Banking News – A discussion was held between Minister for Communication and Information Technology Dr. Bikram Timilsina and Minister of Justice and Digital Affairs of the Republic of Estonia Liisa Pakosta on expanding bilateral cooperation in the fields of digital transformation and e-governance.

During the meeting held in Doha, Qatar, on the sidelines of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)’s “World Telecommunication Policy Forum 2026,” the two ministers discussed possibilities for cooperation in areas including digital public infrastructure, e-governance systems, digital transformation, cybersecurity, and institutional capacity building.

At the meeting, Communication Minister Dr. Timilsina praised Estonia’s achievements in the field of digital governance and stated that Nepal could gain important experience and learning from it. He noted that the systems Estonia developed to make public service delivery technology-friendly, effective, transparent, and citizen-centered could be useful for Nepal. Estonia is among the leading countries practicing successful digital governance systems, having developed digital identity, secure data exchange, electronic signatures, and online public service systems.

Communication Minister Dr. Timilsina mentioned that Nepal can benefit from Estonia’s experience of making government work paperless and providing easy and efficient services to citizens. He pointed out the possibilities for cooperation between Nepal and Estonia in areas including digital public infrastructure, interoperability of government service systems, digital identity, cybersecurity, and institutional capacity development.

He expressed confidence that the exchange of Estonia’s technical knowledge, experience, and successful practices would help make Nepal’s public service delivery more digital, integrated, and citizen-friendly.

At the meeting, Communication Minister Dr. Timilsina raised the issue of the challenge of digital divide becoming more complex worldwide along with the rapid development of digital technology. He stated that alongside traditional inequality in digital access, a new type of digital inequality could be created among countries based on access to and capacity to use artificial intelligence, advanced digital infrastructure, and new technology.

Emphasizing that developing and least developed countries should also be able to benefit from the knowledge, experience, and resources achieved by developed countries in digital technology, he expressed the view that leading countries like Estonia should play a more active role through the International Telecommunication Union to reduce the digital divide.

Communication Minister Dr. Timilsina stated that creating an environment where all countries and citizens of the world can equally utilize the opportunities created by technological development is a shared responsibility of international cooperation. On the occasion, Estonian Minister Pakosta expressed commitment to advancing mutual cooperation and partnership with Nepal in the fields of digital transformation and e-governance.

Noting that Estonia can exchange the experience and knowledge gained during the development of its digital governance system with Nepal, she stated that there are ample possibilities for cooperation between the two countries in areas of mutual interest. If cooperation between Nepal and Estonia can be expanded in the field of digital transformation, it is expected to contribute to enhancing the effectiveness of public service delivery, transparency in government processes, savings in administrative costs and time, and expansion of citizens’ access to services.