New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met the Deputy Prime Minister of Fiji, Biman Prasad, on Monday and discussed the expanding bilateral partnership that exists between the two nations. Welcoming the deputy PM of Fiji, Jaishankar wrote in a post on X, "Glad to welcome Deputy PM of Fiji Prof biman prasad today. Discussed our expanding bilateral partnership, people-to-people ties, development cooperation and multilateral collaboration.
The Deputy Prime Minister of Fiji, Biman Prasad, arrived in New Delhi late on Sunday night, kicking off his week-long visit to India. Upon reaching the national capital, Prasad was welcomed by the Ministry of External Affairs' JS Indo Pacific, Paramita Tripathi. Meanwhile, on Monday, the Deputy PM of Fiji also met the Minister of State for External Affairs and Education, Rajkumar Ranjan Singh and held discussions in the areas of health, renewable energy and sustainable development.
Posting the pictures from the meeting on Monday, the MoS wrote on X, "Had an engaging discussion with Fiji's DPM @bimanprasad today.Glad to witness increased momentum in our development partnership, especially in the areas of health, renewable energy and sustainable development, and education" he added.
Notably, the Fiji Deputy PM will participate in a programme in the national capital today and head to Goa on February 7 for another event. On February 8, he is scheduled to visit Ayodhya, as stated by the MEA. Prasad, who also serves as the Minister of Finance, Strategic Planning, National Development, and Statistics for Fiji, is the first foreign leader to visit Ayodhya after the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony on January 22.
On February 9, Prasad will depart for Ahmedabad, followed by a visit to Gandhinagar on February 10, departing on February 11, thereby concluding his trip. Prasad had previously visited India in February 2023. It was his first official trip to India. During that visit, he participated in a high-level Ministerial Session on 'Strategies for a Sustainable and Decarbonized Future.
During the discussions, he highlighted the urgent need for global action on decarbonisation if the world is to genuinely fight issues like climate change, which is having devastating impacts on the lives and livelihoods of people in small developing island countries like Fiji. Prasad also called upon the developed world to support affordable technology transfer to facilitate a smooth and economically feasible energy transition.
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