<figure><img width="3600" height="2193" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161156/636d1f1e9c7e80680e0af44ajpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Photo: RSS</figcaption></figure>After Nepal’s three major political parties held long overdue <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/unconventional-party-conventions/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">party conventions</a>,  it was the turn this week of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre). But the question of who will lead a party that waged a ten-year war is a foregone conclusion.Pushpa Kamal Dahal, who had the nom de guerre ‘Prachanda’  when the Maoists waged their armed struggle from 1996-2006, is the undisputed leader, even through there are grumblings within the party that he is adhering to a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/pushpa-kamal-dahal-is-still-prachanda/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">cult of personality</a>.In fact, after hefty criticism on social media, the party on Monday took down a larger than life cutout of Dahal at the convention venue at the Nepal Academy in Kamaladi.On Sunday, the party’s 8th general convention was inaugurated in the presence of political leaders from across the political spectrum. Dahal’s former comrade-at-arms K P Oli of the UML, whom he unseated as prime minister earlier this year, did not attend – just as Dahal had skipped the UML’s convention in Chitwan last month.The assembly of Nepal’s third-largest political party, rebranded ‘general convention’ from ‘national conference’ only a day before the event was set to begin, has put Nepalis into an election frame of mind. Indeed, the speeches at the inauguration were all election pitches by Prime Minsiter Sher Bahadur Deuba of the Nepali Congress, Madhav Kumar Nepal of the Unified Socialists and Shankhar Pokharel, the UML General Secretary.A total of 1,631 delegates from across the country are present at the three-day convention, and will elect the Maoist party chairman, 15 office bearers, and a 299-member Central Committee. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/all-eyes-on-2023/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">All eyes on 2023</a>, Mukesh PokharelThe standing committee meeting that decided to rebrand the Maoist conclave as a general convention also changed the number of office bearers ahead of the convention,  which means that the leadership will include the chairman, one senior vice-chairman, six vice-chairmen, one general secretary, two deputy general secretaries, three secretaries and a treasurer. Earlier, the Maoists had a senior vice president and deputy secretary general.Even as the party increases its leadership seats, the Maoist convention, like the UML and NC <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepali-congress-party-time/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">conclaves that preceded it</a>, is set to reaffirm that Nepal’s politics will still be guided by <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/oli-sweeps-uml-party-polls/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">veteran politicians unwilling to give up their seats of power</a> -- at least until the next five years. The only outlier was the Hindu-right RPP, which replaced veteran Kamal Thapa with new comer Rajendra Lingden.Insiders have accused Dahal of repeatedly sidelining rivals within the Maoist party, but he is set to be elected party chair for another five years. Narayan Kaji Shrestha on Monday announced his bid for party leadership in a closed-session, but he does not stand a chance.Dahal has been so adept that removing rivals for leadership that many like Baburam Bhattarai and other comrades have left to join other parties.  In his remarks before the convention, Dahal struck an introspective tone while also urging party members to reflect on the Maoists’ journey, and the mistakes made from the armed insurgency to the present.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-rudderless-political-leadership/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepal's rudderless political leadership</a>, Santa Gaha Magar “Party cadres as well as the Nepali people have begun to feel shortcomings of the part of the political leadership,” Dahal said before the convention, “I am morally responsible for these shortcomings, and I will begin with self-reflection.  All of us need to introspect.”Meanwhile, political leadership from other political parties made notable remarks on issues ranging from the much-contested Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) to social and transitional justice to  Maoist reunification.Prime Minister Deuba, recently re-elected party leader at his own NC general convention, maintained that the MCC would be ratified in Parliament soon, while seeming to pointedly address Dahal as he urged the detractors of the MCC to “actually read and be informed on the terms of the MCC before branding it as anti-national, traitorous, and against the interest of the country”. Deuba softened the blow, however,  by lauding Dahal’s “great contribution to Nepali politics … it was under your leadership that we held the election of the Constituent assembly and ultimately drafted our Constitution”.Read also: <a style="font-weight: 600;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/battle-lines-drawn-for-nepal-elections/">Battle lines drawn for Nepal elections</a>, Nepali Times<a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/political-expediency-trumps-nepal-constitution/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Newly-minted CPN (Unified Socialist) Chairman</a> Madhav Kumar Nepal struck a similar tone as Dahal in his remarks saying that all the political parties need to introspect. “We have failed to address the people’s problems,” he said. “We need to reflect on where we went wrong.”Meanwhile, CP Gajurel, Vice Chairman of the CPN (Revolutionary Maoist), a breakaway faction of the Maoists formed under leader Mohan Baidya,  said that the time has come for Nepal’s Maoists to reunite. Rastriya Janamorcha vice-chairperson Durga Poudel, speaking about the rise in voices against republicanism and secularism, spoke of the importance of a united front to defeat political regression. JSP Chairman Upendra Yadav said that Nepal would not prosper until all forms of discrimination end, saying that issues of the emancipation of Madhesi, Adivasi, Janajati, Dalit and minority communities linked with the People’s Movement of 2006 were still neglected. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/is-democracy-too-expensive-for-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Is democracy too expensive for Nepal</a>?Even though the UML’s Oli did not attend the convention, he is said to have called Dahal on the phone. The UML General Secretary Shankar Pokharel regretted the failure to maintain the unity of the erstwhile Nepal Communist Party (NCP) which comprised the UML and the Maoists.On Monday, Dahal presented his political report titled The Path to Socialism in the 21st Century before the seven-member closed-session that includes Krishna Bahadur Mahara, Giriraj Mani Pokhrel, Ganesh Shah, Parshuram Tamang, Parshuram Ramtel, Purna Kumari Subedi and Rupa Shrestha Maharjan.The Maoist Chairman also spoke at length about the need to resume ’Prachandapath’— his guideline to Maoist cadres on achieving a successful revolution that was discontinued after the introduction of the peace process, as well as the need to achieve ‘scientific socialism’ through  a peaceful movement.“The document includes reviews of where we went wrong in the past in terms of ideas, organization, structure building, and strategy,” Dahal had said on Sunday.Indeed, analysts have previously attributed the failure of the Maoists to rise to national stature to Dahal’s disinterest in building any kind of functional institutional party structure.Read also: <a style="font-weight: 600; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/purchasing-power/">Purchasing power</a>, Ramesh Kumar

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‘Tis the season of conventions in Nepal

Samsung Nepal has opened pre-orders for the Galaxy A57 5G and A37 5G. Both phones run Samsung’s One UI 8.5, featuring AI capabilities like voice transcription, Circle to Search, and photo editing. They feature a 50MP triple-camera system, a Super AMOLED display, and six years of OS and security updates.

Galaxy A series

The war in West Asia has exposed the fragility of the economic architecture Nepal has built on over two generations. If the conflict continues, growth across developing Asia will slow and prices will rise. For Nepal, this will be felt through higher living costs, weaker economic activity, and growing uncertainty for the millions of families who depend on remittances.&nbsp; Nepal now needs to structurally transform from exporting labour to investing in domestic job creation. &nbsp; The country's current path toward a knowledge economy has a blind spot. A <a href="https://iids.org.np/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/unleashing.pdf" target="_blank">report</a> by the Institute for Integrated Development Studies (IIDS) in Kathmandu shows that IT export companies alone generated 7,228 jobs and income for 66,509 freelancers.&nbsp; We are building digital labour export, not an economy that accumulates institutional knowledge. The Nepali Upwork developer and a migrant construction worker in the Gulf are engaged in the same economic activity, but with different tools. Nepal’s reliance on a <a href="https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.TRF.PWKR.DT.GD.ZS?locations=NP" target="_blank">remittance-driven economy,</a> means the country has failed to create enough <a href="https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/nepal/publication/unlocking-nepal-s-growth-potential" target="_blank">quality jobs</a> at home. For millions of young people, leaving the country is not a choice but a necessity to survive and support families back home. <a href="https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/nepal/publication/unlocking-nepal-s-growth-potential" target="_blank">Remittances</a> have no doubt helped reduce poverty. Thirty years ago, 55% of Nepal’s population lived on less than $2.15 a day, now it is 20% after the absolute poverty line was revised upwards. This progress has come at a cost — &nbsp;an economy that depends more on exporting workers than creating opportunities at home. This development reflects a deeper political failure to create meaningful jobs within the country. Since the democratic transition in 1991, Nepal’s leadership has largely recycled the same faces, with limited progress on job creation or industrial growth.&nbsp; Nepal cannot build a <a href="https://nipore.org/accelerating-nepals-startups/" target="_blank">knowledge economy</a> while its most ambitious people are outbound to Doha and Tokyo. We are also not just losing ‘labour’. We are losing the entrepreneurial risk tolerance of our youth.&nbsp; If the most ambitious 25-year-olds are abroad, who is left to support innovation and entrepreneurship? The same people who are working tirelessly abroad, are our biggest asset for development. Their work ethic and the know-how inurban renewal could well fit into the new RSP government’s mandate of 7% annual growth.&nbsp; The <a href="https://english.biznessnews.com/posts/-nepal%E2%80%99s-it-exports-cross-1-billion-" target="_blank">$1B milestone</a> of IT exports is a celebratory moment for Nepal. However, that cannot lead to a pathway to a $100 billion economy without innovation ecosystems that go beyond individual labour export. Companies like SecurityPal and industry associations such as NASIT have made significant efforts in building such an environment, recently championed by private sector leaders as a &nbsp;<a href="https://www.securitypalhq.com/blog/silicon-peaks" target="_blank">Silicon Peaks</a> model that emphasises a home growth tech cluster. The need to accelerate this transition is even more urgent with the escalating conflict in West Asia. &nbsp;The recent International Labour Organisation (ILO) <a href="https://www.ilo.org/sites/default/files/2026-03/Nepal%20LDC%20Graduation%20Employment%20Impacts%20Report.pdf" target="_blank">report</a> shows that LDC graduation is expected to adversely impact manufacturing with losses of $1 billion by 2030.&nbsp; If manufacturing takes such a large hit from losing trade preferences, then Nepal’s services and IT sectors need to structurally transform and shift from exporting individual talent to building firms. &nbsp; A generation’s frustration has finally forced a shift in Nepal’s political structure, handing the new government a clear mandate to fix failures. But the question still persists: what prevents Nepal from achieving sustained, productivity-driven growth? &nbsp;&nbsp; RSP is in the right place at the right time to put Nepal's economy on a firm footing. At the heart of Nepal’s economic underperformance lies a major development binding constraint: low returns to investment on projects.&nbsp; The government invests like a high-growth economy, with gross capital formation at around <a href="https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NE.GDI.FTOT.ZS?locations=NP" target="_blank">25–30 percent of GDP</a>. Yet economic growth remains modest. The problem is not how much the country invests, but how little it gets in return. One way to see this is by looking at how much investment is required to generate growth.&nbsp; Nepal needs large amounts of capital to produce relatively small gains in output (graph, below). For instance, in 2024, the ICOR was 8.29, this suggests that Nepal had to invest more than 8 units of capital to produce a one unit of additional economic output.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260406040412_605dc527641d2ff2dc5723ed8bbec946898331d5538a55b9941e32a0725bf811.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20260406040412_605dc527641d2ff2dc5723ed8bbec946898331d5538a55b9941e32a0725bf811" data-rendition-name="original" width="1827" height="925" loading="lazy" alt="Economy graph"> <figcaption>Source: Author's calculation based on a Growth Diagnostic simulation</figcaption> </figure>  This reflects a deeper issue in how investment is allocated and executed. Capital is often locked in low-productivity sectors or diluted by delays, inefficiencies, and policy uncertainty.&nbsp; As a result, even high levels of investment fail to translate into sustained growth. Until investment shifts toward productive, firm-building activities, higher spending alone will not deliver results. &nbsp; To reverse this, the government must focus on raising the returns to investment by enabling firms to grow and compete. This requires a shift from managing scarcity to creating an environment where capital can generate consistent and predictable returns. A central priority should be given to attracting and retaining both domestic and foreign private investment. Investors do not just respond to direct incentives, but also to policy stability in the country. Nepal’s economy cannot sustain high growth if its human capital continues to leave the country.&nbsp; The goal should not simply be to create jobs, but to build companies that scale, innovate, and compete beyond Nepal. This requires supporting sectors with strong productivity potential and ensuring that firms can expand without being constrained by infrastructure gaps or regulatory friction. Finally, the state must improve the quality of its own investment. Public spending should focus on lowering the cost of doing business through reliable electricity, efficient logistics, and digital infrastructure.&nbsp; The GenZ movement took two days to bring change. The economic transformation of Nepal might take a generation. The RSP can accelerate this transition, but only if it focuses on building a better investment climate for business and not just feeding the global labour pool. Kailash Raj Pandey is an MPA/ID and MBA candidate at Harvard Kennedy School and MIT Sloan School of Management and a fellow at MIT Kuo Sharper Center for Innovation and Prosperity.&nbsp; Siddhartha Raymajhí is a policy researcher based in Kathmandu.

Creating a firm future for Nepal

Know your Ministers

Prime Minister Balendra Shah on Wednesday broke tradition and met with 17 foreign envoys collectively, a move that was a notable departure from how his predecessors operated.&nbsp;
Shah had already set himself apart by talking less, listening more, and delegating to trusted friends. But by meeting all ambassadors at one go in the presence of the Foreign Ministry, he signalled a paradigm shift in how he wants Nepal to be seen: no longer just balancing India and China, but as a country confident about its <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/guest-editorial/tripolar-contestation-over-nepal">strategic importance and place in the world</a>.
In just two weeks, the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/rsp-dos-and-don-ts">RSP has sprung into action </a>on multiple fronts to implement its ambitious 100-point, 100-days action plan. It has taken short-term measures to mitigate the impact of the Gulf war, as well as medium- and long- term measures to streamline the bureaucracy. A few high-profile figures have been made examples of to drive the message home.
Earlier this week, the government recalled six politically appointed ambassadors, the most notable being long-serving Shankar Sharma from New Delhi. The Kathmandu District Court issued arrest warrants against former prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and his former foreign minister wife Arzu Rana on charges of money laundering and corruption.
Each ministry has been trying to clean up the accumulated rot from the past three decades: regulatory overhaul of microfinance, education, health and service delivery.&nbsp;
These actions widely disseminated campaign-style on YouTube and TikTok have made most Nepalis hopeful that the party they installed in power means business.
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BACKLASH
But such attempts to overhaul a long-entrenched political culture were bound to face backlash. In their impatience and enthusiasm to get things done, some of Prime Minister Shah’s ministers have over-reached.
It was common knowledge that government-paid advertising in the mainstream press was kickback-driven, but the PMO’s directive that official notices be published or broadcast only on state-run media has been denounced — especially as the media industry struggles to stay afloat.
More serious are some recent appointments by ministers of relatives and figures closely associated with the RSP to key positions. This has rankled because this party built its political plank on ending nepotism and graft.&nbsp;
News that Home Minister Sudan Gurung allegedly had not paid rent on leased land, which illegally encroached on the lake in Pokhara did not help. &nbsp;
Prime Minister Shah himself has come under scrutiny for appointing a kitchen cabinet full of male buddies from his time as Kathmandu mayor. To douse criticism he brought in as adviser investigative journalist Deepa Dahal, who has exposed corruption in high places of the previous coalitions.&nbsp;
Shah’s appointment of another political adviser Asim Shah to the head Constitution Amendment Task Force, is also seen as problematic. He is a filmmaker and former lawmaker, but does not have a background in constitutional law.&nbsp;
Even more controversial is the Cabinet’s decision to appoint RSP Chair Rabi Lamichhane’s legal counsel, Narayan Kandel, as Attorney General. Kandel used to be a UK permanent resident, and does not have as much experience practicing law in Nepal.&nbsp;
Kandel’s appointment drew flak and raised eyebrows, and with the pending legal cases against Lamichhane this appointment represents a flagrant conflict of interest.
Health Minister Nisha Mehta was also accused of favouritism after reappointing Junu Shrestha, wife of Labour Minister Dipak Kumar Shah, as member of the Health Insurance Board which had earlier suspended her. The Labour Minister’s rambling rant at the Board’s meeting on Tuesday has not helped the RSP’s image.&nbsp;
(UPDATE: On Thursday, Prime Minister Shah sacked the Labour Minister after the RSP found him in breach of the party's code of conduct and discipline. He served 14 days in the Cabinet, one of the shortest tenures for a minister in Nepal )
It is hard to know what <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/ball-in-balen-s-court">Balendra Shah is thinking</a>, and how Rabi Lamichhane is going to justify some of these moves. After all, making politics, governance, and bureaucracy a meritocracy has been the core tenet of the RSP, and it risks alienating its mainly youth base if these missteps persist.
But at least for now, most RSP supporters seem to be giving the party the benefit of doubt.

general-conventions

‘Tis the season of conventions in Nepal

Galaxy A series

Creating a firm future for Nepal

Know your Ministers

Nepal’s new government springs into action