GDP of Bagmati Province to drop from 6.3 Percent to 1.4 Percent in current FY

KATHMANDU, May 17: Bagmati Province is projected to achieve the least economic growth rate in the current fiscal year.

According to the data unveiled by the National Statistics Office (NSO), Bagmati Province will grow by a mere 1.4 percent in the fiscal year 2022/23. In the last fiscal year, the province achieved a growth rate of 6.3 percent.

As the country is reeling under the economic slowdown, it has impacted the growth of the province that contributes the highest to the gross domestic product (GDP) of the country.  The NSO has estimated the country’s GDP on the basis of consumer price to stand at Rs 5.381 trillion, while Bagmati Province will have its GDP of Rs 1.981 trillion.

The fall in the growth rate of the province, which is home to the country’s capital, has been attributed to the heavy decline in the transactions of wholesale and retail businesses and construction-related activities. These sectors make out the larger section even in the overall GDP.

On the other hand, Gandaki Province is estimated to grow by 3.3 percent, the highest among all the provinces in the current fiscal year. The GDP size of the province will reach Rs 482 billion at the consumer price. In the fiscal year 2021/22, Gandaki Province grew by 6.4 percent.

Similarly, the growth of Koshi Province will be limited to two percent, down from 5.5 percent in the last fiscal year. In exact amount, the size of the economy of the Koshi Province will remain at Rs 849.65 billion.

The growth rate of Madhesh Province will fall to 1.7 percent from 4.6 percent. The size of the economy of Madhesh Province will stand at Rs 707.51 billion.

Lumbini Province will achieve a growth rate of 2.1 percent, a decline from five percent. The GDP size is estimated to be Rs 762.97 billion.

Likewise, the economic growth rate of Sudurpaschim Province will decline from 4.8 percent to 1.8 percent. The GDP size will remain at Rs 376.33 billion.

Karnali Province that has the least economic size will grow by 1.9 percent, down from 5.3 percent. The GDP size of the province will be Rs 221.53 trillion.

The NSO has projected the country’s GDP to grow only 2.16 percent this year which is far below the government set target of 8 percent. It is even below the average rate of 4.1 percent estimated by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.