The militant group’s news agency AMAQ released a bulletin on April 23, 2019, which said that the attacks were carried out by the Islamic State’s fighters.

Earlier, the Sri Lankan government has said that the recent bombings were carried out in response to the deadly attack killing at least 50 people last month at mosques in New Zealand. It also stated that two extremists groups may have been involved in the bombings, not just one.

Suspected Islamic State Suicide Bomber Sri Lanka Attack

The statement shared across the group’s chat rooms on Telegram app said that the bombings targeted Christians, as well as those countries’ citizens who were part of the coalition formed against the Islamic State.

Later on Tuesday, the news agency also published a video with eight men, pledging allegiance to Abu Bakral-Baghdadi, ISIS leader. All men were unidentifiable (as they had masks), except for one whom Sri Lankan officials recognized as the leader of the group carrying out the bombings.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said that several countries are supporting the investigation on the bombings. US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Alaina B Teplitz said that the FBI has also joined the investigation.

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The Tourism Toastmasters Club (TTC) – Kathmandu conducted its first ‘new team meet’ after the formation of the Executive Committee in the capital city on July 10, 2018.

The meet kicked off with a speech by Guest Speaker US Ambassador to Nepal H.E. Alaina B Teplitz, who spoke of her firsthand experience of exploring the nooks and corners of Nepal.

She remembered how spell-bound she was with the hospitality of the locals and the Himalayan country’s natural beauty.

In the course of her conversation, Teplitz also touched upon the country’s untapped tourism potential and the need to take care of the basic infrastructural challenges.

She emphasized on the role of effective communication and able leadership in driving sustainable economic growth in Nepal.

“The clubs like Tourism Toastmasters can help more professionals to get ready in catering quality experience and exploring viable source market. With collective effort of its stakeholders and addressing access issues, Nepal Government’s target of 2 million tourists by 2020 will be an achievable dream” adds Teplitz.

Talks By Other Toastmaster Representatives
Apart from Teplitz, DTM Suman Shakya and TM Shiva Raj Thapa made featured speeches at the event. Under the leadership of TM Ravindra Pradhan, a team of evaluators demonstrated why Toastmasters club is different from the rest, highlighting key improvement areas.

Division Director, DTM Ranjit Acharya talked about the Toastmasters mission in Nepal, at the meet.

 “By the number and value of meeting, it was an unprecedented one attended by overwhelming number of members from various Toastmasters club and guests equally” said TM Bhanu Dawadi an Area Director who witnessed the event.

Pankaj Acharya from Four Seasons Travel & Tours was appointed as TTC President while Manoj Basnet and Sarik Bogati as Vice Presidents Education and Membership, respectively.

TM Pankaj ended the program with a vote of thanks, where he spoke about why one should join Toastmaster and called on all the related stakeholders to work for making an impact rather than grabbing attention.

He also talked about the role of effective communication in opening up new gateways for the ever-changing tourism industry.

About Toastmasters:

The Kathmandu Tourism Toastmaster Club is a mission of the Toastmasters International headquartered in the US.

The club came into inception with the objective of bringing Tourism professionals and entrepreneurs together to develop communication and leadership skills in October 2017.

True to its purpose, TTC has proved to be a stage for thought leaders and go-getters with a strong yearning to learn and shine.

The first club Toastmasters Kathmandu was started by UN expats 25 years ago and is now a part of District 41 that covers Bangladesh, Bhutan and North India.

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The master’s degree program, a joint initiative of KU and the Institute for Integrated Development Studies in Dhulikhel, will be incorporated in humanities, management and law departments, effective from 2019. 

Speaking at the launch event, experts from various backgrounds expressed their opinions on the proposed program. 

In his address, Dr Mohan Man Sainju, former Vice-chairman of Nepal Planning Commission (NPC), said the local resources should be used accordingly and courses of this kind engage youth in policy making. 

Meanwhile, former Health Minister Gagan Thapa said there has been a need for interdisciplinary approach in social sciences and hoped that the program would fill the existing gaps and produce better policy makers to the nation.   

The local governments are in dire need of manpower with knowledge of public policy making. Local bodies should encourage their employees to study public policy, says Gagan Thapa. 

Lauding the initiative, the US Ambassador to Nepal Alaina B Teplitz also opined that the initiative would improve public policy dialogue in the country.  

 “Good public policy helps leaders to take better decisions,” she said, adding improving governance would is also an art that determines the country’s future. 

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The United States Ambassador to Nepal Alaina B Teplitz said this in her address at a monthly lecture and policy discussion series on US-Nepal bilateral relationship: The Next 70 Years and Beyond, held in Kathmandu on December 19, 2017.

Collaborative partnership towards ensuring transparency and accountability, and successful inclusion of women and marginalized communities are among other key areas of cooperation for both the nations in the future, Alaina added.

Stating that both the nations have already started redesigning their development strategies, she called on the Government of Nepal to ensure an investor-friendly environment to attract more investment.

In this regard, she urged the new Nepali Government, led by the Communist Alliance, to introduce investor-friendly foreign investment bill and agro-business promotion bill to ensure Nepal’s overall economic development.

The former Nepali Ambassador to US Shankar Sharma highlighted US’ potential in tourism, among other areas, while also highlighting Nepal’s strength in export of goods to US.

“Although China and India are set to emerge as the world’s largest economies in coming years, the position of US will be more valuable for Nepal even in the days to come,” read Shankar’s official statement.

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