Why China Selected Sindhupalchok, a Border District, for Cooperation?

China has launched a project to make settlements near its borders safe, saying that it aims to alleviate poverty in South Asian countries. It has been started from Sindhupalchok on the Nepal-China border.

The Chinese government is going to make Kuvinde of Sindhupalchok a ‘vibrant village’, where Tibetans who are in migration are also present. For this, the former speaker of Nepal Agniprasad Sapkota and his family members have full support and plans, the source said.

On Monday only, the former speaker and Economic and Commercial Counselor of the Chinese Embassy for Nepal, Siu, jointly inaugurated the ‘Vibrant Village’ model project of the China-South Asian Country Poverty Alleviation and Development Cooperation Center.

Although the Chinese government selected five villages in Nepal for this project, it finally chose Kuvinde. After a long investigation by some officials from China, Kuvinde was selected under the project.

According to experts, China’s involvement in such programs aligns with its national security strategy. The selection of Sindhupalchok for cooperation is seen as part of a larger plan to extend similar projects to other villages along the Nepal-China border. The underlying strategy of this initiative is to gauge and influence the local sentiment towards China, aiming to foster a positive perception and outlook towards the country in the region.

It is said that the Chinese government will provide financial and technical support to Chautara Sanga Chokgadhi Municipality-4 Kuvinde for agriculture and animal husbandry under the project. Chinese officials have claimed that there is a plan to make Kuvinde, known as the milk pocket region, a vibrant village through agriculture and animal husbandry. Saying that they are committed to make Kuvinde a vibrant village, Consul Siu said that the project was started from Sindhupalchok in Nepal for the first time in South Asia.

He said that there is a plan to support Kuvinde for agriculture and animal husbandry in the first phase and at the same time, he plans to support infrastructure such as roads, education and drinking water.

Former speaker Sapkota said that everyone should support the Chinese project to make Kuvinde a vibrant village through the lively village project. At the ceremony, Director of Agriculture and Rural Development Commission of China Li Jiuhong and Li Chuyeng of Southwest University of China claimed that Kuwinde will become a vibrant village as well as the project will prove to be a boon for economic upgrading.