Generic Information
Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country located along the Himalayas and bordered to the north by China and to the south, east, and west by India. With an area of 147,181 square kilometres (56,827 square miles) and a population of approximately 29.16 million (as per the 2021 census report (cbs.gov.np), Nepal is the world's 95th country by size and the 49th most populous country. Nepal is separated from Bangladesh by the narrow Indian Siliguri Corridor and from Bhutan by the Indian state Sikkim.
Kathmandu is the nation's capital city and largest city. The mountainous north of Nepal which acts as natural border to China has eight of the world's tallest mountains, including the highest point on Earth, Mount Everest (Nepali: The Sagarmāthā). The plains of the Terai region are fertile and humid. And the mid-geographical hilly region between mountainous north and plains of Terai comprises 68% of the total land area of the country. The extreme variations in topography within a short distance from the world’s highest peaks in the North to flat lands in the South, presents great logistics infrastructure challenges.
On September 20, 2015 a new constitution established Nepal as a three-tiered federal democratic country (previously, one centralized authority) with seven provinces:
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Central or Federal Government based in Kathmandu, the capital.
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Seven Provincial Governments with 77 districts.
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753 Local Governments which include six Metropolitan Cities (Mahanagarpalika), 11 Sub Metropolitan Cities (Upa-Mahanagarpalika), 276 Municipalities (Nagarpalika) and 460 Rural Municipalities (Gaunpalika).
In terms of administrative divisions, each province is composed of 8 to 14 districts. The local level is composed of wards. There are 6,743 wards in total.
The table below shows the population based on the census 2021, however, the total population as per the recent data in Worldometers (https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/nepal-population/) is 31 million.
|
Province |
Capital |
No of Districts |
Area |
Population |
Density |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Koshi Province |
Biratnagar |
14 |
25,905 km2 |
4961412 |
192 |
|
Madhesh Province |
Janakpur |
8 |
9,661 km2 |
6114600 |
633 |
|
Bagmati Province |
Hetauda |
13 |
20,300 km2 |
6116866 |
301 |
|
Gandaki Province |
Pokhara |
11 |
21,504 km2 |
2466427 |
115 |
|
Lumbini Province |
Deukhuri |
12 |
22,288 km2 |
5122078 |
230 |
|
Karnali Province |
Birendranagar |
10 |
27,984 km2 |
1688412 |
60 |
|
Sudurpaschim Province |
Godavari |
9 |
19,539 km2 |
2694783 |
138 |
|
Nepal |
Kathmandu |
77 |
147,181 km2 |
29164578 |
198 |
For more information on Nepal's provinces, districts and local level, please see the following links:
Nepal is a developing country with a lower-middle-income economy, Nepal's gross domestic product (GDP) for 2022 was USD 40.83 b. (Nepal | Data (worldbank.org). The World Bank estimates Nepal’s GDP growth will decrease to 1.9% in the fiscal year 2023 and is estimated to grow by 3.9% in the fiscal year 2024.
Generic country information can be located from sources which are regularly maintained and reflect current facts and figures. For a generic country overview, please consult the following sources:
Nepal Wikipedia Country Information
Nepal Economist Intelligence Unit Information*
(*note - this is a paid service)
Humanitarian Info
Nepal World Food Programme Information
Nepal UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Information
Facts and Figures
Nepal Wolfram Alpha Information
