**Check against delivery
Good evening ladies and gentlemen.
Thank you for the opportunity to be with you here this evening.
I would like to particularly acknowledge the Nepalese Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation, Ms Hisila Yami and thank His Excellency, the Ambassador of Nepal to Australia, Mr Yohandra Dhakal for hosting this dinner.
Firstly, I would like to congratulate Nepal on the first anniversary of the Constituent Assembly elections held on 10 April last year.
Australia sent a delegation to observe the elections, and so we are particularly pleased to see this milestone reached.
Nepal has been undergoing a process of political transformation which Australia and the broader international community have been watching with great interest.
The Australian Government wishes Nepal all success as your continued stability is important to the overall security of South Asia.
We hope you continue to enjoy progress on the important tasks of drafting a new constitution and integration within the armed forces.
The restoration of law and order throughout Nepal will be important for the recovery of the economy, including the tourism sector.
Australia's growing relationship with Nepal is representative of our increasing engagement in the South Asia region.
This is why I am pleased that Australia has been invited to become an observer at the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation and will be attending its first Summit as an observer later this year or early next year.
I also look forward to the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between our two countries in 2010. We will work with Nepal on ways in which we can mark this important anniversary.
I welcome the recent establishment of the Australia-Nepal Parliamentary Friendship Group, which will provide a forum to explore further cooperation between our two countries.
In addition to the Tourism portfolio, I am also Australia's Minister for Resources and Energy.
This is why it is with particular interest that I have been following developments of the US$1.6billion West Seti hydroelectric project, in which Australia's Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation is playing an important role.
I hope this project will be both a major enhancement of Nepal's infrastructure and a strong link in our bilateral ties.
More broadly - tourism is, and will remain, a key aspect of the bilateral relationship between Australia and Nepal.
Tourism is an industry which is essential to the prosperity of Australia. It contributes around 3.7 per cent of our Gross Domestic Product, with international tourism accounting for around 25 per cent of Australia's Tourism.
It is our biggest services export industry and its importance cannot be understated.
I am sure that Minister Yami shares my commitment to tourism as she was so willing to demonstrate with her New Year bungee jump to promote adventure sports in her country!
Although you (Yami), have set a precedent which I'm not sure too many other Tourism Ministers would be prepared to follow …
Nepal has always been a popular adventure tourism destination for Australians, as we are well known for our love of the great outdoors.
The Himalayas offer world famous landscapes and activities which is why many Australian travellers are drawn to your country.
And likewise, we would like to encourage increasing numbers of Nepalese to visit Australia.
More than 8,500 Australian tourists visited Nepal last year. This was a 54 per cent increase on the previous year and shows the potential to further develop tourism between our nations.
Likewise, it is also pleasing that almost 4,000 Nepalese tourists visited Australia in 2008, a 21 per cent increase on 2007.
There is a solid foundation for fostering further tourism between Australia and Nepal.
However, there is no denying that tourism has been affected by the global economic downturn.
Consistent with global trends, Australian international visitor arrivals fell 1.0 per cent in 2008.
The Australian economy has fared reasonably well in comparison to other economies, and in recent times the Australian dollar has fallen against most of Australia's main inbound tourism market currencies.
This improves Australia's price competitiveness in the international tourism market.
This is why I welcome this visit from Minister Yami to continue the bilateral dialogue between Australia and Nepal.
Yet it is only possible to sustain international tourism in the current climate if our respective industries can offer a high level of service and quality attractions.
It is essential that our respective tourism industries continue to innovate and thrive.
The sad fact is that International visitor arrivals to Australia are forecast to fall 4.1 per cent in 2009 and tourism is operating in a highly-competitive environment.
We must ensure that our tourism industries remain competitive.
The Australian Government is committed to working with the tourism industry to develop the necessary skills and infrastructure to survive in the current economic climate.
We have a vision to build an industry which is able to meet the demands of the international tourism market both now and in the future.
Only this week, I launched a new competitive program - TQUAL Grants.
This strategic investment seeks to increase quality and support innovation in the Australian Tourism Industry.
It is a program which provides support to businesses and regions which take the initiative to succeed in an increasingly competitive market.
Our countries enjoy a strong relationship, which I look forward to celebrating when we mark the half century of diplomatic relations next year.
I would once again like to thank His Excellency the Ambassador of Nepal, Mr Yohendra Dhakal, and the Embassy and Consulate of Nepal for hosting this dinner and wish you all a happy and prosperous new year.
Thank you.