Officials, PM of Iceland call on President Bhandari

Various officials called on President Bidya Devi Bhandari on the sidelines of the Reykjavik Global Forum - Women Leaders in Reykjavik in the Republic of Iceland on Wednesday.

Prime Minister of Iceland Ms Katrín Jakobsdóttir called on the President. Matters of further strengthening bilateral relations and exchanging potential cooperation in areas such as geothermal energy technology, climate change, tourism and sharing of experience in the areas of women and gender empowerment were discussed during the meeting, the Embassy of Nepal, Copenhagen, Denmark stated in a press release today.

Also on the sidelines, Ms Sima Bahous, Executive Director of the UN Women called on President Bhandari and appreciated the progress made by Nepal in women's political empowerment and SDG indicators.

Separately, Ms Silvana-Koch Mehrin, President and Founder of Women Political Leaders and Laura Liswood, Secretary General of Council of Women World Leaders, also called on the President and discussed various experiences and issues related to gender, development and climate change.

Two famous Icelandic mountaineers who summated Sagarmatha and Lhotse also met with President Bhandari and shared their experience.

The Head-of-State also interacted with Icelandic and international media on the sidelines of the Forum.

In the evening on Wednesday, President Bhandari attended an event hosted by Nepali diaspora in Iceland and briefly addressed the community, the Embassy of Nepal, Copenhagen stated.

Earlier on Wednesday, President Bhandari received the WPL Trailblazer Award 2022 at the Forum. Silvana-Koch Mehrin, President and Founder of Women Political Leaders and former Vice-President of the European Parliament, presented the award to the President. The Prime Minister of Iceland Jakobsdóttir and Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, Former President of Iceland, were also present at the award ceremony.

President Bhandari dedicated the award to the Nepali women whose struggle for gender empowerment and inclusion contributed to the achievements that Nepal has made in those agendas this far.

The President also delivered a keynote speech to the Forum earlier to the award ceremony and highlighted Nepal's journey to institutionalize an inclusive democracy that has well embodied principles of human rights, equity, non-discrimination, inclusion and social transformation.