NEFFA president Namgyal Lama insisted on the demand of re-structuring the cargo terminal to meet with the international standards of cargo operation.
He also highlighted the problems faced by the cargo entrepreneurs on the bilateral trade with Nepal and India in terms of export, import, tourism and other potential sectors and he emphasized that “the government should realise the importance of the service sector, whether it is transit facilitation,export, import or tourism”.
Addressing the function H.E. Shiv Shankar Mukharjee, Ambassador to Nepal from the Republic of India assured his country’s intention to cooperate with the Nepalese freight forwarders and wished all the best to NEFFA members for the grand cargo day festival.
He said: “Freight forwarders play a very important role in keeping the wheels of trade moving smoothly. This is particularly true in Nepal, which presents many challenges in the area of trade logistics. External trade is a key element of Nepal’s economy. Therefore, your contribution to the Nepalese economy can never be underestimated.”
Among those present on the occasion of Cargo Day were important fi gures from the industry sector in Nepal, top governmental offi cials, representatives from several diplomatic missions and offi cials from various export related associations, exporters, importers, airlines, banks, insurance companies, shipping lines and the media.
During the business session under the chairmanship of NEFFA president Namgyal Lama, Ram Menen, divisional vice president of Emirates Sky Cargo presented his views on the “Development of air cargo in Asia and the world”.
