FDI commitments up 50% in seven months

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, Feb. 16: Nepal has received foreign direct investment (FDI) commitments worth Rs. 40.28 billion during the first seven months (mid-July 2025 to mid-February 2026) of the current fiscal year 2025/26.

According to the Department of Industry, FDI commitments during the review period included Rs. 3.25 billion through the automatic route and Rs. 37.03 billion through the approval route.

The total commitment is Rs. 13.44 billion (50 per cent) higher compared to the same period of the previous fiscal year. By mid-February of the last fiscal year, FDI commitments had reached Rs. 26.84 billion.

The government received foreign direct investment (FDI) commitments totaling Rs. 64.96 billion in the last fiscal year 2024/25.

A significant portion of this year’s commitments came in the very first month of Shrawan (mid-July to mid-August 2025), when pledges exceeded Rs. 24.10 billion. On the back of this strong start, total FDI commitments crossed Rs. 40 billion by the end of the seventh month.

The lowest foreign investment commitment was recorded in the month of Poush (mid-December 2025 to mid-January 2026), at only Rs. 599 million.

Similarly, around Rs. 8.98 billion in FDI commitments were made in the month of Bhadra (mid-August to mid-September 2025), Rs. 2.45 billion in Ashoj (mid-September to mid-October 2025), and Rs. 1.54 billion in Kartik (mid-October to mid-November 2025).

Likewise, around Rs. 1.91 billion in FDI commitment was received in the month of Mangsir (mid-November to mid-December 2025) and around Rs. 1.04 billion in the month of Magh (mid-January to mid-February 2026).

By mid-February, a total of 524 industries had been registered with foreign investment. Of these, 351 were registered under the automatic route and 173 under the approval route. 

The government has removed the upper limit for investment under the automatic route from this fiscal year to facilitate investment, the government of Nepal had streamlined the process for approving foreign investments of up to Rs. 500 million through the automatic route.

During the review period, most of the FDI is focused on small industries. A total of 507 small-scale industries have been registered while 8 large-scale and 8 medium scale industries were registered.

Category-wise, most attraction of foreign investment in terms of numbers of industry registration is seen in the information and communication technology sector during the review period. 

A total of 288 industries have been registered in information and communication technology sector. This accounts for 55 per cent share of the total number of industry registration under FDI. The tourism sector ranked second, with 150 industries registered, representing 28.6 per cent of the total.

Similarly, 35 industries were registered in manufacturing, 34 in the service sector, and 14 in the agriculture sector.

During the review period, only two industries have been registered in mines and one in energy sector. No industries were registered in infrastructure sector during the first seven months of the current fiscal year.

In terms of investment volume, the agriculture sector received the highest commitment at Rs. 21.90 billion. Tourism sector ranked second with Rs. 10.86 billion in commitments. 

Service industries attracted Rs. 3.54 billion, while manufacturing secured Rs. 2.40 billion in FDI pledges.

The mines sector received commitments worth Rs. 115 million, while the energy sector received Rs. 184 million during the review period.

The mines sector received the commitment of Rs. 115 million, and energy sector of Rs. 184 million during the review period. 

The industries registered during the period have pledged to create 20,896 jobs. Of these, industries registered in Magh alone have committed to generating 687 jobs.

According to the Department of Industry, total FDI commitments to date stand at Rs. 676.48 billion. A total of 7,762 industries have been registered so far, with a commitment to create 362,385 jobs.