Nepal
Previous Years
2019 | 2021 | 2023Open Budget Survey Results
Transparency
52
Public Participation
28
Oversight
52
Open Budget Survey 2025
Government budget decisions – what taxes to levy, what services to provide, and how much debt to take on – have important consequences for all people in society. When governments provide information and meaningful channels for the public to engage in these decisions, we can better ensure public money is spent on public interests.
The Open Budget Survey (OBS) is the world’s only independent, comparative and fact-based research instrument that uses internationally accepted criteria to assess public access to central government budget information; formal opportunities for the public to participate in the national budget process; and the role of budget oversight institutions, such as legislatures and national audit offices, in the budget process.
The survey helps local civil society assess and confer with their government on the reporting and use of public funds. This 10th edition of the OBS covers 82 countries.
This part of the OBS measures public access to information on how the central government raises and spends public resources. It assesses the online availability, timeliness, and comprehensiveness of eight key budget documents using 109 equally weighted indicators and scores each country on a scale of 0 to 100. A transparency score of 61 or above indicates that a country is publishing a sufficient volume of budget information, and that this information provides meaningful coverage of core fiscal data, enabling the public to understand government budget decisions and supporting informed public debate on fiscal policy.
Transparency in Nepal compared to others
How has the transparency score for Nepal changed over time?
Public availability of budget documents in Nepal
| Document | 2015 | 2017 | 2019 | 2021 | 2023 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-Budget Statement | ||||||
| Executive’s Budget Proposal | ||||||
| Enacted Budget | ||||||
| Citizens Budget | ||||||
| In-Year Reports | ||||||
| Mid-Year Review | ||||||
| Year-End Report | ||||||
| Audit Report |
How comprehensive is the content of the key budget documents that Nepal makes available to the public?
| Key budget document | Document purpose and contents | Fiscal year assessed | Document content score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-Budget Statement | Discloses the broad parameters of fiscal policies in advance of the Executive's Budget Proposal; outlines the government's economic forecast, anticipated revenue, expenditures, and debt. | 2024-25 | Not Produced |
| Executive’s Budget Proposal | Submitted by the executive to the legislature for approval; details the sources of revenue, the allocations to ministries, proposed policy changes, and other information important for understanding the country's fiscal situation. | 2024-25 | 60 |
| Enacted Budget | The budget that has been approved by the legislature. | 2024-25 | 28 |
| Citizens Budget | A simpler and less technical version of the government's Executive’s Budget Proposal or the Enacted Budget, designed to convey key information to the public. | 2024-25 | Not Produced |
| In-Year Reports | Include information on actual revenues collected, actual expenditures made, and debt incurred at different intervals; issued quarterly or monthly. | 2024-25 | 67 |
| Mid-Year Review | A comprehensive update on the implementation of the budget as of the middle of the fiscal year; includes a review of economic assumptions and an updated forecast of budget outcomes. | 2023-24 | 63 |
| Year-End Report | Describes the situation of the government's accounts at the end of the fiscal year and, ideally, an evaluation of the progress made toward achieving the budget's policy goals. | 2022-23 | 48 |
| Audit Report | Issued by the supreme audit institution, this document examines the soundness and completeness of the government's year-end accounts. | 2022-23 | 62 |
Nepal’s transparency score of 52 in the OBS 2025 is near its score in 2023.
Recommendations
Nepal should prioritize the following actions to improve budget transparency:
The OBS assesses the extent to which governments provide formal and meaningful opportunities for public participation across the different stages of the budget process. It examines participation practices used by the central government’s executive (including line ministries), the legislature, and the supreme audit institution (SAI), recognizing that engagement can occur across different institutions. Using 18 equally weighted indicators, the OBS evaluates whether these participation mechanisms are timely, inclusive, transparent, and responsive, in line with the Global Initiative for Fiscal Transparency (GIFT) Principles of Public Participation in Fiscal Policies . Each country is scored on a scale from 0 to 100, reflecting the strength of its formal public participation practices across institutions and throughout the budget process.
Nepal has a public participation score of 28 (out of 100).
Public participation in Nepal compared to others
For more information, see here for innovative public participation practices around the world.
Extent of opportunities for public participation in the budget process
(executive)
(legislature)
(executive)
(supreme audit institution)
Recommendations
Nepal's Ministry of Finance has established online platforms and digital consultations during budget formulation and during budget implementation but, to further strengthen public participation in the budget process, should also prioritize the following actions:
Nepal's Federal Parliament has established public hearings related to the approval of the annual budget, but should also prioritize the following actions:
The OBS examines the role that legislatures and supreme audit institutions (SAIs) play in overseeing the budget process, including how effectively they scrutinize budget proposals, monitor budget implementation and review government accounts. Using 18 equally weighted indicators, the OBS assesses the strength and independence of these oversight institutions and scores each country on a scale from 0 to 100. In addition, the survey collects supplementary information on the existence and role of independent fiscal institutions (IFIs), which can contribute to informed debate and enhanced oversight of fiscal policy (see box below).
The legislature and supreme audit institution in Nepal, together, provide limited oversight during the budget process, with a composite oversight score of 52 (out of 100). Taken individually, the extent of each institution’s oversight is shown below:
Legislative oversight
Audit oversight
Recommendations
Nepal's Federal Parliament provides limited oversight during the planning stage of the budget cycle and weak oversight during the implementation stage. To improve oversight, the following actions should be prioritized:
The benefit of establishing independent fiscal institutions
Nepal does not have an independent fiscal institution (IFI). IFIs are widely recognized as valuable independent and nonpartisan information providers to the Executive and/or Parliament during the budget process.
*These indicators are *not* scored in the Open Budget Survey.
Methodology
Taranath Dahal and Subash Dahal
Freedom Forum
https://www.freedomforum.org.np/
Organization Email Address: info@freedomforum.org.np