Nepal is fundamentally an agricultural country with around 60-66% of the total population employed in agriculture forming the backbone of rural livelihoods. It contributes to one third of the total GDP but low productivity and climate vulnerability has been a major issue. Lack of proper policy, weak implementation and low farmer confidence has been prevalent as a result of low cultivation at present. While the government has been making some efforts encouraging farmers like mandatory insurance schemes and subsidies to promote commercial farming, a huge number of farmers are yet to receive the benefits in a sustainable way.
Agriculture generally includes farming, livestock, herbal production, and forestry, contributing significantly with the country’s GDP. However, the current situation of agriculture is under threat as cultivable land shrinks and production declines.
Nepal Facing High Import of Agricultural Products Every Year
As per the annual trade statistics of the Department of Customs, Nepal imported agricultural products worth Rs 400 billion in the fiscal year 2024/25 which is almost 54% higher than the import in previous fiscal year 2023/24.
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| Source: The Annapurna Times |
As of the fiscal year 2023/24, agricultural products worth Rs 256.75 billion were imported while it was 296.30 billion in 2022/23. The sharp acceleration of imports highlights the increasing gap between domestic agricultural production and growing national demand. While agricultural exports marked Rs 60 billion mainly for crops like cardamom, lentils, ginger, and tea.
Major imports include basic food items like rice, lentils, vegetables, fruits, cooking oil, maize, and livestock feed. However, all of the products mentioned could be produced in the country with effective policies and proper facilities.
Nepal imported cereals worth Rs 60.76 billion in the fiscal year 2024/25 while it was Rs. 45.78 billion as of 2023/24.
According to the survey conducted over the past 25 years, 50% of the crops reported diseases while 53.9% of the crops suffered from new insects or pests affecting the total yield. While urban areas experience 45.6% of new disease in the crops the ratio is 55.9% for rural areas. Looking at the same issue based on land topography, the mountain region (68.7%), hill region (50.3%) and Terai region (46.3%) face issues on the crops due to several diseases.
Talking about the disease issue deputy chief statistician at the National Statistics Office Hem Raj Regmi said,
“The situation is alarming.”
“The survey was intended to see people’s perception towards climate change, the most burning issue globally. Climate change literacy among people, mostly in rural areas, is shallow, but some exciting facts exist.”
Further, he added,
“Most of the farmers surveyed are not clear whether climate change is bringing diseases and low yields, but at the same time, they have a coping mechanism knowingly or unknowingly. Farmers have changed the cropping pattern. If they think rainfall will be below normal or drought, they switch to another crop.”
It is evident that Nepal has suffered various natural disasters over the past 25 years. Drought, being the major natural disaster, affects 44.87% of the household with flood affecting 13.87%, storms affecting 9.9% and landslides with 7.81% ratio.
While the neighboring country India is making a milestone in agriculture, it seems Nepal still has a long way to go. India has made major achievements in food production and self-reliance in cereals production over the past few years. India produced 196 million tons of crops in 1999-2000 while the number is pretty impressive with 303 million tons in 2022-23.
Agricultural Revolution is Must for Sustainable Nepal
Nepal has a lot of scope in the field of agriculture if proper plans and policies are implemented. The country can expand the production of high value crops like ginger, cardamom, tea, coffee, turmeric which already have strong demand in the international market. Nepal can capture the global market with its organic products like honey, coffee, and Himalayan herbs. Reports suggest that if the value chain is improved, Nepal could possibly increase exports of local products by 3-5 times in the next ten years.
Making digital agriculture possible and approachable for every farmer like smart farming, e-markets, and mobile apps for weather forecasts, farmers can connect to markets.
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| Source: Invest4land |
The Nepal Government has introduced several plans to promote agri-food structure. Prime Minister Agriculture Modernization Project (PMAMP) focuses on increasing overall productivity with pocket, block, and zone approaches. Though subsidies on seeds and fertilizers are still inadequate, the government focuses on it so that farmers and researchers can invest in innovation and modern forms of agriculture.
On the way moving forward there are certain steps that can make the agriculture stronger and sustainable:
Modern Farming can be an important step with a good irrigation system, promoting mechanization and high-yield seeds.
Promote Domestic Product supporting food processing, cold chains, and exports.
Youth Participation in agriculture with new technology and finance. Proper curriculum of agriculture in schools and higher levels.
Market approach establishing digital platforms and cooperatives linking farmers directly to the buyers.
Nepal heavily imports various crops, vegetables, and fruits from the neighboring country India to meet domestic demand. India covers a significant 40% of Nepal’s agricultural imports that include high volumes of tomatoes, onions, potatoes, spices, rice, and edible oils.
Talking about the import, trade expert Purushottam Ojha said,
“Obviously, the import figure for food is scary. It not only points to a growing dependency trend but also signals a potential threat to food security,”
“For a country like Nepal, a foreign exchange crisis can unfold anytime. Remittance, which funds the consumption, can drop too. How will you pay for food when you don’t produce it? It’s an emerging threat.”
“We have already seen the 2015 blockade when India cut off our supply of fuel, for which we are totally dependent on imports.”
The import trend increased when Nepal imposed the first coronavirus lockdown on 24 March 2020. Farmers were prevented for taking their products to market as a result their vegetables rot in the fields while fresh products from India easily crossed the border and reached every market.
Nepal’s largest food import is rice. Taking about the feeding habit of Nepalese, agro economist Krishna Prasad Pant said,
“Obviously, it’s rice. We did not change our eating habits. Now, even in the villages, people are buying food because it’s easily available if you have money. We are in an import trap because we are exporting our manpower.”
Nepal ranks at the 6th position for India’s overall exports of agri-food with imports valued at Rs 2.50 billion.
