A 12-person delegation from Nepal’s Department of Irrigation visited IWHR on July 14, 2015 and was received by IWHR Chief Engineer Gao Zhaoyi.

Prof. Gao welcomed the second visit from the Nepalese department on water resources management since last July. He extended his sincere condolences on the devastating earthquake that hit Nepal on April 25, and wished smooth post-disaster reconstruction. Prof. Gao pointed out that irrigation in China and Nepal, both agricultural countries influenced by monsoon climate and suffered an imbalanced distribution of rainfall, played a very important role in agricultural development. He briefed the participants on the achievements China has made in irrigation development, as well as major concerns like the aging of irrigation facilities and farmer participation, and said that he was looking forward to more bilateral exchange on issues of shared interests.

Dr. Benu Kumar Paudel, the leader of the delegation, thanked IWHR for its hospitality, as well as the Chinese government and people for the support and concern of Nepal’s post-earthquake reconstruction. He said the Nepalese government sent delegations to China to learn advanced experiences and technologies of irrigation and drainage and bring them back to Nepal for the modernization of irrigation in his country. Dr. Paudel also introduced the administrative organization and responsibility division of irrigation management in Nepal, and the practice of managing irrigation through water user’s associations.

Dr. Zhang Yanqun from IWHR’s Department of Irrigation and Drainage made a report on the basics of water and food issues in China, the problems and challenges facing agriculture and farmland irrigation, the development and achievements of micro irrigation, and the challenges to the increase of irrigation efficiency and the development of water-efficiency agriculture. Discussions ensued on topics such as the policy support and incentive mechanism of micro irrigation.

The Nepalese delegation also visited IWHR’s Experimental Base of Efficient Irrigation in Daxing, one of the suburban areas of Beijing.