At a Glance:

Government Portal

Current constitution in force since: 2007

Constituent units:14 Anchal (English: administrative zones)

Head of State: President

Head of Government: Prime Minister

Legislature:
Constituent Assembly (unicameral)   

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Nepal

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Key Elements of a New Fiscal Regime in Federal Nepal

Participants listen during a roundtable with Dr. Dinesh Srivastava

Nepal is undergoing a major transition towards introducing a system of democratic and federal governance. Fiscal aspects of federalism are key to an effective transition process, if handled properly.   

Our work in Nepal

Since 2008 the Forum has worked with local partners in Nepal to organize learning events ranging from co-operative constitution making to ethnic federalism.

Federalism in Nepal

After a 10-year civil war, Nepal is undergoing a process of triple transition – towards democracy and federalism, and away from feudalism. A Constituent Assembly elected in 2008 is writing the new federal constitution. All major parties have agreed to create a new federal system, but disagree on the number of provinces and their powers.

Nepal was created in 1768 by a royal family subjugated, in 1846, by an aristocratic family, the Ranas, who created a system of hereditary Prime Ministers. This hybrid monarchy was overthrown in 1951 by democrats and the original royal family; the latter then seized power in 1959.

A ‘People’s Movement’ (Jana Andolan) in 1989 1989 resulted in the establishment of a parliamentary constitutional monarchy under multi-party democracy. Then in 1996, , the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) started an armed struggle demanding a secular republican state which led to a 10-year Nepal Civil War, claiming more than 13,000 lives. King Gyanendra used the government’s failure to control the revolt as a pretext to seize power in 2005. In response, Nepal's democratic parties joined with the Maoiststo to declare a pro-democratic movement (Jana Andolan-II) that led to the overthrow of the monarchy in April 2006. A peace process brought about a political settlement in the form of a Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed on 21 November 2006 by the government and the Maoists, who agreed to disarm and became a mainstream political party. In 2008 a “secular, federal democratic republic” was declared following elections to a Constituent Assembly, tasked with writing a new Constitution.

2008-2011 Nepal-SDC: In 2008 the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) granted the Forum $750,000 for a three-year program to help Nepal build its capacity for developing and implementing a federal democratic system. In addition to building the capacity of the Constituent Assembly members to draft a federal constitution, the Forum was mandated to increase understanding of federal systems among political party leaders and the civil society, and to enhance the knowledge and teaching of federalism in Nepal’s educational institutions. The SDC-funded program runs from August 2008 until March 2011.