Madhes Province contributes between 22 to 25 percent to Nepal’s overall food security and possesses immense potential in agriculture. Despite its fertile land and favorable conditions, the sector remains neglected due to low investment and a lack of governmental priority. The province boasts 574,360 hectares of cultivable land, with 83 percent of it already irrigated. However, progress has been stifled by the limited availability of improved seeds, irregular supply of fertilizers, and the failure to modernize and adopt agricultural technologies.
In the fiscal year 2024/25, the Madhes Province Government allocated only five percent of its total budget to agriculture. Out of the total provincial budget of over Rs 43.89bn, just Rs 2.57bn was allocated to the Ministry of Land Management and Agricultural Cooperatives. Even more concerning, with only a month left in the fiscal year, just 16 percent of the ministry’s budget had been spent. “Madhes Province is exceptionally fertile and has the potential to become the country’s food bank, but the government has not prioritized agriculture, and therefore, we’ve failed to achieve the desired results,” says Umesh Dahal, Secretary at the ministry. He adds that while infrastructure projects receive significant attention and funding, agriculture continues to be sidelined, which prevents the sector from advancing.
Although Madhes accounts for 19.2 percent of Nepal’s total agricultural output, efforts toward mechanization remain weak. The provincial government has announced plans to integrate agriculture more prominently into the fiscal year 2025/26 policy framework. Initiatives such as the ‘Madhes Feeds the Country Campaign’, ‘Farmer’s Garden, Volunteer’s Umbrella’, and ‘Your Garden, Madhes’s Prosperity’ aim to transform the sector. The government has also proposed programs like ‘one district, one cold storage’ and ‘one district, one custom hiring center’, along with continued efforts toward agricultural electrification and processing of farm produce.
However, these plans risk remaining mere slogans if not backed by adequate budget and implementation strategies. Provincial Assembly Member Mala Raya voices her skepticism, stating, “The government has brought many slogans in the agricultural sector, but I don’t think there’s a clear plan to implement them meaningfully—it’s just a bunch of talk.”
Madhes Province already plays a major role in producing key crops and holds potential to reduce Nepal’s dependency on imports. The province produces 5,486,472 tons of paddy annually across 1,447,789 hectares, contributing 25 percent to national production. With Nepal requiring 6,042,341 tons of rice annually and importing 555,839 tons, Madhes could significantly cut import dependency by expanding Chaite rice cultivation on an additional 189,000 hectares.
Similarly, maize is cultivated on 940,256 hectares in the province, producing 2,976,490 tons and contributing 6.4 percent to national output. Given Nepal’s annual maize demand of 3.41m tons and imports totaling 435,217 tons, Madhes has the potential to expand maize farming by 87,000 hectares to meet domestic needs.
Wheat is grown across 697,762 hectares, yielding 298,462 tons—32 percent of the country’s total production. With a national demand of 2.75m tons and imports of over 654,000 tons, Madhes could further increase wheat production to enhance self-sufficiency.
Mango farming is another area of strength. Cultivated on 42,773 hectares, mangoes from Madhes account for 5,120,055 tons, contributing 77 percent to national production. Sugarcane, grown on 62,833 hectares, yields 3,130,109 tons—66 percent of total output. Oilseed crops cover 2.44m hectares, producing 2.74m tons and contributing 22 percent nationally. Pulses are grown over 2.96m hectares, with a total production of 3.44m tons, or 37 percent of the country’s output.
Bananas are cultivated on 24,286 hectares, yielding 88,745 tons—21 percent of national production. The province is also a major contributor to fish farming, producing 82,261 tons from 14,745 hectares, which accounts for 57 percent of Nepal’s total fish production. However, despite these strengths, Madhes lags in dairy production, contributing only 18 percent (4,758,700 tons) to the national total.
While Madhes Province remains a cornerstone of Nepal’s agricultural output, without strategic investment, proper implementation, and prioritization by the government, its true potential may remain unrealized.
