7th China Festival, 2nd Kathmandu Cultural Forum kick off in Nepal

The 7th China Festival has kicked off in Nepal's capital city on Monday.

The event was jointly inaugurated by visiting member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Head of the CPC Central Committee's Publicity Department Liu Qibao, and Nepalese Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Krishna Bahadur Mahara.

The three-day event has been organized reflecting synergy and joint commitment of China and Nepal for cooperation and expertise sharing in safeguarding, promoting and managing cultural heritages.

"The perfect example of friendship between any two neighbors can be found in friendship of Nepal and China. And these sorts of event are helpful in strengthening our partnership," Indra Bahadur Baniya, state minister for Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation said while addressing the event.

The festival features various cultural performances by Chinese artists. Artists from Department of Culture of China's Jiangsu province, Chinese Academy of Cultural Heritage, Chinese Culture Promotion Society are performing in the fiesta.

The event also marks the beginning of the two-day 2nd Kathmandu Cultural Forum. Representatives from Nepal, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives and China attended the forum that will end on Tuesday issuing a Kathmandu declaration.

Addressing the event, Liu Yuzhu, head of China's State Administration of Cultural Heritage, said "this event is an important platform to discuss and enhance the cultural ties between China and South Asia."

Meanwhile, Nepal and China on Monday signed various agreements in the areas of publication and television.

The 7th China Festival will conclude on Wednesday.

source: Xinhua