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Transcript/Script((PLAYBOOK SLUG: NEPAL CHINA AIRPORT
HEADLINE: Chinese-Built Airport in Nepal Raises Worries of Debt Trap
TEASER: More than a year after opening, a new international airport built in Nepal with Chinese funding is yet to receive international flights
PUBLISHED AT: 03/21/2024 at 11am
BYLINE: Henry Wilkins
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: Pokhara, Nepal
VIDEOGRAPHER: Henry Wilkins
VIDEO EDITOR: Henry Wilkins
ASSIGNING EDITOR: David Jones
SCRIPT EDITORS: caw, sb
VIDEO SOURCE: VOA
PLATFORMS: WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO _X_
TRT: 2:51
VID APPROVED BY: pcd
TYPE: TVR
EDITOR NOTES:))
((INTRO))
[[A China-funded international airport in Nepal opened more than a year ago but still hasn’t received international flights. With loan repayments for the Pokhara ((pron. POK-ah-rah)) airport due to start soon, many worry Nepal has fallen into a debt trap. Henry Wilkins reports.]]
((NARRATOR))
Pokhara ((pron. POK-ah-rah)), Nepal, is a big draw for adventure tourists. Thrill seekers from India and further afield bungee jump, zip line, and hike in the surrounding Himalayas.
The only way to reach Pokhara on a scheduled flight has been to fly domestically from somewhere else in Nepal. So, when a new international airport opened in January 2023, Nepalis thought business would get a boost. Samar Nepali takes tourists for boat rides.
[[For radio: He says that since the airport opened there has been no sign of any international flights, but he hopes they will eventually come as it should make business a lot smoother. He adds that the government should push for this.]]
((Samar Nepali, Fewa Boat Association (in Nepali, ??secs)))
“Since our new airport in Pokhara opened there’s been no sign of any international flights. I think that if international flights happen it’ll make our business much smoother, and I think that our government should be pushing for this.”
((NARRATOR))
Pokhara’s new airport was built and partly financed by China. The loan was to be paid back with airport profits. To date, no regular international flights are coming to the airport and the number of passengers is drastically lower than expected.
Pokhara’s Tourism Council says the industry had been lobbying for the airport for decades.
((For radio: Gopi Bahadur Bhattarai is the council’s former president.))
((Gopi Bahadur Bhattarai, Pokhara Tourism Council (in English, ?? secs)))
“That international airport, we hope, is the lifeline, not only for Pokhara, not only for the western region. It’s the hope for the whole Nepal tourism industry. They are thinking that their investment will be lost."
((NARRATOR))
With loan repayments due to start in 2026, many here worry Nepal may have fallen victim to China’s so-called “debt-trap diplomacy.”
Other Chinese infrastructure projects in developing countries have come under scrutiny in recent years for expensive and poor construction, and for leaving countries that are supposed to benefit with high levels of debt.
But the Chinese embassy called the debt-trap accusation a narrative trap created to jeopardize China’s cooperation with other developing countries.
It said the airport saw more air passenger arrivals last year than its pre-pandemic high.
One expert on foreign affairs says Nepal is becoming increasingly wary of Chinese-financed infrastructure projects and is looking to other countries.
((For radio: Vijay Kant Karna is with the Centre for Social Innovation and Foreign Policy))
((Vijay Kant Karna, Center for Social Innovation and Foreign Policy (in English, ?? secs)))
“(The) World Bank is ready to finance our infrastructure projects. European banks are ready to finance. Japan, sometimes waive the loan after five or 10 years.”
((NARRATOR))
Pokhara's business owners hope China and India start flying in more tourists soon. Nepali, politicians, meanwhile, are said to be negotiating with China to see if it will waive the loan.
((Henry Wilkins, VOA News, Pokhara, Nepal))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
Subtitles / Dubbing AvailableNo
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateMarch 21, 2024 10:50 EDT
BylineHenry Wilkins
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
