Govt receives Rs 99.2bn external loans,  less than 50 pc of target in 11 months

KATHMANDU: The federal government has received Rs 99.2 billion in external loans in foreign assistance during the first 11 months of the current fiscal year, which is less than half of its target of Rs 217 billion.

According to a report published by the Public Debt Management Office, the foreign loans received as of mid‑June amount to 45.72% of the target. In contrast, internal debt mobilisation is on track to meet its goal, with 95.45% – around Rs 315 billion – of the Rs 330 billion target already achieved.

Most of the foreign loans have been categorised under capital expenditure, serving as a source of funding for development projects. However, the slowdown in development activities has hindered the inflow of these external loans, said Gopi Krishna Koirala, chief of the Public Debt Management Office.

Koirala said that donor agencies largely provide financial assistance to Nepal in the form of project‑based loans rather than direct budgetary support. As a result, delayed or poor implementation of projects significantly impacts the receipt of funds. Overall, weak development expenditure has led to a decline in external loan inflows.

According to the Office of the Auditor General, as of Saturday evening, annual capital expenditure has reached only about 42% of its target.

Total government debt stands at Rs 2,654 billion.

Meanwhile, the Public Debt Management Office stated that the total debt the government has yet to repay is Rs 2,654 billion. At the beginning of the current fiscal year, total public debt was Rs 2434.9 billion, and by the end of last May an additional Rs 220.58 billion had been added.

As of the end of last May, total public debt is 43.47% of the country's gross domestic product. Furthermore, the share of foreign debt in the remaining payable debt is 52.0%, while domestic debt comprises 47.94%.

According to data as of mid‑June, internal debt stands at Rs 1272.53 billion and external debt at Rs 1382.12 billion. The government had set a target to mobilise Rs 547 billion in public debt for the current fiscal year. As of mid‑June, Rs 414.19 billion has been collected, representing 75.72% of the annual target.

For the payment of the principal and interest on government debt, Rs 329.6 billion has been spent in the last 11 months.

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