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The Ministry of Finance has begun the preparations for the transition strategy to be adopted when Nepal is upgraded from the Least Developed Country Group to a Developing Country status.

How does the World Bank determine interest rates?

If we think that the World Bank is a global central bank that determines interest rates for the world, that would be wrong. There is no global currency, so there is no global central bank to manage it and determine interest rates for it. The Washington, DC-based World Bank is a global financial assistance institution with membership of about 200 countries, whose objective is to carry out various activities, including poverty alleviation, by providing funds for capital investment.

Loan from the World Bank

The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to countries around the world for capital projects. It consists of two institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), and the International Development Association (IDA). The World Bank is a component of the World Bank Group. The IBRD provides assistance to middle-income and poor but creditworthy countries, and it also acts as an umbrella for more specialized agencies under the World Bank.

The IBRD was the original arm of the World Bank responsible for the reconstruction of post-war Europe. Before becoming a member of its affiliated institutions (the International Finance Corporation, the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, and the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes), a country must be a member of the IBRD. As a least developed country, Nepal has long been receiving large amounts of official development assistance (ODA) and grants. This aid used to be free or at very low interest rates (concessional loans). Now, with the upgrade, the form of this assistance is likely to change dramatically.

This simply means that as a poor country, the money that is available at free or very low interest rates will now decrease. The interest rate on loans is likely to increase, meaning that the money needed for development may have to be paid at higher interest rates than before. Nepal’s public debt increased by Rs 231.8bn in the last fiscal year. Nepal’s public debt is now Rs 264.9bn. Of this, Rs 138.2bn is foreign debt. According to public data, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank contribute 80 percent to Nepal’s development assistance.

As of June 2024, the government’s outstanding public debt was Rs 243.8bn. During this period, the appreciation of the US dollar against the Nepalese currency has been adding additional burden to public debt. There is also concern that this may increase Nepal's external debt burden. Similarly, Nepal will lose its access to special funds such as the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF). These funds have been playing an important role in climate change adaptation and various development projects. Now, the reduced availability of these funds is likely to make it more difficult for Nepal to raise financial resources for climate risk reduction and other development programs.

The reduction in the availability of grants and concessional loans will also put Nepal under increasing pressure to finance projects in key social sectors such as infrastructure development, education and health. As development partners are changing their development assistance policies, Nepal needs to find new sources of finance for its development. The International Development Association provides loans to the world’s poorest countries.

In Nepal, the World Bank has been providing loans to Nepal at an interest rate of 0.75 percent, but the Ministry of Finance recently has announced that it has now increased it to 1.5 percent. As the day of Nepal’s graduation from LDC is approaching, the possibility that the World Bank may have increased the interest rate on loans it provides cannot be ruled out. It is worth noting that Nepal is scheduled to formally graduate from LDC status in 2026. This is an initial indication that its impact is starting to be seen in the interest rate that Nepal has to pay on its foreign debt.

In this context, it seems that the World Bank has increased the interest rate on loans it has been providing to Nepal with effect from this July. The Asian Development Bank has also been charging 1.5 percent interest. However, this is considered a concessional loan. The World Bank has been charging the lowest interest rate on loans among development partners.

After the upgrade, loans will be available from donors only at a relatively high interest rate and this may put Nepal in the grip of additional debt, and it has come to light that the World Bank has increased the interest rate.

In addition, it has been made public that the World Bank has not only increased the interest rate but also reduced the loan repayment period. Nepal used to take loans to repay within 40 years. Now, it is said that the maturity period of the loan has also been reduced from 24 to 30 years by adding six more years.

Earlier, such periods were of two types, 40 and 38 years. Now, the Ministry of Finance has stated that it has been made for 30 years. It is also necessary to move forward in coordination with all parties, making the transitional strategy relevant to the time. Although it is estimated that the upgrade will have positive effects on Nepal's development and commercial investment, contribute to the development of new trade and economic partnerships, build a sustainable development, build a national image, and increase credibility, it is not that easy.

It is also expected to have an impact on sectors such as commodity exports, prices, and employment. Nepal is scheduled to graduate from LDC to developing country status in November 2026.

Key challenges and measures

After the upgrade, Nepal will lose some of the special benefits of LDC status, such as preferential market access for goods and services, flexibility in implementing World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, international development measures, and special financing. Nepal has embarked on a new journey after meeting the per capita Gross National Income (GNI) criteria and qualifying for development from a LDC. The United Nations Committee for Development Policy (UN CDP) had previously recommended the Himalayan nation for upgrade in its final assessment.

Graduation for Nepal is an important step towards realizing the national aspiration of a prosperous and developed Nepal. Nepal will continue to access all LDCs-specific assistance measures by 2026. Apart from Nepal, Bangladesh and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic have also been recommended for graduation by the CDP, which has been good for the country. ‘Developing’ is a relative term, a stage like a work in progress—a stage before something reaches its final state. Nepal in 2025  is certainly more developed than Nepal in 2010, which was more developed than Nepal in 2000. But looking at the global average trend, Nepal has not been able to keep pace with the development happening around the world.

So can Nepal be considered developing? No, not when compared to other countries, but when compared to Nepal in previous years. The majority of Nepalis are only concerned with survival, development is a long way off. It is necessary to dispel the illusion that the Nepali people as a society are still very uneducated, very deeply ‘superstitious’, rarely know the meaning of ‘human rights’ and have not yet reached the complexity and sophistication in thinking required to compete with other developing countries of the world.

Nepal must make proper use of the available resources. Peace and security must be maintained in the country. Since Nepal can commercially produce up to 43 thousand megawatts of hydropower, it should try to produce as much hydropower as possible from fast-flowing rivers. There is a risk of reversal at every graduation, mainly due to outflow shocks such as the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, climate-induced disasters, and trade shocks, which are also major threats to the Nepalese economy.

Similarly, Nepal presents a unique case as it is the first country to be upgraded from the LDC category without meeting the Gross National Income (GNI) criteria. Due to the persistence of many problems, including low standards, it faces the difficult task of achieving sustainable economic growth to progress from the current low-middle income country to a high-income country. There are several economic implications of the upgrade. After upgrade, Nepal will lose some of the special benefits that come with LDC status, such as preferential market access for goods and services, flexibility in implementing WTO rules, international development measures, and special financing.

Although Nepal will be eligible for the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) available to developing countries, it is much less generous than the duty-free, quota-free market access that many advanced economies offer to LDCs. Raising the necessary financial resources for the investments needed to put LDCs on a rapid growth path has been a major challenge in implementing the Doha Development Agenda, adopted by the United Nations to provide differential treatment that is closely aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals.

In addition, Nepal will lose access to Aid for Trade (AfT) under the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) five years after upgrade.

Additionally, once a country graduates from the Least Developed Country (LDC) category, the minimum grant element of Official Development Assistance (ODA) loans decreases until it is classified as a Low Income Country (LIC); however, Nepal has also become a ‘Low-Middle Income Country’ (LMIC), due to which the lending conditions have become relatively tighter. That being so, the coming years will be a period of both opportunities and challenges for Nepal to navigate its way from a LDC to a developing middle-income country. Consequently, a smooth, irreversible, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable transition is critical for an upgrade.

The country needs to make serious efforts towards poverty alleviation to develop its productive capacity, expand its export base, diversify its economy, and sustain its tertiary education levels in the long term.   Engaging the private sector, civil society, and the international community is equally important as it pursues the Sustainable Graduates agenda. To foster innovation, job creation and economic diversification, it is important to provide incentives and technical support to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).

This support could include e-commerce platforms, digitally enabled green innovations, and tools for digital and financial literacy. Public-Private Partnerships (PPP): Encouraging public-private partnerships, especially in infrastructure development, will leverage the capabilities of the private sector to deliver large projects.

The 7th meeting of Nepal-India Boundary Working Group (BWG) concluded in India by adopting updated modalities for the inspection, repair and maintenance of boundary pillars along the Nepal and India boundary.

The meeting concluded on Tuesday also agreed on the need to adopt new technologies in the domain of survey and mapping in order to make the work of the BWG and its associated mechanisms more efficient, according to a press release issued by the Foreign Ministry.

The Nepali delegation was led by Director General, Department of Survey, Prakash Joshi, and the Indian delegation by Surveyor General of India, Shri Hitesh Kumar S. Makwana.

The meeting reviewed the implementation of the outcomes of the 6th BWG meeting held in August 2019 in Dehradun as well as the progress of works of the 11th Survey Officials’ Committee (SOC) meeting held in September 2019 in Dehradun. 

The meeting concluded with the signing of agreed minutes. Both sides agreed to hold the next meeting of the Survey Officials’ Committee (SOC) in Nepal in August 2025 and the next meeting of the BWG in Nepal at a mutually convenient date.

The BWG is a joint body constituted by the Governments of Nepal and India in 2014 to carry out works in the fields of construction, restoration and repair of boundary pillars and other technical tasks.

The International Tiger Day is being observed across the country by organizing various programs today to raise awareness in the community for the conservation of Royal Bengal tigers. 

This Day is observed on July 29 every year with an objective of spreading public awareness for Royal Bengal tiger conservation following the decision from the Tiger Summit of heads of state and government in St Petersburg of Russia in 2010.

The Ministry of Forest and Environment is observing the Global Tiger Day by organizing different programs.

As per the census carried out in 2022, the number of tigers had reached 355 in Nepal. Nepal has become successful in increasing the number of tigers than its commitment. 

In the Summit, Nepal had promised to double the population of tigers from 121. As per the tiger census-2009, the population of tigers was 121 in Nepal.

With the increasing number of tigers in Nepal, different issues including their management, reducing human-wildlife conflict and improving their habitat have become challenging. 

Likewise, debates have been initiated about the number of tigers and Nepal's tiger carrying capacity. Some experts argue that Nepal's tiger carrying capacity is around 400.  

The Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, National Trust for Nature Conservation, World Wildlife Fund and Geological Society of London are carrying out a study with the coordination of the Ministry of Forest on tiger carrying capacity of Nepal.

Nepal has been celebrating the Global Tiger Day since 2067 BS and conducting tiger census. 

Royal Bengal tigers are found in Nepal, India, China, Bhutan, Russia, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Laos.

The number of tigers in the globe was estimated to 100,000 till 1900.  It decreased to 3,200 in 2010. According to the World Wildlife Fund, the population of tigers reached 4,500 in 2022 due to conservation efforts from around the world.

A nation once deeply rooted in patriarchal traditions, Nepal continues to bear traces of the oppressive legacy. The influence can be seen in the male dominance in politics which fuels the perception that women are secondary players in leadership. Women in politics continue to face a pervasive narrative, rooted in historical stereotypes: men are meant to be strong leaders and women are supposed to be good supporters. Generalized instances of underperformance by women are frequently used to question the collective competence of women leaders. This fallacy not only reinforces irrelevant stereotypes but also disregards the reality that political efficacy is not determined by gender but by individual’s capability, dedication and output.

Renu Chand, a central committee member of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre), Member of the Constituent Assembly and current National Assembly member firmly rejects the narrative that women’s electoral losses reflect their incompetence. “Every male who gets a ticket to run for the election doesn’t win; the same should go for women; this is how election results work” says Chand, rejecting the narrative that women’s electoral losses reflect on their personal incompetence. She dismantles the flawed logic that equates electoral losses with weakness for a particular gender only. Chand’s words highlight the double standard that continues to define Nepal’s political landscape; the idea that women must constantly prove they belong, while men are allowed to fail without being labeled or consequence.

Chand further sheds light on the overlooked struggles of women in politics - their inherent multitasking abilities of balancing family and professional roles, showcasing their resilience. She mentions, “some may struggle due to various relevant reasons but it is inaccurate to brand all women in politics as incapable”. Selective criticism on the basis of gender is simply used as a tactic to uphold patriarchal norms and discourage women leaders from pursuing leadership roles. It works by amplifying the shortcomings while ignoring similar failings in men. This bias leads to the continuation of the stereotype that men are better suited for leadership. She recalls how, during Nepal’s civil war during 1995-2006, many women joined the movement and they fought hand in hand with men. “But as soon as the civil war ended, many women were sent back to households while men continued to pursue their political career” she adds.

Member of Parliament Roshan Karki, also a senior leader of National Democratic Party (RPP), highlights, “women are inherently more giving in nature and often sacrifice their career, particularly as mothers, wives and to support their families”. She points out that, “in families where men are involved in politics, women frequently step back to let their male counterparts advance. This self-sacrificing nature along with the societal structures that favor men, pose a disadvantage for women in general”.

Nepali women have been held back, not because of lack of potential but due to denial of equal access to opportunities or acceptance. In Nepal the preference for male children is very strong and that is reflected in terms of educational attainment and other opportunities as well. While this is changing in modern times, its impact is still visible. Former Member of Parliament and Constituent Assembly member Shanti Pakhrin, a member of Communist Party of Nepal (UML), puts emphasis on the transformative journey that women of Nepal have undertaken from restricted domestic roles to prominent leadership positions, women are coming to the forefront. “Since the starting line was not the same for all, we cannot expect the same results instantly”. Pakhrin emphasizes the need for positive feedback rather than negative criticism. In addition, it is equally important to understand that meaningful change requires time and continual support and promotion. 

Member of Constituent Assembly, Rita Shahi, a member of Nepali Congress Party, adds to Pakhrin’s narrative by saying, “there is a tendency to impose the incapability narrative while ignoring society’s own role in empowering women”. People easily bring out the incapability narrative but no one ever questions what have I done to make women capable or empowered? What is my contribution? 

Echoing Pakhrin’s call to recognize women’s collective progress, Shahi adds another layer by addressing the issue of compartmentalizing women’s issues stressing that treating these concerns as separate will lead to the marginalization of more than half the population. To avoid this, it is necessary to view women’s issues as central to the overall progress of the society.

Women who are in politics of Nepal are slowly and steadily dismantling the barriers that take the form of a deeply ingrained myth of capability and incapability based on gender bias. By showcasing their resilience and determination in the face of these barriers and their stories of balancing family and a career, pioneering achievements and enduring scrutiny reveals their profound strength. This represents a transformation of the political landscape. As Nepal steps into a new era that opens doors for future generations of Nepali women leaders in various sectors, there is a call for action that rings loud and clear: to move beyond limiting beliefs and build a future where every woman’s voice is not just heard but also respected and empowered. The creation of a just society now depends on the young generation, a society where people support the rise of women who are to Nepal’s progress, growth and development.

Nepal have entered the final of ACC Men's U-16 East Zone Cup defeating Malaysia by nine wickets on Thursday.

In the semi-final match held at Selangor Turf Club, Malaysia, today, Nepal achieved the 91-run victory target at the loss of one wicket in 11.4 overs. 

For Nepal's victory, Parimarjan Yadav contributed the highest 59, including five boundaries and five sixes.  Similarly, Shiwansh Bajgain scored 23 runs (not out).

For Malaysia, Nagin Sathnakumaran took one wicket.

Earlier, elected to bat first after losing the toss, Malaysia were limited to 90 runs in 43.1 overs. 

Malaysia's Muhammad Fathul Fatri gathered the highest 38 runs while Captain Deeaz Patro scored 10 runs. Other players except the two could not made double digit runs.

Nepal's Abhay Yadav took four wickets while Shubham Khanal sent three batsmen to the pavilion.

Similarly, Captain Bipin Prasad Khanal and Sachin Bhatta took one wicket each.

With today's victory, Nepal would face the second team reaching the semi-final for the title. Hong Kong and Singapore are playing for the second semi-final match.

Nepal, the Group 'A' winner and Malaysia, the runner-up of Group 'B', had reached the semi-final.

Earlier, Nepal had won all four matches they played under the group stage. They defeated Singapore, Japan, Indonesia and Bhutan.

Nepal had clinched the title of last year's series by defeating Malaysia.

The Himalayan village of Samjung did not die in a day.

Perched in a wind-carved valley in Nepal’s Upper Mustang, more than 3,962 meters above sea level, the Buddhist village lived by slow, deliberate rhythms—herding yaks and sheep and harvesting barley under sheer ochre cliffs honeycombed with “sky caves”—2,000-year-old chambers used for ancestral burials, meditation and shelter.

Then the water dried up. Snow-capped mountains turned brown and barren as, year after year, snowfall declined. Springs and canals vanished and when it did rain, the water came all at once, flooding fields and melting away the mud homes. Families left one by one, leaving the skeletal remains of a community transformed by climate change: crumbling mud homes, cracked terraces and unkempt shrines.

A changing climate

The Hindu Kush and Himalayan mountain regions—stretching from Afghanistan to Myanmar—hold more ice than anywhere else outside the Arctic and Antarctic. Their glaciers feed major rivers that support 240m people in the mountains—and 1.65bn more downstream.

Such high-altitude areas are warming faster than lowlands. Glaciers are retreating and permafrost areas are thawing as snowfall becomes scarcer and more erratic, according to the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development or ICMOD.

Kunga Gurung is among many in the high Himalayas already living through the irreversible effects of climate change. “We moved because there was no water. We need water to drink and to farm. But there is none there. Three streams, and all three dried up,” said Gurung, 54.

Climate change is quietly reshaping where people can live and work by disrupting farming, water access, and weather patterns, said Neil Adger, a professor of human geography at the University of Exeter. In places like Mustang, that’s making life harder, even if people don’t always say climate change is why they moved. “On an everyday basis, the changing weather patterns ... it’s actually affecting the ability of people to live in particular places,” Adger said.

Communities forced to move

Around the globe, extreme weather due to climate change is forcing communities to move, whether it’s powerful tropical storms in The Philippines and Honduras, drought in Somalia or forest fires in California. In the world’s highest mountains, Samjung isn’t the only community to have to start over, said Amina Maharjan, a migration specialist at ICMOD. Some villages move only short distances, but inevitably the key driver is lack of water. “The water scarcity is getting chronic,” she said.

Retreating glaciers—rivers of ice shrinking back as the world warms—are the most tangible and direct evidence of climate change. Up to 80 percent of the glacier volume in the Hindu Kush and Himalayas could vanish in this century if greenhouse gas emissions aren’t drastically cut, a 2023 report warned.

It hasn’t snowed in Upper Mustang for nearly three years, a dire blow for those living and farming in high-altitude villages. Snowfall traditionally sets the seasonal calendar, determining when crops of barley, buckwheat, and potatoes are planted and affecting the health of grazing livestock. “It is critically important,” Maharjan said.

For Samjung, the drought and mounting losses began around the turn of the century. Traditional mud homes built for a dry, cold mountain climate fell apart as monsoon rains grew more intense—a shift scientists link to climate change. The region’s steep slopes and narrow valleys funnel water into flash floods that destroy homes and farmland, triggering a wave of migration that began a decade ago.

Finding a place for a new village

Moving a village—even one with fewer than 100 residents like Samjung—was no simple endeavor. They needed reliable access to water and nearby communities for support during disasters. Relocating closer to winding mountain roads would allow villagers to market their crops and benefit from growing tourism. Eventually, the king of Mustang, who still owns large tracts of land in the area nearly two decades after Nepal abolished its monarchy, provided suitable land for a new village.

Pemba Gurung, 18, and her sister Toshi Lama Gurung, 22, don’t remember much about the move from their old village. But they remember how hard it was to start over. Families spent years gathering materials to build new mud homes with bright tin roofs on the banks of the glacial Kali Gandaki river, nearly 15 kilometers away. They constructed shelters for livestock and canals to bring water to their homes. Only then could they move.

Some villagers still herd sheep and yak, but life is a bit different in New Samjung, which is close to Lo Manthang, a medieval walled city cut off from the world until 1992, when foreigners were first allowed to visit. It’s a hub for pilgrims and tourists who want to trek in the high mountains and explore its ancient Buddhist culture, so some villagers work in tourism.

The sisters Pemba and Toshi are grateful not to have to spend hours fetching water every day. But they miss their old home. “It is the place of our origin. We wish to go back. But I don’t think it will ever be possible,” said Toshi.

AP

Nepali Embassy in Dhaka, in collaboration with the Nepal Tourism Board, hosted a Nepal-Bangladesh Tourism Meet under the theme Destination Nepal: From the Bay of Bengal to the Himalayas in Chattogram, Bangladesh, on Wednesday.

Speaking on the occasion, Ambassador Ghanshyam Bhandari emphasized the vital role tourism and people-to-people connections play in Nepal-Bangladesh relations. He shed light on the growing ties between the two countries and called for greater efforts to ‘truly connect the heights of the Himalayas with the depths of the Bay of Bengal’. 

He highlighted the ongoing efforts of the Government of Nepal to improve tourism infrastructure.

Ambassador Bhandari also appreciated the important contributions of travel and tour entrepreneurs in further positioning Nepal as a preferred tourist destination, reads a statement issued by the Embassy.

Similarly, Rohini Prasad Khanal, Officiating Director of Tourism Marketing & Promotion Department at the Nepal Tourism Board, delivered a presentation on Nepal’s diverse tourism products and potential, urging the participating travel agents and tour operators to strengthen efforts towards building more robust tourism linkages between the two countries. 

Highlighting Bangladesh as one of Nepal’s major source markets, he expressed optimism about an increased flow of Bangladeshi tourists in the days ahead, according to the statement.

Likewise, Mount Everest Summiteer Babar Ali shared brief remarks about his experiences in Nepal during his successful summit to Mount Everest in 2024 and his recent ascent to Mount Annapurna.

The programme also featured a raffle draw, with tour packages and round trip air tickets for the Dhaka–Kathmandu sector sponsored by Nepali tour and travel agencies, Himalaya Airlines and Biman Bangladesh Airlines.

Over 120 participants including Chattogram-based representatives of ATAB, TOAB, hotels and airlines, and leading organizations from the tourism and hospitality sector attended the event, the statement further reads.

Air pollution is the number one risk factor for death and disability in Nepal, according to a new report by the World Bank (WB).

Single-sector solutions are not sufficient to meet any clean air target. Public policy and investment need to optimize air quality actions across sectors, prioritizing those with the most cost-effective solutions, says the WB in a new report.

The report, 'Towards Clean Air in Nepal: Benefits, Pollution Sources, and Solutions', serves as a foundational assessment of air pollution in the country and the airshed of the Indo-Gangetic Plain and Himalayan Foothills (IGP-HF).

The report states that Kathmandu Valley and Tarai are Nepal’s air pollution hotspots, with no significant improvement over the past decade. Air pollution reduces life expectancy by 3.4 years for the average Nepali and causes approximately 26,000 premature deaths annually. In addition to health, air pollution impacts labor productivity, tourism, and the aviation sector. The economic cost of poor air quality is equivalent to more than 6 percent of Nepal's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) each year.

“Clean air and economic growth are not in conflict. In fact, the cost of inaction on pollution is far greater than the cost of taking bold steps today," said Minister for Forests and Environment, Ain Bahadur Shahi Thakuri. “From setting stricter industrial emission standards to promoting electric transport, the government is committed to cleaning Nepal’s air."

As pointed out in the Report, the multi-sectoral and multi-regional nature of air pollution requires action on many fronts. They include vehicle emissions, industrial emissions, household cooking, forest fires, and trans-boundary solutions.

The Report suggested actions to reduce vehicular emissions, like continuing to electrify vehicle fleets, including cars, motorcycles, buses, and trucks is critical to address air pollution. This needs to be complemented by strengthening the vehicle inspection and maintenance system and reducing road dust.

Similarly, support for cleaner technology and fuel adoption in industries—   including electric and pellet boilers and furnaces in small and medium enterprises—will help promote cleaner industries. Industrial facilities such as brick and cement factories also need to be supported to burn cleaner and more efficient fuels.

Supporting households to adopt cleaner and, preferably, electric cookstoves is key to cutting household sources of air pollution. Biomass-fueled stoves create both indoor and ambient air pollution.

Forest fire prevention by reducing the fuel load and developing effective awareness programs is critical for reducing the likelihood of forest fires. Effective response systems to put out fires are also needed, the Report said.

The Report also suggests partnering effectively with neighboring countries is critical. Transboundary airflows carry pollutants across borders. The Indo-Gangetic Plain and Himalayan Foothills Region share an airshed, meaning that pollutants can travel across borders, affecting air quality in multiple countries.  Nepal's unique geographical location, particularly the bowl-shaped Kathmandu Valley surrounded by mountains, exacerbates the problem.

Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has resumed the export of 40 MW of electricity to Bangladesh via India. Power from Nepal to Bangladesh was exported for the first time for 12 hours on July 15 last year. It resumed from June 15 this year.

A power sale agreement had been signed between NEA, Bangladesh Power Development Board and NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Limited of India last year, which led to export of electricity for only 12 hours last year.  Nepal has been exporting excess electricity during the rainy season to neighboring India for five months every year. This year, starting today, NEA will export electricity to Bangladesh for the next five months, until Nov 15.

Subarna Sapkota, deputy manager of the NEA Electricity System Control Department, shared that 146.88m units of electricity will be exported in five months. The government will earn Rs 1.29bn in five months through the sale of electricity.  The selling rate of electricity exported under the agreement is 6.4 US cents per unit. 

The electricity will be supplied to the Bhermara substation in Bangladesh via Muzaffarpur, Behrampur, India from Nepal’s 400 kV Dhalkebar substation. Meanwhile, the NEA has continued its electricity exports to neighboring India and started exporting the green electricity to the Indian state of Haryana from this year. It had been exporting 185 MW of electricity since June 1, which increased to 200 MW from Saturday. As per the agreement between Nepal and India, the selling rate of this electricity export is InRs 5.25 per unit.

NEA has also started exporting 80 MW to the Indian state of Bihar since 12 last night. In addition, additional electricity is being purchased and sold in the Indian market through the Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur 400 kV and 132 kV transmission lines. As electricity generation in Nepal has increased with the onset of the rainy season, the surplus electricity is being exported to India and Bangladesh.

Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba has expressed her hope that joint partnership and connectivity in various sectors between Nepal and India would lay the foundation for shared prosperity between the two nations.

Inaugurating the Nepal-India Strategic Dialogue in Kathmandu today, she underscored the need to speed up cooperation in trade, transit and investment between the two countries and advance economic partnership through connectivity.

 “I look forward to a future where ginger from Nepali farmers reaches the Mumbai market within 24 hours and an Indian tourist reaches Pokhara on an evening flight after finishing a morning meeting in Delhi. This kind of proximity should be the basis for economic prosperity for the citizens of the two countries.”

Citing the ago-old Nepal-India relations, built on shared values, culture and emotions and people-to-people contacts, she said enhancing cooperation and connectivity would help shape a prosperous future for both countries.

She stressed the need for investing in roads, railways, waterways, air routes, and digital infrastructure to increase mutual connectivity. “A seamless connectivity between the two countries will not only support regional and global supply chains, but also enhance transit trade and border economies. This will benefit the citizens of both countries.”

Stating that the current global economic scenario is shifting towards a knowledge-based economy, services and digital platforms, Minister Rana stressed the need for both countries to jointly focus their efforts on digital economy, technology and innovation, modern education system, skill development and creative economy.

Highlighting the energy sector as a notable example of cooperation between the two neighbors, she said that Nepal’s vast hydropower potential will provide a clean, renewable energy source, which she said will be useful for the future generations.

She added India's commitments to importing 10,000 MW of electricity from Nepal in the coming decade reflects Nepal-India cooperation in the energy sector. "The two countries have further strengthened cooperation in the power sector, including developing transmission interconnections, grid connectivity and power exchange, and cross-border power trade."

Minister Rana proposed collaboration between India's expertise in digital innovation and Nepal's young and tech-savvy population. "We should promote tech hubs, start-ups and digital innovation platforms in mutual cooperation and let our youth work together, use technology and move forward on the path of prosperity."

Calling for joint efforts to tackle shared challenges posed by climate change especially amid rapid technological advancements and shifting geopolitical dynamics, she expressed gratitude to the Government of India for its cooperation and support for successfully organising the "Sagarmatha Sambaad" recently in Nepal.

Reiterating Nepal's commitment to a future of peace, stability and prosperity through partnerships with its neighbors and international friends, the minister underscored that such dialogues are vital for deepening Nepal-India relations, promoting the exchange of ideas, and strengthening the people-to-people relations.

The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Nepalis.

In a Federal Register notice, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem stated that after reviewing the current conditions in Nepal and consulting with relevant interagency partners, the country no longer meets the criteria required for TPS designation.

With this, around 7,000 Nepalis living in the US on the basis of TPS will have to return home.

The TPS for Nepal will officially end at 11:59 pm on August 5, 2025, which is 60 days after the publication of the notice.

“If you are currently a TPS beneficiary from Nepal, and have no other lawful basis to remain, you should begin preparations for departure,” the notice said. “Those planning to depart the US can use the CBP One mobile app to facilitate their return process.”

After the devastating earthquake that struck Nepal in 2015, the TPS had allowed around 15, 000 Nepalis to legally reside and work in the United States.

Even during the previous term of US President Donald Trump, he had taken ahead the process to revoke the TPS for Nepal.

At that time, Nepalis were urged to return to their country within 12 months.

With US President Donald Trump assuming his office for the second term, the US has continued the deportations of the immigrants found without official documents back to home.

Earlier on March 6, nine Nepalis, who were living and working illegally in the US, were brought to Kathmandu on a chartered flight.

Despite having established several legal frameworks promoting digital accessibility, Nepal lacks implementation resulting in significant gaps across healthcare websites. This writeup examines the current state of web accessibility in Nepal government’s health-related websites based on WAVE API analysis of the eight homepages, namely https://www.mohp.gov.np, https://www.dohs.gov.np, https://www.fwd.gov.np, https://www.digitalhealth.mohp.gov.np, https://www.nhpc.gov.np, https://www.iom.edu.np, https://www.bpkhis.edu and https://www.dda.gov.np  

Nepal doesn’t lack the legal instruments for digital accessibility, however, there seems to be a gap in their implementation. The Right to Information Act of 2007 ensures that every person has the right to access and regulate information. Nepal signed the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) on 3 Jan 2008, which also requires infrastructure so that information and communication is accessible to all. Health is similarly among the eight priority sectors for digital transformation in the Digital Nepal Framework. The National ICT Policy (2015) and the National Broadband Policy (2016) add weight to the drive for digital growth, but challenges in implementation persist.

The analysis of eight healthcare-related government websites reveal concerning patterns across multiple domains. This analysis was done using a Python program and WebAIM’s accessibility WAVE API. 

The eight homepages averaged 30.43 Errors, 23.00 Contrast Issues and 28.00 Alerts per site. These numbers indicate significant accessibility barriers for users with disabilities.

WebAIM defines errors as accessibility issues that are almost always barriers for users with disabilities and require immediate attention. Contrast issues occur when there is insufficient color contrast between text (or images of text) and its background, making content difficult or even impossible to read for users with low vision or color blindness. Alerts refer to potential accessibility issues that may not be definitive problems but still require review or further manual evaluation.

The eight homepages we analyzed had 62 empty links that don’t tell users where they will go when clicked. There are 51 images missing alternative text, which means people who can’t see the images won’t know what they contain. The site also has 46 linked images that are missing alternative text, making it impossible for screen reader users to understand where clicking these images would take them. Additionally, there are 19 buttons that have no text or labels, leaving users with disabilities confused about what these buttons do. Finally, the websites’ homepages contain 17 empty headings that don’t describe the content of their sections, making navigation difficult for people using assistive technology.

We believe several factors contribute to the current state of web accessibility in Nepal’s healthcare sector. One major factor is resource limitations, as widespread poverty and inadequate telecommunications infrastructure in rural areas restrict access to digital services. Another significant issue is the awareness gap—there is a general lack of understanding about the transformative potential of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), including websites, for improving the lives of persons with disabilities. Finally, policy implementation challenges persist; although legal frameworks exist, there is a lack of a suitable policy environment specifically designed to promote ICT accessibility.

Poor digital accessibility, especially in health-related websites, has severe consequences in Nepal, where difficult terrain, limited infrastructure, and frequent natural disasters like floods and earthquakes already hinder access to care. In rural areas, where physical services are scarce, digital platforms become essential. Yet, inaccessible websites exclude persons with disabilities, causing dangerous delays in receiving critical updates on safety protocols and medical aid. Government platforms must be accessible to ensure rapid, inclusive information delivery during crises, as inaccessibility in such moments can cost lives. In Nepal, an estimated two percent of the population with disabilities, including roughly 94,000 visually impaired and 79,000 hearing-impaired individuals, face significant barriers accessing healthcare information due to non-compliant website design on key health portals such as the Department of Health Services. We see basic keyboard navigation failures and violation of semantic markup standards which results in exclusion of people from vital emergency directives and service updates.

Based on the analysis, several strategies aligned with international standards could significantly improve digital accessibility in Nepal’s healthcare websites. First, accessibility policy implementation is essential—specific digital accessibility guidelines for government healthcare websites should be enforced based on the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). Second, training and awareness efforts must be strengthened by investing in capacity building for web developers and content creators, equipping them with the necessary skills and knowledge on accessibility principles and techniques. Third, regular auditing should be incorporated into the website development and maintenance cycle to ensure that accessibility is not overlooked over time. 

Additionally, applying the 80-20 rule by prioritizing critical fixes—such as addressing empty links, missing alternative text, and contrast issues—can lead to significant improvements with relatively minimal effort. Lastly, the government can leverage the Rural Telecom Development Fund to finance accessibility initiatives and promote the development of assistive technologies in local languages. These strategies, if properly implemented, can help create a more inclusive digital healthcare environment for all, including persons with disabilities.

Poor web accessibility in Nepal’s healthcare websites creates a significant digital barrier that exacerbates existing challenges in healthcare access. These accessibility barriers—primarily empty links, missing alternative text and poor contrast—effectively exclude persons with disabilities from accessing critical health information in a country where 79.42 percent of the population lives in rural areas, facing financial, geographical and infrastructural challenges to healthcare access. The digital divide is particularly concerning as Nepal increasingly relies on digital health initiatives to overcome its rugged terrain, proclivity to natural disasters and limited physical infrastructure. While some sites like Digital Health show progress, others contain numerous barriers that prevent equal access for persons with disabilities. Addressing these issues will require coordinated efforts across technical, policy and awareness dimensions. As Nepal continues its digital transformation in healthcare, ensuring accessibility should be integrated into development processes from the beginning rather than added as an afterthought.

In Nepal, the journey of women in politics can symbolically be presented as a tug-of-war between progress and resistance. The deeply entrenched patriarchal norms limit the roles of women in political and public life. The Constitution of Nepal promulgated in 1990 brought about a glimmer of hope as Article 114 of the constitution mandated political parties to file five percent women candidates to contest in elections . But this did not guarantee that women would actually make it to parliament. As a result, between 1990-1999 elections, the percentage of women in parliament could not exceed six percent.

Nepal witnessed a surge in the number of female candidates in 2008 elections due to the provision in the 2007 Interim-Constitution ensuring a minimum of 33.33 percent reservations for women in parliament. This demographic representation celebrated an outcome of years of fight for equality, propelled by the decade long civil war 1995-2006. While it brought an increase in the demographic representation of female candidates, did it actually signify effective participation and empowerment, or did it simply mask the underlying systemic barriers that hinder the rise of women’s political power and decision-making?

Today, with the House of Representatives having a base requirement of 92 women (33.45 percent) out of the 275 total parliamentarians, we see how beneath Nepal’s democratic framework lies a troubling gap between promise and practice. The 33.33 percent representation quota for women was meant to be a minimum threshold, a starting point for inclusion. Unfortunately, many political parties treat it as a ceiling, not a base. This representation becomes even scarcer as we ascend the hierarchy ladder. In 2025, out of 22 ministries of the federal government of Nepal only one female is appointed a minister.

The quota system designed with the aim of democratizing opportunities were treated by the political parties as checkboxes they needed to tick. Political parties were responsible for exploiting the country’s constitutional provisions to empower women for their vested interests. By manipulating the loopholes parties are allowing the avoidance of the crucial measures mentioned in the regulations. The issue doesn’t end here women are placed in unelectable constituencies, sidelined from key decision making processes and reduced to symbolic placeholders. This challenge does not end once they enter the parliament. The complex interplay of socio-economic and institutional factors shape these women’s experiences and overall effectiveness in their work in politics.

Women continue to pass through various stages of scrutiny and criticism because patriarchal societal norms question their legitimacy as leaders. These factors not only discourage the women in the field but also the potential women candidates who wish to enter the political arena. Unaddressed challenges have consequences that extend outwards. On the grounds of tokenistic representation, without significance in participation, women may be continually excluded from significant policy formulation and lobbying processes—an antithesis to democratic governance. It also impairs the responsiveness of policies to address the needs of the diverse population. Additionally, gender imbalance representation in hierarchy further solidifies structural inequality and thus inhibits progress toward social justice and equality.

Overcoming these barriers requires systematic reforms and beyond-the-surface solutions. There is a need to wipe out the root sources of social-cultural, economic, and institutional conditions that make gender inequality by implementing such reforms and changing societal mindsets in a way that they eradicate such norms and values that perceive women as more subordinate than men. Only in that way can the future of this nation be remolded with the voices of women shaping its political destiny.

Nepal needs more than women in seats, it needs women in power. 

The US, under the Donald Trump administration, is steadily adopting a more aggressive stance toward China—an approach that is likely to reshape the foreign policy landscape for small South Asian countries like Nepal. Washington’s hardening posture is evident across multiple fronts: trade, technology, education and military strategy in the Indo-Pacific.

A major flashpoint has been trade. The Trump administration imposed a steep 145 percent tariff on Chinese goods—though currently paused—with expectations that the tariff war will escalate further. Simultaneously, the US State Department announced plans to revoke visas for Chinese students, especially those linked to the Chinese Communist Party or studying sensitive technologies, drawing sharp condemnation from Beijing.

The technological rivalry is already underway, but the conflict appears to be broadening. In a striking statement this week at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth declared that the United States is prepared to take a confrontational approach toward Beijing, a move that has unsettled many Asian capitals.

“As our allies share the burden, we can increase our focus on the Indo-Pacific: our priority theater,” Hegseth said. Emphasizing that the futures of the US and its Indo-Pacific allies are “bound together,” he noted that America's own security and prosperity are linked to those of its allies. “We share your vision of peace and stability, of prosperity and security, and we are here to stay,” he added.

Hegseth outlined a vision for the Indo-Pacific based on mutual interests, sovereignty and commerce—not conflict. “On this sure foundation of mutual interests and common sense, we will build and strengthen our defense partnerships to preserve peace and increase prosperity,” he stated.

Yet, he made it clear that the US will resist any attempt by China to assert dominance. “We do not seek conflict with Communist China, but we will not be pushed out of this critical region, and we will not let our allies and partners be subordinated or intimidated.” These remarks come at a time when US allies in South Asia are already facing economic strain due to the US-led trade war. The pressure is particularly acute for countries like Nepal, which have a limited maneuvering room in great-power rivalries.

Hegseth also raised alarm over China’s preparations to use force for the “unification” of Taiwan—a move he warned could trigger a global crisis. “There’s no reason to sugarcoat it: the threat China poses is real, and it could be imminent,” he said, stressing that while China’s exact intentions remain uncertain, the US and its allies must prepare with “urgency and vigilance.”

The Chinese Foreign Ministry (FM) stated on Sunday that Hegseth ignored the calls of regional countries for peace and development, promoted a Cold War mentality of bloc confrontation, smeared and attacked China, and exaggerated the "China threat theory"—remarks that were full of provocation. In fact, the US is the world's true hegemonic power and the biggest factor undermining peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region, China said.  In order to maintain its hegemony and advance the so-called "Indo-Pacific Strategy," the US has deployed offensive weapons in the South China Sea, stoked tensions, and created instability—turning the region into a "powder keg" and arousing deep concern among regional countries, said China’s FM. 

A military conflict over Taiwan would place enormous pressure on countries like Nepal to take sides—much like the diplomatic tightrope it walked during the Russia-Ukraine war. While Nepal officially supports the one-China policy, joint statements in recent years have gone further, explicitly stating that “Nepal opposes Taiwan independence.”

Foreign policy experts warn that such language could box Nepal into supporting a future Chinese military action, compromising its neutrality. Further reinforcing this strategic posture, US Air Force Secretary Troy Meink told graduating cadets this week that the Indo-Pacific will define the military challenges of their generation. “The Indo-Pacific will be your generation’s fight, and you will deliver the most lethal force this nation has ever seen—or we will not succeed,” Meink said. He warned that the strategic competition with China is wide-ranging and unpredictable, adding, “There will be no sanctuaries.”

While the Trump administration has significantly cut development aid to countries like Nepal, it has signaled an intention to deepen defense cooperation in the region. Given Nepal’s strategic location between China and India, observers believe the US is likely to step up military engagement with Kathmandu in the coming years, further complicating Nepal’s delicate geopolitical balancing act.

Nepal’s federal transition has devolved into one of the most expensive and socially divisive political projects in the nation’s history, characterized not only by staggering fiscal waste including billions in infrastructure losses and over 17,000 conflict-related deaths but also by profound human costs manifested through systemic violence, mass displacement, and institutional abandonment. While President Ramchandra Paudel’s 11-point policy agenda for FY 2025-26 demonstrates conceptual viability, its potential remains neutered by three decades of institutional paralysis and implementation failure, reflecting a fundamental disconnect between policy formulation and execution. 

The current wave of social unrest of encompassing victims of financial fraud, debt-ridden microfinance clients, disenfranchised educators and disillusioned healthcare providers reveals the paradoxical reality of Nepal’s federal experiment: a thinly-veiled centralization of power perpetuated by the recycled political elite that has dominated Nepal’s governance structures for decades. These entrenched actors have weaponized federal rhetoric while maintaining extractive governance patterns, transforming what should be a devolutionary framework into an institutional facade that legitimizes traditional patronage networks. The central crisis lies not in federalism’s design, but in its strategic subversion by a political class that has perfected the art of state institutional capture.

The political economy

Federalism, in theory, represents a dual imperative: preserving autonomy of subnational politics while ensuring coordinated governance under a constitutional compact. Esteemed political economists like JE Chubb and Wallace E Oates, etc argue that successful federations require institutional alignment between political structures and economic policies to enhance resource and power allocative efficiency and equitable growth. Nepal’s 2015 Constitution beautifully sought to operationalize these principles through power delineations (Annexes 6–9), among subnational politics envisioning a shift from unitary centralism to cooperative federalism.

The Ministry of Finance reveals concerning fiscal trends, marked by rising expenditures, inefficient debt management, and persistent structural imbalances. In FY 2022/23, consolidated government spending surged by 11.1 percent (Rs 11,656.07bn), with current expenditures (56.3 percent of total spending) far outpacing capital investments (31.85 percent). While net current expenditure grew by 8.5 percent (Rs 932.39bn), capital expenditure saw only a 7.6 percent increase (Rs 527.45bn), a troubling indicator of misaligned fiscal priorities that favor recurrent costs over productive investment. More alarming is the 38.9 percent spike in debt servicing (Rs 196.23bn), reflecting deepening fiscal stress and potential governance inefficiencies in public financial management. The federal government dominated expenditures (61.8 percent), while provinces and local governments key subnational politics in Nepal’s federal structure remained fiscally constrained (10.8 percent and 27.4 percent, respectively). Despite Rs 397.36bn in intergovernmental transfers, the limited fiscal autonomy of subnational governments raises concerns about decentralization in practice.

Revenue collection (Rs 1,042.64bn) narrowly exceeded current expenditures, yet the federal deficit ballooned to 9.33 percent of GDP (up from 5.95 percent in FY 2021/22), signaling unsustainable fiscal practices. This deterioration suggests structural weaknesses in revenue mobilization, compounded by over-reliance on intergovernmental transfers rather than endogenous revenue generation. The Department of Customs (FY 2023-24) data underscore Nepal’s chronic trade imbalance, with imports (Rs 1,611.73bn) dwarfing exports (Rs 152.38bn) with an import-to-export ratio of 10.45:1. With 91.97 percent of trade value tied to imports, Nepal’s economy remains critically dependent on foreign goods, exposing vulnerabilities to external shocks. Export composition remains undiversified, dominated by low-value-added goods (soybean oil, sunflower oil, synthetic yarn), reflecting a failure to industrialize or move up the value chain. Meanwhile, remittance inflows
(Rs 1,051.77bn, up 9.4 percent) provide temporary stability but mask deeper structural flaws—Nepal’s economy is consumption-driven rather than production-oriented, perpetuating dependency rather than development. Without structural reforms, tax base expansion, export diversification and genuine fiscal decentralization, Nepal risks entrenching a low-growth, high-debt trajectory, where federalism becomes a facade for centralized inefficiency rather than a driver of equitable development.

Public goods and services

Key governance institutions spanning education, healthcare, social protection, disaster resilience, agriculture, security, courts services, public administration services and natural resource governance have regressed into systemic wickedness, marking a profound failure of the state’s foundational obligations. This institutional disintegration has precipitated a near-total breakdown in service delivery, rendering even the most basic public goods and services inaccessible to ordinary citizens. The education and health system, theoretically a mechanism for equitable advancement, now functions as a hollowed-out structure, marred by dilapidated facilities, chronic teacher deficits and catastrophic learning deficiencies. Private schools are out of control in many ways. Parallel decay plagues healthcare, which has bifurcated into a privatized escape for the affluent and a crumbling public sector plagued by staffing crises, medication scarcities and exploitative costs. The rural development languishes due to technocratic neglect and incoherent policy, and natural resource governance has devolved into institutionalized predation by political elites. This comprehensive institutional failure underscores a broader neoliberal devolution: the state has abdicated its role as a welfare guarantor, instead morphing into an extractive apparatus servicing elite patronage networks. The outcome is a pure privatization of basic rights: education, healthcare and security; transforming constitutional entitlements into exclusionary commodities. Nepal thus exemplifies a state in which governance failure is not incidental but engineered, sustaining hierarchies of access while eroding the very notion of public sovereignty.

Socioeconomic implications

These structural deficiencies have precipitated severe trade imbalances and accelerated youth outmigration, as domestic economic opportunities remain stifled. The inability to channel revenues into productive capital investments perpetuates a cycle of underdevelopment, exacerbating dependency on remittances and foreign credits. Unless Nepal addresses these institutional and governance failures, its fiscal policies will continue to fall short of generating sustainable, inclusive growth. Nepal’s political class has weaponized federalism to consolidate power rather than decentralize it.

Conclusion: Revolt or renewal?

Nepal’s federal experiment has collapsed not from constitutional flaws but through calculated sabotage by an entrenched oligarchy that has converted governance into patrimonial rule, hollowing out the 2015 Constitution’s devolutionary vision through pseudo-federal institutions maintaining feudal power structures. The political theater of recycled leaders staging mass spectacles merely legitimizes an extractive regime where federalism serves as institutional camouflage for centralized kleptocracy, with parties operating as patronage cartels prioritizing graft over governance, systematically eroding meritocracy and converting state apparatus into private wealth engines. This deliberate institutional subversion leaves Nepal facing existential alternatives: either radical democratic restructuring through constitutional and political overhaul or revolutionary breakdown when governance systems implode, with survival contingent on dismantling the recycled elite's stranglehold and creating authentic accountability mechanisms. The Nepali paradox offers a seminal case of how constitutional progressivism fails when implemented without disrupting entrenched power cultures and incentive structures.

The author is former chairperson of NEPSE

Despite a notable rise in remittance inflow this fiscal year, Nepal is spending more foreign currency on imports and overseas education. According to recent data, the country received Rs 1.19trn in remittances in the first nine months of the current fiscal year—a 10 percent increase compared to the same period last year.

However, the outflow of foreign currency has been even greater, primarily due to a surge in imports and spending on foreign education. Nepal’s total imports rose by 12.2 percent during this period, reaching Rs 1.39trn. Last year, imports had declined by 2.8 percent in the same timeframe.

Imports from India, China, and other countries increased by 7.7 percent, 14.4 percent, and 24.9 percent respectively. The major import items included raw soybean oil, rice, vehicles and spare parts, edible oil, and sponge iron. Meanwhile, imports of petroleum products, crude palm oil, aircraft parts, chemical fertilizers, and paper declined.

On the export front, the country earned Rs 188.2bn from goods exports—a 65.2 percent rise. While this indicates a slight improvement in foreign currency earnings through exports, the trade deficit remains significant. The trade deficit increased by 6.4 percent to Rs 1.21trn.

Another major drain on foreign currency is overseas education. In the first nine months of this fiscal year alone, Nepal spent Rs 103.84bn on education abroad, accounting for 60.94 percent of the total travel-related expenditure. The amount is a steep rise from Rs 95.85bn in the same period last year, and nearly Rs 15bn was spent in just one month (mid-February to mid-March).

Travel expenditure under the services account rose by 19 percent to Rs 170.39bn during this period, with education-related expenses comprising the largest share.

Economists have raised concerns about this trend. Economist Dilliraj Khanal said while remittance helps in the short term, its long-term impact is questionable if it is not utilized productively. He warned that relying heavily on foreign employment while failing to create domestic opportunities is making productive land idle and hindering national development. “If foreign employment stops due to global instability, it could have disastrous consequences,” he cautioned.

Despite these concerns, the rise in remittance has contributed to improved foreign exchange reserves and banking liquidity. By mid-April, Nepal’s foreign exchange reserves had increased by 18.9 percent to Rs 2.43trn, sufficient to cover 17.1 months of merchandise imports and 14.2 months of goods and services imports, according to the Nepal Rastra Bank.

The overall balance of payments remained positive, with a surplus of Rs 346.23bn. The current account also posted a surplus of Rs 210.22bn, compared to Rs 179.83bn in the same period last year. Additionally, foreign direct investment (equity only) reached Rs 8.96bn, up from Rs 6.49bn last year.

Meanwhile, consumer inflation eased, providing some relief to the public. According to central bank data, point-to-point inflation in mid-April stood at 3.39 percent, down from 4.61 percent a year ago. Prices of food and beverages, spices, and fish and meat decreased, contributing to overall price stabilization. However, prices of ghee and oil, fruits, pulses and legumes, and non-alcoholic beverages went up. In the non-food category, annual inflation in miscellaneous goods and services rose by 8.69 percent, clothing and footwear by 7.01 percent, alcoholic beverages by 6.07 percent, household furnishings by 5.59 percent, and tobacco products by 4.83 percent.