2025 A year in review
© 2026 Nepal Economic Forum Nepal Economic Forum P.O. Box 7025, Krishna Galli, Lalitpur 3, Nepal www.nepaleconomicforum.org
Document Prepared by Aashima Chalise Salina Kafle Sampada Regmi Suyasha Shakya Please write to info@nepaleconomicforum.org, if you have questions or comments with respect to the document or any of our publications.
Published by Nepal Economic Forum, January 2026
Introduction Nepal Economic Forum (NEF) is a premier private sector-led economic policy and research organization that seeks to redefine the economic development discourse in Nepal. Founded in 2009 as a not-for-profit organization under the beed (www.beed.global) umbrella, NEF is a thought center that strives to positively
transform
Nepal’s
economic
and
development
policies
by
strengthening the Nepali economy through various activities to promote an efficient and inclusive private sector. NEF has been featured in the list of Top Think Tanks in Southeast Asia and the Pacific in the Global Go-To Think Tank Index Reports from 2016.
Highlights from 2025 NEFartha
Nepal’s Gen Z Protest
4
Major Publications
Events
3
Monetary Policy and Citizens’ Budget reviews
Business Policy Research Center (BPRC) Business Policy Research Center (BPRC) consolidates NEF’s activities into a hub that takes a holistic approach to the issues, generates dialogue between the public and private sectors on economic growth concerns, and acts as a platform for information dissemination. NEF produced the following products as part of BPRC in 2025:
NEFport
NEFsearch
NEFtalk
NEFartha
NEFview
NEFtake
Did You Know
Weekly Economic Updates
NEFport is a quarterly economic publication that analyzes key events that occur across the review period. In 2025, each issue focused on a core theme: recovery from the 2015 earthquake in NEFport 60, the High-Level Economic Reforms Commission in NEFport 61, and Nepal-Bangladesh relations in NEFport 62.
NEFtake is a weekly blog that covers a wide range of topics and issues. In 2025, we published 42 NEFtakes.
NEFview is a weekly opinion piece on important and
view
contemporary topics related to Nepal and beyond. In 2025, 23 published 46 NEFviews.
NEFsearch is an academic research paper published by NEF that aims to create a platform for
cutting-edge
and
robust
economic
research. The aim of the NEFsearch is to draw attention to contemporary issues that are important and relevant for the economic development and societal growth of Nepal. We published one NEFsearch this year titled “Navigating Nepal’s Tourism Dilemma: Value vs. Volume and the Case for Diversification.”
Rethinking Migration and Remittance in Nepal (27 May, 2025) NEFtalks are
a
discussion
platform
hosted by NEF for policy discourse under various themes. NEF hosted one NEFtalk this year. The NEFtalk was a focused
policy
dialogue
on
Nepal’s
remittance economy, migration trends, and regulatory frameworks.
Weekly Economic Updates Weekly Economic Update is a weekly compilation of socio-economic news.
48 Weekly Economic Updates
DID YOU
KNOW Did You Know series is a short video series highlighting key facts from articles and reports published by NEF.
42 Did You Know
Other Publications Proceedings Report A proceedings report is a document that summarizes and records the key discussion points of a conference or event. NEF published one proceedings report in 2025 on “Dissecting the World of Remittances.” (June 20, 2025)
Monetary Policy This year we published a simplified version of the Monetary Policy for FY 2082/83 BS (2025/26 AD) and its First Quarter Review which explains the central bank’s plans to manage inflation, credit, and liquidity, along with key policy highlights and adjustments in Nepal.
Citizens’ Budget The Citizens’ Budget breaks down the national budget of FY 2082/83 BS (2025/26 AD) in simple language for easy public understanding.
About the Gen Z Protests Following the September 8-9 widespread youth-led Gen Z protests in Nepal that changed the political scenario in Nepal, NEF produced six analytical social media carousels, one in-depth NEFview, and two NEFtakes to assess the underlying economic drivers, policy implications, the country's political history, the upcoming elections, and the ramifications of the unrest.
Main Events NUS-ISAS Roundtable on Small States June 3, 2025
Collaboration with the National University of Singapore – Institute for South Asian Studies (NUS-ISAS) to examine challenges and opportunities for small states.
UNDP HDR Launch Nepal June 10, 2025 NEF facilitated the official launch of the Human Development Report (HDR) 2025, managing logistics, hybrid participation, and panel discussions.
Bangladesh-Nepal Roundtables June 13, 2025 ; August 03, 2025 The Kathmandu roundtable held on June 13, 2025, and a subsequent Dhaka roundtable on August 3, 2025 focused on bilateral trade, policy harmonization, and longterm cooperation between the two nations.
Main Projects UNDP HDR Launch and Panel Discussion UNDP | 2025
Facilitated HDR 2025 launch in Nepal, managing logistics, stakeholder engagement, hybrid event hosting, panel discussions, media, and event reporting.
Bangladesh-Nepal: A Renewed Outlook 2025
Ongoing initiative advancing bilateral cooperation through dialogues and research on trade, tourism, and policy harmonization to build long-term ties.
Building Capacity for Nepali Business for Export Australian Embassy | 2025
One-year initiative supporting 40+ SMEs (youth- and women-led) to expand exports to Australia through sector analysis, training, and B2B linkages.
Collaborating with Insurance Sector for Climate Action in Asia The Rockefeller Foundation | 2023, 2024, 2025
Regional project promoting insurance for climate resilience via industry reports, product design, stakeholder outreach, and consumer feedback.
Understanding Remittance Market and Economy FCDO | 2025
Study on Nepal–U.S. trade and investment, highlighting export opportunities, non-tariff barriers, FDI potential (agriculture, manufacturing, IT), and emerging products using 10–15 years of trade data.
Book Launch: Nepal 2043
Sujeev Shakya, founder and chair of NEF, published his sixth book, Nepal 2043: The Road to Prosperity, which presents a vision for Nepal’s transformation into a high-income country by 2043. The book reflects on Nepal’s strategic location
between
India
and
China
and
situates 2043 as a significant milestone, marking the start of a new century in the Bikram Samvat calendar.
NEFartha We released NEFartha in 2025. NEFartha is a dictionary that explains key terminology of the Nepali economy in a clear and accessible way. It is intended for students, policymakers,
researchers, and
others
interested in Nepal’s economic landscape.
Human Resources
Hired a People and Programs Coordinator
Hired an HFF Fellow
Hired a social media consultant
Upcoming in 2026 ... The Himalayan Future Forum will serve as a platform to ideate
research,
initiate
policy
dialogues,
and
disseminate information relating to the circular economy, renewable energy, and sustainability in the Himalayan belt. In 2026, the HFF will be a two-day event on February 6 and 7, with the first day being a formal event and the next day having a fair.
NEFsearch on Artificial Intelligence NEFsearch on climate-induced migration NEFport 63 - Artificial Intelligence in Nepal
P.O.Box 7025, Krishna Galli, Lalitpur - 3, Nepal Phone: +977 1 5548400 info@nepaleconomicforum.org www.nepaleconomicforum.org
2025 A year in review