Government brings new urban policy to address development challenges

 

The new urban policy has assigned responsibilities for urban development to the federal, provincial and local governments under the federal system. 

The government introduced National Urban Policy, 2024, last week, realizing that the 17-year-old policy would be inadequate to address recent social, political and economic developments in the country. 

While the policy is not a law, it serves as a guiding framework for drafting legislation, with a focus on expanding access to resilient urban infrastructure. The new policy reflects Nepal’s commitment to achieving sustainable urban development in line with global frameworks such as the SDGs, the Paris Agreement, and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.

The previous policy of 2007 defined a city based on a minimum population of 5,000, a population density of 10 persons per hectare and at least 50 percent of the population engaged in non-agricultural activities. This contrasted with the standards of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) which says urban centers should have at least 50,000 residents and a density of 1,500 people per square kilometer. Likewise, semi-urban centers require at least 3,000 residents and densities between 300–1,500 people per square kilometer.

The new policy aims to coordinate with stakeholders for planning, regulation and management of urban areas through appropriate measures to expand access to resilient urban infrastructure. It targets improving urban infrastructure indicators in urban centers by at least 15 percent on average by 2036. The policy envisages developing an advanced national urban system, expanding access to resilient urban infrastructure, maximum utilization of resources for systematic urban development, and enhancing inter-sectoral coordination and urban governance to meet its objectives.

Likewise, prioritized resource mobilization across all government tiers, leveraging alternative financial tools, promoting partnerships with private and cooperative sectors, and integrating informal economic activities into urban development are the major strategies that the policy has outlined to meet its objectives.

As per the new policy, urban development comes under the federal framework, with responsibilities divided among the federal, provincial, and local governments. The federal government is tasked with formulating national policies, laws and standards to ensure consistency and uniformity in urban growth across the country. This includes the scientific classification of cities and the establishment of minimum service benchmarks, which serve as a foundation for equitable and sustainable urbanisation.  Development of strategic urban infrastructure and the promotion of green and climate-resilient technologies to mitigate the impacts of climate change is also the responsibility of the federal government.

Likewise, provincial and local governments must implement federal policies within their jurisdictions. Ensuring equitable access to infrastructure and services across urban centers and addressing urban challenges through sustainable planning and resource mobilisation are the key responsibilities of the provincial and local governments.

Urbanization challenges

Nepal has witnessed rapid urbanization driven by migration from rural areas. While there were only 58 municipalities in 2011, the number has surged to 293 following state restructuring. As per the 2021 census, 66.01 percent of the population resides in municipalities, with urban population density at 27.07 percent and peri-urban population at 39.75 percent. 

However, there are significant inequalities in infrastructure and services among municipalities, with urban infrastructure indices varying significantly. Kathmandu Metropolitan City, for example, scores 0.91 in Urban Infrastructure Condition index, while Gulariya Municipality of Bardiya scores only 0.16. The scarcity of open spaces in urban areas—only 0.48 percent in Kathmandu and 0.06 percent in Lalitpur—further highlights the lack of essential social infrastructure in Nepal’s urban centers. Likewise, planned land development contributes just six percent of the total residential plots supplied. These disparities have spurred the need for a comprehensive urban system that includes market centers, small and medium cities, and larger urban economic hubs.

Migration has been identified as a major driver of urbanization. The 2021 census shows negative population growth in 34 hill districts, while 54 percent of the population resides in Tara region which has 17 percent of the country’s land area. This has created challenges like inadequate services, urban poverty, unemployment, and unplanned settlements, with limited accessibility for children, elderly and persons with disabilities.

Since the National Urban Policy of 2007 was brought before the country adopted the federal setup, it lacked a comprehensive framework for urban development across three tiers of government. Since challenges such as unmanaged urbanization, environmental degradation, insufficient services, and the destruction of heritage and green spaces hindered Nepal from fully benefiting from urbanization, the government realized the need to bring a new policy.

The new policy seeks to address these gaps by balancing urban structure, enhancing governance, and fostering partnerships among federal, provincial and local governments. It also emphasizes strategic investments in urban infrastructure to make cities more attractive and interconnected.