Submit your Article

Rampur Municipality in Palpa district of Lumbini province sounds good in terms of vocalizing the slogan of a city without sewerage system. However, the sewerage and waste management in the municipality remains awful about performance in the sanitation sector.

Mayor Raman Bahadur Thapa boasts of announcing the municipality as a sewage pipes free town and its beauty.  Thapa frequently announced in public forums and programs that the dignity of town was being it as a sewerage pipes free and clean city .

Contrary to the mayor’s claims, the waste management and environment perspectives are very pathetic in the city, said the local denizens. “Our elected representatives are jokers,” said Lok Nath Dhakal,  resident of Rampur-6.  “Their words and actions many times go just opposite, “ he added.

The waste generated from toilets and safety tanks are  connecting to streams and rivers merging to cultural and holy Kaligandaki River, said locals of densely populated Ward 5 and 6.

According to the municipal authority,  the municipality has some 42,000 people with 7,500 households in all of its 10 wards. The municipality owns seven vehicles in order to manage waste in the city.

The municipality allocates Rs 4m to Rs 5m for environment programs. Additionally, a similar amount of budget is allocated for the environment sector through ward programs.

The local body purchased 19 ropanis of land to develop a landfill site to dump waste at Ward 4. But the locals protested against it and the civil body  could not manage it. Now, it is dumping waste at different places in Ward 6. The local people are also opposing it due to the waste hazard and bad smells.

However, the local government has failed to segregate waste nor did it restrict throwing plastic waste in open places, farm lands, rivers,  forests and streams. “The municipality doesn’t care about serious issues but misuse of funds  and natural resources,” said Tulasi Ram Pokharel, resident of Ward 5.

The municipality even has not maintained to place dust bins in the public places, busy corners and crossroads.  “A few schools have  themselves managed to put trash bins,” said Krishna Thapa, chief of Forest,  Environment and Natural Disaster Management Section of Rampur Municipality. 

Thapa further said that they have not placed a single trash bin in the city. “We distribute fruits and other trees to protect the environment in the town,“ he added. “We have not done anything special in this sector though throwing wastes to water resources is a crime,” he admitted.

Plastic wastes, especially packets and bags, are discarded everywhere in public places, fields, farms, forests, mountains, and rivers across the country. However, no local government, which bears the primary responsibility for addressing this issue, has implemented the necessary measures to combat this environmental threat.

The problem of inorganic waste, including plastic pollution, poses a serious threat to farming, wildlife, aquatic life, and the environment in general. This issue is also contributing to climate change and environmental disasters in Nepal.

“No local body has taken serious steps to solve this problem, which endangers all of us and nature,” said officials from the environment section of the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration (MoFAGA). “Efforts to promote waste segregation at the household level have failed because local bodies have not enforced existing laws and regulations.”

The Waste Management Act of 2011 mandates the segregation, recycling, reuse, and management of waste as fundamental rights, akin to education and health. Despite this, local governments, which are primarily responsible for waste management, have done little to address the issue, with only a few exceptions.

A survey conducted in 58 municipalities of Nepal in 2012 found that the average municipal solid waste generation was 317 grams per capita per day, amounting to 1,435 tons daily or 524,000 tons annually. A 2019/20 baseline survey by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) of 271 municipalities revealed that only 12 (4.4 percent) used transfer stations for waste processing.

Additionally, 99 municipalities (36.5 percent) had waste management plans, while 57.2 percent did not. Among the surveyed municipalities, 114 (42.1 percent) used landfill sites, 117 (43.2 percent) did not, and 14.8 percent did not report about their landfill site status.

The CBS survey showed that inorganic waste collected by municipalities includes plastic, glass, rubber, metals, minerals, and other materials, all of which pose a significant environmental threat. Waste management responsibilities, including budget allocation and implementation, fall largely on local governments, as guided by the Local Government Operation Act of 2018. However, 94.8 percent of municipalities reported expecting funds from federal and provincial governments due to resource constraints.

Waste management in the 460 rural municipalities is chaotic, and the CBS survey does not cover these areas. Nepal has 753 local bodies, including six metropolitan cities, 11 sub-metropolitan cities, 276 municipalities, and 460 rural municipalities. Only a few local bodies, such as those in Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Birgunj, have made efforts to address waste problems and improve environmental health.

Local governments have the authority to ban plastic bags and prevent the indiscriminate disposal of plastic waste in public areas. “They could place trash bins in public spaces, markets, and other open areas and strictly enforce anti-littering regulations. However, little has been done to address this problem,” said Joint-Secretary Suman Dahal, chief of the federal affairs division at MoFAGA.

Many local bodies lack landfill sites and garbage trucks. Although 85.6 percent of municipalities reported having at least one means of waste transportation, rural municipalities have made no significant efforts to manage plastic waste.

The Nepal government has issued the National Climate Change Policy 2019, the Environmental Protection Act 2019, and the Sustainable Development Goals 2016-2030 to guide government bodies in reducing climate change impacts and developing a climate-resilient society. Despite this, neither the federal government nor local bodies have initiated measures to resolve urban and rural waste problems.

Effective waste management should include provisions for population, income, electricity, and communication infrastructure. Current practices focus on collection, transportation, and dumping, rather than treating waste as a fundamental environmental and health issue. Waste should be seen as a resource, but it is often recklessly discarded. Although the waste management laws provide a framework for proper waste management, it remains a significant challenge for many local bodies.

Many local governments use forest land for waste disposal, which is problematic, while others dispose of refuse haphazardly. Even municipalities in the Kathmandu Valley, such as Bhaktapur, Madhyapur Thimi, and Kirtipur, dump waste on riverbanks and public areas.

The government frequently shifts the responsibility for the Solid Waste Management and Resource Mobilization Centre between MoFAGA and the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD), creating confusion about waste management oversight. Amidst numerous waste management laws, the MoUD is finalizing a new waste management act.

Waste generation is expected to increase, presenting substantial challenges for the country’s current waste management mechanisms. It is high time the government developed effective waste handling procedures and strengthened institutional mechanisms to address solid waste management challenges.

Infographics

CBS Survey: Annual inorganic waste collection of all types (Metric tons)

Almost all local governments across Nepal operate without designated law officers, leading to frequent contradictions or violations of federal and provincial laws, undermining good governance. The absence of legal experts in local governments is a significant obstacle to advancing federalism.

Good governance in local bodies and the broader public sector involves delivering priorities, achieving objectives, behaving with integrity, and acting in the public interest while adhering to legal, regulatory, and government policy obligations.

Nepal has 753 local bodies, including six metropolitan cities, 11 sub-metropolitan cities, 276 municipalities, and 460 rural municipalities across 77 districts. Only a few, such as Kathmandu and Pokhara, have appointed law officers to ensure compliance with laws and regulations.

Although federal law does not mandate the appointment of law officers in local governments, the Local Government Operation Act 2074 BS (2017) provides a legal framework for local legislative, executive, and quasi-judicial practices. This act is based on Article 296 (1) of the Nepal Constitution of 2015, which aims to enhance local leadership and governance.

Despite this framework, most local governments, except for some metropolitan and sub-metropolitan cities, have not appointed law officers, according to the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration (MoFAGA). Some local bodies have legal advisors, but they are not officially recognized as law officers.

In the absence of legal experts, local bodies have violated the constitution and central laws. “We are not obliged to obey the constitution or federal laws as we are empowered to make laws ourselves,” says Raman Bahadur Thapa, mayor of Rampur Municipality in Lumbini Province.

Local governments have the right to formulate supplementary laws, provided they do not contradict federal or provincial laws, according to high-ranking officials at MoFAGA. However, implementing national laws at the local level is problematic, resulting in the arbitrary increase of taxes and charges, contrary to the constitution and existing laws, depriving citizens of good governance and social justice.

Nepal faces significant challenges in delivering efficient services, maintaining law and order, and ensuring rights enshrined in the nation’s laws. These challenges include illiteracy and weak civil society, deeply rooted corruption, weak law enforcement, impunity, procedural administration, lack of public awareness, unstable government and policies, traditional mindsets, low accountability, and non-inclusive governance.

Advocate Ananta Raj Luitel says that local bodies have not adequately followed federal and provincial laws. “There is conflict between local and federal governments in exercising devolved power in the federal context. Local bodies are powerful with devolution but must still abide by national laws.”

Luitel suggests that appointing law officers in local authorities would minimize illegal activities and legal conflicts. 

The federal ministry overseeing local governments is concerned about local government operations. “They are autonomous and don’t consult us on major issues,” says Suman Dahal, joint-secretary at MoFAGA.

Local bodies can create quotas to appoint law officers, but many avoid doing so to circumvent legal conflicts. 

According to Dahal, some local bodies exceed their capacities and rights when addressing local issues. such as appointing staff beyond financial capacity and making decisions contrary to laws and the constitution.  “There are problems of some local bodies appointing local staff against their financial capacity, making decisions against law and constitution and not using their own rights enshrined in the constitution,” he says.

Key issues within local governments include bullying by political parties and elected representatives' lack of legal literacy. Elected officials often believe they can act without constraint.

Local governments have been found developing parallel laws that contradict central laws. For instance, Rampur Municipality in Palpa developed local road standards that conflicted with regional, provincial, and central road rules, imposing a local road standard of 14 meters width in roads that are meant to be 30 and 50 meters wide.

“It is a reckless and illegal practice,” says advocate Bal Bhadra Khanal. “They should be punished for such activities. Where laws are not followed, corruption and crime are likely to rise.”

According to the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), corruption complaints related to MoFAGA and local governments make up 33 percent of total complaints registered at the commission, with 22,868 complaints registered in the current fiscal year (2023/24).

Impunity and corruption are also prevalent in federal and provincial governments, contributing to widespread bad governance. “

If the federal government functions properly, lower governments will be obliged to maintain good governance,” says advocate Luitel.

The government has itself hamstrung the power of the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA). The anti-graft body has faced impediments when it comes to the investigation of corruption scandals involving powerful people. Transparency International’s (TI) 2022 report shows that Nepal stands at 110 out of 180, scoring only 34 out of 100 in the Corruption Perceptions Index. Somalia is the most corrupt country with lowest score of 12 while Denmark is the least corrupt with the highest score of 90. The Global Corruption Barometer of the TI in 2022 also mentions that 84 percent of Nepali people think that government corruption is a big problem in the country. It also states that 12 percent of public service users paid a bribe in the year of 2022. “It means Nepal is in a still worse condition in terms of corruption, failing to ensure good governance,” say governance experts. In its latest 2023 report, the Office of Auditor General (OAG) revealed that the government has an unaudited budget of Rs 587.33bn. The country had a total amount of Rs 483.59bn unaudited till the last year and Rs 119.77bn arrears was added this year alone. The OAG report clearly indicates rampant misuse of public funds in government bodies.  Observers say instances of corruption and power abuse naturally thrive when the CIAA, the constitutional anti-graft body, fails to do its job.  The commission’s lack of interest to look into the fake Bhutanese refugee scandal involving top politicians, their close aides and family members is a case in point.   “We are not probing into the case in full scale,” admints one CIAA official. “We are investigating the concerns of only government officials involved in the scandal.”  The CIAA has also not taken any initiative to look into the cases forwarded by the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament. Some of the prominent cases include irregularities concerning widebody plane purchase, security printing press procurement, Omni Group scandal involving purchase of medical equipment during the Covid pandemic, Baluwatar land grab case, and Ncell tax. While independent media and organizations like Transparency International call out the incompetence of Nepal’s anti-graft agency, the CIAA officials claim that they have been doing a stellar job.    “We have adequately probed into the cases registered with us and taken appropriate action against those found guilty,” says Bhola Dahal, spokesperson for the CIAA.  But despite Dahal’s tall claim, it is an open secret that the commission does not launch any probe into cases involving top politicians and bureaucrats.  Dr Dipesh Ghimire, assistant professor at Tribhuvan University, says the CIAA should not hesitate to do its job even if it is the prime minister who stands accused of wrongdoing.   “If corrupt ministers or officials are not punished, then the CIAA is not doing its job,” he adds. “It is usually the junior level officials who are often grilled on corruption cases.” The CIAA received 24,331 complaints of corruption in the fiscal year 2021/22. However, it only filed 131 corruption cases in the Special Court.  The commission rarely takes action in cases involving high profile people. Such complaints are either put on hold or shelved altogether. As per the 2021 records of the CIAA, it shelved 42 files concerning illegal and unrecognized earnings belonging to high-ranking government officials, claiming that the probe ended without sufficient evidence.  Observers say those in power, including politicians, lawmakers and ministers, have designed the anti-corruption law in a way that their misdeeds cannot be prosecuted.   The 2015 constitution has removed the power of the CIAA to probe into unethical activities including Cabinet decisions and policies. The commission is also ineligible to probe into corruption cases involving the judiciary, the Nepal Army and the private sector. The lawmakers who drafted the constitution did so despite knowing that policy-level corruption is far more detrimental and has overreaching effects.    “The prime minister and Parliament are the most responsible authorities to eradicate corruption in the country. But they are reluctant to do so,” says Dr Ghimire. Thakur Gaire, lawmaker from the CPN-UML, admits that the government itself is promoting corruption in the country. He says it has gone so far as to meddle in the affairs of the judiciary and the legislature  “The Cabinet of Nepal openly intervenes with the affairs of other government arms to fulfil the vested interests of some ministers,” says Gaire. “It doesn’t allow the CIAA, the National Human Rights Commission, and courts to run independently.” Corruption in Nepal is organized under political protection, as the top appointments in the CIAA are handpicked by political parties under shared quotas. “Such activities promote partisan interests to attack other parties and protect their own leaders and cadres even when they are accused of serious crimes,” adds the UML lawmaker.  Politically appointed anti-graft body’s leadership mostly works for the interests of those parties that appointed them, instead of performing their duty as per the spirit and mandate of the constitution. It is no wonder, even some former CIAA commissioners like Deep Basnyat and Raj Narayan Pathak have been accused of corruption.  “The appointments in the CIAA should be transparent, independent and unbiased,” says Purna Chandra Bhattarai, former government secretary. “Under the present situation, good governance is a far cry.” Infographics    CIAA issues-based data of cases filed at the Special Court

The global alarm of climate change in Nepal, as in South Asia region, has heavily impacted on monsoon withdrawal in the last two decades. Following the impact, experts suggest making a shift of paddy planting calendar by 10 days to two weeks delay. According to the data of the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHM), the data analysis accumulated since 1968 shows that the monsoon withdrawal was traced in October in 1986 for the first time in the recorded weather history of Nepal. Indira Kadel, chief at the Climate Analysis Section, DHM, said that monsoon withdrawal  remained delayed till October from 2004 to 2022. “Only two times after 2004, the monsoon withdrawal occurred in September, once on September 29 in 2006 and another time on 28 September 2012,” she said. Kadel further said that the delay in monsoon withdrawal heavily impacted paddy harvesting. “Now, we need to reschedule the paddy plantation by 10 days to two weeks.” According to the DHM, the monsoon onset time has shifted from June 10 to 13 while the withdrawal time moved from September 23 to October 2 on average. Farmers in Nepal mostly plant paddy saplings from June 15 to July 15 in the plains of Tarai, where around 51 percent of the total population lives. Paddy farming in Nepal mostly depends on the monsoon rains rather than a systematic irrigation system. The paddy plantation ends in July in the hilly region. The representative paddy farmers from the Tarai region faced loss of rice production in both spring and autumn harvesting periods due to erratic monsoon rains. Purna Maya Adhikari, 42, from Chitwan has maintained her life from agriculture. There was a time when she used to save up to Rs 1m annually. But in recent years, she has been suffering losses during both harvesting periods, owing to rains, floods and hailstorms. “Sometimes, we face floods, heavy rainfalls, which inundate our paddy fields, and sometimes drought causes difficulties,” she said. “Rainfall used to be regular and normal until some years ago, but not these days.” The paddy planted in early June-July yields in early October. But there have been incidents where  ready to harvest paddy have been widely damaged by freak rains. “It’s all because of climate change,” said Kadel, of the DHM. “In our records tracked since 1968, the monsoon withdrawal took place mostly in September before 2003.” Rameshwar Rimal, agro-meteorology scientist at the Agriculture Environment Research Division, Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC), said global warming has affected the agriculture sector. “Though we are yet to conduct a detailed study on varieties of rice and its production dynamics, general speculation based on monsoon patterns suggests that the paddy plantation calendar must be shifted forward by 9-10 days to avoid paddy damage during harvesting time.” Nabin Shrestha, 44, a resident of Chitwan, and his family have been involved in rice farming for the past 40 years. Like other farmers, his family too have been facing troubles in paddy harvesting due to monsoon disturbances. “We harvest paddy in the first two weeks of October, but the rains have disturbed us in recent years, affecting the quality and quantity of rice production,” he said. Climate change is triggered by carbon emissions, pollution, deforestation and chemical oriented agriculture farming. Though Nepal emits low carbon (14.31 metric tons in 2021), it lies between highest carbon emission producers China (12,466.320 metric tons in 2021, highest in the world) and India (2,648.78 metric tons in 201, third highest in the world, following the US). Climate change concern for Nepal is a cross border problem. It's the regional concern, said Dr Abid Hussain, senior economist and food systems specialist at International Center for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). “Climate change affects the sowing period of crops as well as the harvesting calendar. Adaptation processes must be changed as per climate change impacts.” The Nepal government has few policies on climate change and its mitigation, and they too are largely unimplemented. The Ministry of Forest and Environment, the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development are the key stakeholders that should be working on climate change issues. However, no ministry has translated the policies into action. The government officials themselves admit to this.  “Implementation part is less effective,” said Buddhi Sagar Paudel, division chief at the Climate Change Division at the Ministry of Forest and Environment. Climate change can cause droughts, floods, freak rainfalls and landslides, damaging human lives, productive lands, forests, and properties worth billions. Nepal has more than 6,000 rivers and streams, which constitute a total length of about 45,000 km, as per the government records. According to the temperature data recorded by the DHM between 1971 and 2014, the annual temperature rise remains 0.056 degrees Celsius on average. “Moreover, we witnessed an unusual heat wave in the eastern Tarai districts this May,” said Kadel. According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Authority (NDRRMC), 876 people died of floods in the last 12 years. In the same period, 563 people disappeared and 209 people got injured. Similarly, the NDRRMC record shows that 1,483 people lost their lives in the landslides, 347 disappeared and 1,224 injured. Likewise, 126 people were killed by the heavy rainfalls, two disappeared and 336 injured. A lowest estimate of properties worth NRs 20 billion was damaged by monsoon disaster during the last 12 years. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, Nepal faced a loss of about one million metric tons of ready to harvest paddy due to October rains in 2021. Similar damage recurred in 2022, owing to the freak rain in October. The country witnessed a severe drought in the plain areas of Tarai in 2006, causing decrease in paddy production. The economic cost attributable from climate hazards disasters is 80 percent owing to water related events, the Ministry of Forest and Environment (MoFE) report in 2018 revealed. Climate change impact on agriculture sector including drought affects 10 to 30 percent loss in its productivity, MoFE report 2021 said. The same report stated that average economic loss from climate induced disasters is over NRs 2,778million every year. Since 1993, the frequency of flash floods has increased rapidly, minimizing the gap years between two flash floods. In 1993, around 60,000 hectares of agricultural land was inundated and 67 irrigation schemes were washed away in central Nepal. Following this, other such floods occurred in 2007, 2008 (two times), 2012, 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2022. The Asian Development Bank reported that Nepal lost one million hectares of cropland in the last 41 years due to floods. The Ministry of Science and Technology, and Environment in 2014 estimated the annual economic cost for climate change with additional 2-3 percent of GDP by 2050. However, the government has done nothing more than formulating policies on climate change. “Climate financing in the country is very poor,” said Bishnu Hari Devkota, senior agro economy expert at the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development.  “We have developed nine projects worth NRs 11.2bn related to climate change to be executed by 2050, but these projects have not progressed due to the financial crunch.”

The monsoon season is just three weeks away, and the government is yet to take the measures to prevent and respond to potential disasters. According to the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHM), the pre-monsoon period rains will begin in approximately two weeks. Typically, the monsoon season begins in the second week of June and lasts until September. The Terai region, which includes 22 districts, is highly susceptible to floods, while the hilly districts are vulnerable to landslides. However, the government lacks specific records regarding the presence of children and elderly individuals in the flood-prone areas of the country. The National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Authority (NDRRMA), the designated agency responsible for addressing natural disasters, has not yet formulated concrete plans to effectively handle the monsoon-induced disasters. “We are busy holding meetings to prepare for disaster management,” says Dhruba Bahadur Khadka, the spokesperson for NDRRMA. Had the authority been more foresighted, such meetings should have been held months ago. Data compiled by the NDRRMA shows that over the course of the past 12 years, floods have claimed the lives of 876 people, with an additional 563 reported missing and 209 injured. Similarly, landslides have resulted in the loss of 1,483 lives, with 347 people still missing and 1,224 others injured. Additionally, heavy rainfall has caused the death of 126 individuals, while two people remain unaccounted for, and 336 have been injured. The monetary damage caused by the monsoon disasters over the past 12 years is estimated to be Rs 20bn. Officials at the Ministry of Home Affairs acknowledge that despite witnessing significant loss of lives and properties, their preparations for monsoon disasters have remained poor. “We have been unable to effectively mitigate the impact of these disasters due to inadequate resources and management,” says an official at the ministry. Jitendra Basnet, joint secretary and spokesperson for the ministry, says the ministry has recently conducted coordination meetings with stakeholders to prepare for the upcoming monsoon season. “We are in the process of formulating plans,” he says. “We have directed the Nepal Police and the Armed Police Force to deploy personnel across all districts during emergencies. However, we face limitations in terms of budget, resources, and equipment.” According to Basnet, the NDRRMA will undertake all necessary tasks in this regard. Khadka, the spokesperson for NDRRMA, says they are currently gathering information regarding the availability of equipment such as tents, ambulances, ropes, and other necessary resources in districts and local bodies. “We have recently acquired eight mass-casualty ambulances. We have allocated one to each province and one to the federal government,” he says. “We have also trained 25 divers to conduct search and rescue.” The government has yet to initiate a hazard mapping survey to gather data on land elevation, geological structure, house construction, and the number of children and elderly individuals residing in vulnerable areas. “Although we had planned to conduct the survey at 134 local units, we have only managed to do so in about a dozen local units so far,” adds Khadka. Meanwhile, the NDRRMA has implemented an audio-visual notification warning system for floods in six districts: Banke, Bardiya, Kailali, Kanchanpur, Rautahat, and Saptari. “This siren system, equipped with audio-visual flood warnings, has been installed at 34 locations across 13 local units in these six districts,” says Rajendra Sharma, coordinator of technical team at the NDRRMA. The NDRRMA officials acknowledge that the current preparations are not sufficiently robust to effectively address the risks posed by monsoon disasters. They say that local bodies would provide support by utilizing public buildings as temporary shelters during emergencies. Furthermore, a new regulation has been introduced in the current fiscal year, requiring districts to maintain a minimum balance in their disaster management fund. According to the regulation, a mountainous district should have a minimum of Rs 1.5m in its disaster management fund, a hilly district should have Rs 2m, and a Terai district should have Rs 2.5m. However, the NDRRMA has not been monitoring whether the districts have been maintaining the disaster funds. The impact of rain-related disasters extends to agriculture, livestock, and public infrastructure. The NDRRMA suggests that the federal government should contribute 50-60 percent to the disaster management budget, while provinces can provide 30 percent and  local units can chip in 10-20 percent. Currently, the government provides compensation of Rs 10,000-20,000 per affected household in flood-affected areas and Rs 200,000 per deceased individual. However, in cases of multiple deaths within the same family, only Rs 100,000 is provided for the second or subsequent deaths. The Ministry of Home Affairs categorizes disaster management into four main areas: risk reduction, rescue operations, relief distribution, and reconstruction. Multiple ministries, organizations, and development partners are involved in these efforts. The clusters responsible for disaster management include ministries such as Agriculture and Land Development, Health and Population, Water Supply, Education, Science and Technology, Women, Children and Senior Citizens, Urban Development, Home Affairs, Federal Affairs and General Administration, and Communication and Information Technology. Moreover, development partners and organizations, such as FAO, WFP, WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, NRCS/IFRC, IOM, UNDP, and RCO, play co-leading roles in coordinating and assisting with disaster management initiatives. The NDRRMA has a fund of Rs 1bn disbursed from the Prime Minister’s Fund for Natural Disaster Rescue and Relief. However, the NDRRMA did not provide the details of expenses on reconstruction, risk reduction and relief distribution. The development partners had pledged to provide Rs 1.51bn in grants last year, but only Rs 960m was actually released. “The government had provided us with Rs 95m. Of the amount, Rs 40m was spent on salaries while Rs 50m was disbursed as grants for reconstruction,” says Khadka. The government has proposed a budget ceiling of Rs 194.04m for the NDRRMA in the upcoming fiscal year. However, officials express concerns that the proposed ceiling is inadequate to effectively address the plans for disaster mitigation and development. The NDRRMA has formulated the Disaster Risk Reduction National Strategic Workplan for the period 2018-2030. Despite having comprehensive plans, the lack of sufficient funding hinders the authority’s ability to tackle natural disasters effectively. Anil Pokharel, the CEO of NDRRMA, says there is a significant shortfall in funds for disaster risk reduction measures, which are crucial in mitigating disasters. “We have just begun planning for disaster risk reduction due to the prevailing financial crisis. An estimated $600m is required for the development of pre-information systems, and an additional $200m is needed for preparedness measures by the year 2030,” he says.