TOPOGRAPHY
Nepal is a landlocked country with a total area of 147,181 sq. km. She lies between 26022'N 300 27'N latitudes and 8004E 880 12'E longitudes. Roughly rectangular in shape, the land extends approximately 885 km. eastwest and 145 km. at its narrowest to 241 km. at its broadest, northsouth. The country is bordered by China in the north and by India in the south, west and east.

The land mass is divided into three geographical zones, the snow capped high Himalayas, the mountainous region with long terraced slopes leading to fertile valleys and the flat sub-tropical Terai region. The high Himalayan region extends in the north from west to east at an altitude of 4,000 m. to 8,848 m. The world famous peaks of Mt. Everest (8848 m.), Kanchanjunga (8586m), Makalu (8463m.), Dhaulagiri (8167m.), Annapurna (8091m.), and many others dominate the formidable range of eternal snows. The mountainous region consists of mountain ranges of Mahabharat varying in height from 1525 m. to 4877m. Below these ranges lies the Churia range at 610 m. to 15241 m. Fertile valleys of various widths and altitudes lie between these mountain and hill ranges. The southern belt stretches eastwest with a width of 26 to 32 km. and a maximum elevation of about 305m.

Several major rivers, tributaries and streams flow south originating from the glaciers, snow fed lakes and high Himalayan mountains of the north. The major rivers are Mahakali, Seti, Karnali, Gandaki, Koshi and Mechi.

CLIMATE
Nepal experiences 4 seasons spring (Mar.-May), summer (Jun.-Aug.), autumn (Sept.-Nov.) and winter (Dec.-Feb.).

The climate is varied ranging from the sub-tropical Terai to the cool dry temperate and alpine climate in the northern Himalayan ranges. In the Terai, the hottest part of the country, summer temperatures may rise as high as 400c. The climate is hot and humid. In the midmountain region, the summer climate is mild with temperatures around 250 -270c. The winter temperatures range from 70c to 230c in the Terai and subzero to 120c in the mountain regions and valleys. The northern Himalayan region has an alpine climate. The valley of Kathniandu has a pleasant equable climate with average summer and winter temperatures of 190-270c and 20-120c respectively.

Rainfall is widespread during the south-west monsoon period from June to August with the eastern part receiving maximum minfall. In the winter season, the western part receives a larger share of rainfall. The period from October to May is generally dry in most parts of the country. Annual precipitation varies from around 300 mm. in the northern and western areas to over 2500 mm. in the eastern region.

Kathmandu Valley receives around 1200 nun. of annual rainfall with a heavy concentration from June to April

HISTORY
Nepal enjoys the distinction of having always been a sovereign and independent country. It has never been under foreign domination.

Ancient Nepal consisted of many small autonomous principalities. It was King Prithivi Narayan Shah who unified Nepal by creating one nation in 1769. Since that time, Kathmandu has been the capital of the country. After the Anglo-Nepali War (1814-1816), Prime Minister Jung Bahadur Rana greatly increased his power and established the Rana line of hereditary Prime Ministers who ruled Nepal until 1951, when the late King Tribhuvan led a popular revolution which overthrew the family autocracy. In 1959, the first general election was held and a parliamentary government was set up for a short period. Then, Nepal had experience of partyless panchayat system for three decades. A popular peoples movement ushered in a new era of democracy in 1990. A new constitution enshrining the sovereignty of the people was adopted in that year and multiparty political system with constitutional monarchy was established.

POLITICAL SYSTEM
The major feature of the new constitution is the adoption of a parliamentary system of government based on multi-party democracy with a constitutional monarchy. The concept of the rule of law is enshrined within an independent judicial system. The constitution also guarantees the safeguard of the basic human rights, freedoms and equality. The constitution affirms that Nepal is a multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, democratic, independent, indivisible, sovereign, Hindu and constitutional monarchical kingdom. The constitution provides for a bicameral parliamentary system of government with two houses, the House of Representatives, where members are elected directly from adult franchise and the National Council, an upper house with elected seniors and nominees. The leader of the parliamentary board of the party which commands a majority in the House of Representatives will be appointed Prime Minister.

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ENVIRONMENT
The unique feature of the Nepalese society is its ethnic, linguistic, religious and cultural diversity. From ancient times, migrant tribes from the east, the north and the south entered the land, met the natives and settled there. They are the Nepalese people. The Brahmins, Kshetriyas, Thakuris, Tharus, Yadavs, Dhimals, Newars, Gurungs, Magars, Limbus, Rais, Sherpas, Tamangs and others are all ethnically members of the IndoAryan and Tibeto-Burman families.

The people are religious and the practice of religious worship is a part of everyday life. Hinduism is the state religion of Nepal. As many as 86.5 percent of the total population are Hindus, 7.8 percent are Buddhists, 3.5 percent are Muslims and 2.2 percent are Jains, Christians and others. There is a unique blend of Hinduism and Buddhism. The two religions have overlapped and harmonised to the extent that Hindus and Buddhists worship the same gods.

Nepali is the lingua-franca of the country and is written in Devanagari script. Other languages are Maithili, BhoJpuri, Newari, Gurung, Tamang, Tharu, Magar, Limbu, Rai, Kirati, Bhote and so on. English is spoken and understood by people in most urban centres.

Nepal has maintained one of the world's oldest and richest continuous cultures. Her culture finds exquisite expression in the fields of religion, art, music, dance, social and socio-religious festivals. There are literally thousands of temples, shrines, pagodas, intricate wood carvings and bronze and stone images of great beauty.

Festivals are a prominent aspect of Nepalese life, in which all people participate enthusiastically. Dashain (Durga PuJa), Tiliar (festival of lights), Shiva Ratri (in honour of lord Shiva), Indra Jatra (festival of Indra, the rain god), Baishakh Purnima (to pay homage to lord Buddha), Gai Jatra (cow festival) and a host of other festivals are celebrated throughout the year.

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Nepal's foreign policy objectives are guided by the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations and the Nonalignment. As such, Nepal enjoys cordial relations with all the countries of the world. This is also manifested by the expansion of the diplomatic relations, which has reached to 111 countries in 1998. Through 17 residential embassies, 3 consulates, and numerous honorary consul generals/consuls abroad, Nepal is striving to consolidate bilateral and multilateral relations with the friendly countries and international organisations. Meanwhile, 21 embassies, consulates, cooperation offices, country representatives of various international organisations including the UN, World Bank, IMF and ADB based in Kathmandu have equally made significant contributions to help achieve these goals.

Nepal attaches considerable importance to the promotion of closer economic cooperation in South Asia. To this end, Nepal is actively working with other members of SAARC for the creation of the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) and is also engaged in the subregional cooperation in the form of South Asian Growth Quadrangle (SAGQ). Nepal is the host of the SAARC Secretariat.

Economic diplomacy has acquired yet another significant dimension of Nepal's foreign policy priorities in recent years. Its main objectives are to promote Nepal's export trade, attract greater number of tourists to Nepal, and to enhance the flow of foreign direct investment in the economy.