Nepal's Public Debt Rises to NPR 2.87 Trillion by Mid-Fiscal Year

The total public debt in Nepal, which stood at NPR 2.674 trillion at the beginning of the current fiscal year 2082/83, reached NPR 2.878 trillion by the end of Falgun, according to the Public Debt Management Office. The office stated that government debt increased by NPR 204.24 billion in the last eight months alone.

According to the office, as of this period, the government has outstanding domestic debt of NPR 1.348 trillion and external debt of NPR 1.530 trillion. The share of external debt in the total public debt was 53.16 percent and domestic debt was 46.84 percent as of the end of Falgun. The total public debt currently stands at 47.13 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The government had set a target to mobilize NPR 559 billion in public debt for the current fiscal year, and by the end of Falgun, NPR 295.19 billion in debt had been raised, which is 50.44 percent of the annual target.

Against a target of raising NPR 362 billion in domestic debt for the current fiscal year, 67.31 percent, amounting to NPR 243.66 billion, has been collected so far.

Similarly, against a target of raising NPR 233.6631 billion in external debt, only 24.31 percent, or NPR 56.80 billion, was raised by the end of Falgun.

Furthermore, out of the NPR 411.01 billion allocated this year for the repayment of principal and interest on government debt, NPR 242.26 billion has been paid off by the end of Falgun. This represents 58.94 percent based on the annual allocation. The office reported that the total debt service expenditure as a percentage of GDP as of the end of Magh was 3.97 percent.