Opinion | Promises versus reality: The discrepancy in Nepal’s investment summits
Summary
Despite multiple investment summits in Nepal since 2017 and large commitments announced, only a small fraction of the pledged capital has materialized due to systemic regulatory and institutional challenges.
Key Points
- Nepal has held at least six major investment summits since 2017 with hundreds of billions of rupees committed, but most of the funds have not materialized in the economy.
- Regulatory and procedural obstacles, including disjointed approval processes and lack of enforcement authority, hinder the realization of foreign direct investment.
- Nepal's Investment Board lacks the necessary powers to coordinate and enforce investment facilitation effectively, leading to stalled projects and eroded investor confidence.
- Structural financial intermediation issues and inadequate institutional design continue to block productive deployment of capital despite favourable macroeconomic conditions.
