Foreign Investment Commitments Reach Rs 45.32 Billion in Current FY

Nepal received foreign investment commitments worth Rs 45.32 billion in the first ten months of the current fiscal year, according to the Department of Industry. A total of 728 projects were approved during this period.

Data released Friday by the department’s Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Section shows that 113 projects were approved in a one month period between mid-April to mid-March. Among them, 107 were approved through the automatic route and six via the in-person approval system. Commitments amounted to Rs 1.66 billion under the automatic route and more than Rs 1.85 billion under the manual approval system.

Of the 728 projects approved so far this fiscal year, 711 are small industries, eight medium, and nine large. The majority (58 percent) of projects were related to information and technology-based industries, followed by tourism-related projects at 26 percent. The department estimates that once operational, these projects will generate employment for 23,530 people.

Automatic Route Reform

The government introduced the automatic route for foreign investment during the Third Investment Summit in April 2024, initially allowing approvals up to Rs 500 million. On February 17 this year, the Department of Industry removed that ceiling, enabling larger investments to be approved automatically. Since then, both the number and value of commitments under the automatic route have increased.