Nepal Opens Pavilion at COP31 in Antalya, Pushes Mountain Agenda

Nepal opened its own pavilion at the COP31 climate conference in Antalya, Türkiye, on Monday, November 9, the first day of the talks. Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal inaugurated the pavilion, which Radio Nepal described as a platform to show Nepal's climate ambitions, its biodiversity work and the adaptation projects run by mountain communities themselves.

Khanal used the ceremony to make the case Nepal has carried to Antalya. He urged global action on fragile Himalayan ecosystems and warned that rapid changes in the mountain cryosphere, the ice and snow that feed the region's rivers, threaten millions of people downstream. He cited the recent floods on the Bhote Koshi river as a "Himalayan Tsunami," Radio Nepal reported, and said vulnerable nations carry a burden of climate disasters that is out of proportion to anything they caused. He called for global solidarity, direct access to the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage, and stronger partnerships for regional climate resilience.

Health and Food Security Minister Nisha Mehta, House of Representatives member Sagar Dhakal and international delegates attended the opening, Radio Nepal said.

What Nepal is asking for in Antalya

Nepal's delegation, led by Khanal, has four priorities at COP31, which runs from November 9 to November 20. The first is a dedicated mountain agenda: Nepal and Bhutan have jointly proposed an agenda item titled "1.5 degrees C Warming in Mountains." The others are support for loss and damage, climate finance that small countries can actually access, and climate justice.

The numbers behind the ask are fresh. Floods in the Rasuwa and Bhote Koshi region on August 26, 2026 damaged transport links and infrastructure and disrupted cross border trade. A briefing prepared for the conference, citing an October 2026 World Bank update, put direct physical damage at 1.66 billion dollars, wider economic and livelihood effects at 2.7 billion dollars, and recovery and reconstruction needs at 4.8 billion dollars. Those figures are estimates in a briefing document, not final audited losses. Nepal has also sought emergency support from the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage, and Agriculture, Forest and Environment Minister Gita Chaudhary has referred to a provisional allocation of 21.6 million dollars.

Nepal, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Bhutan and Pakistan are jointly hosting a high level event at the conference on glaciers, the cryosphere, resilience and sustainable financing. Khanal is scheduled to address the conference and to represent Nepal at the Leaders' Summit on November 11 and 12, and he is expected to return home on November 14.