Legal and procedural hurdles blocking rapid development: Minister Ghising

KATHMANDU: Minister for Urban Development Kulman Ghising has said that Nepal’s dream of rapid development cannot be realized unless existing legal and procedural barriers are removed.

Addressing the Ghar Nirman Fest 2025, organized by the House Construction Foundation on Saturday, Minister Ghising said outdated laws, complicated procedures and bureaucratic hurdles have become the main obstacles to development.

He said the government must declare a “Development Decade” and introduce an umbrella law to bring development projects onto the right track. Without such reforms, he warned, the country will fail to achieve the desired progress.

“Although budgets are allocated for development, we are unable to spend them due to implementation-related problems,” Ghising said. “Unless these legal and procedural obstacles are removed, the dream of rapid development cannot be fulfilled.”

Minister Ghising said a short-term government cannot meet all public expectations. Noting that he has already completed three months in office, he said his remaining two and a half months will be focused on improving the implementation framework of development projects.

Highlighting youth migration, Ghising said many young Nepalis would not feel compelled to go abroad if they could secure affordable housing, basic transportation, quality education and accessible healthcare at home. He stressed that providing these essentials through concessional loans and easy access should be a top priority for the next government.

“If youths are ensured access to housing, transport, education and health services, an environment will be created for them to stay in the country,” he said. “Economic transformation will begin from here.”

Speaking on housing construction, the minister said energy-efficient houses can be built using local resources and raw materials. He said using domestically produced construction materials would help conserve foreign currency while reducing carbon emissions and pollution.

“Only for brick industries, coal worth around Rs 30 billion is imported annually from India, which significantly increases pollution,” Ghising said. “If alternative technologies, electric energy, and locally produced bricks and construction materials are used, energy imports, foreign currency expenditure and pollution can all be reduced.”

Minister Ghising also urged citizens to elect political leadership capable of problem-solving and effective delivery in the upcoming House of Representatives election.