Published by the Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives, Federal Affairs and General Administration, Prashasan, Volume 58, Issue 1, No. 143, is a 256-page peer-reviewed journal devoted to public administration and governance. Seven articles are presented in Nepali and seven in English, covering subjects ranging from cooperative regulation, local government employee management and public-value governance to wellness tourism, Nepal’s graduation from least-developed-country status, election manifestos, multinational companies, public participation in lawmaking and access to justice. The journal is also published digitally through Nepal Journals Online to broaden access to administrative research.
A major focus is the governance crisis in Nepal’s cooperative sector. One study reports around 32,965 cooperatives with more than 7.3 million members, approximately Rs 143.29 billion in share capital, Rs 1.125 trillion in savings and Rs 923.47 billion in lending, but argues that weak self-regulation, poor oversight, conflicts of interest and departure from member-centred principles have placed the sector under severe strain. It recommends stronger enforcement by the National Cooperative Regulatory Authority, temporary suspension of new registrations, tighter monitoring of troubled institutions, protection and return of small deposits, stronger credit-information and deposit-protection mechanisms, restructuring and merger of weak cooperatives, and clearer accountability for directors and regulators.
Another major theme is civil-service and local-government reform. The journal identifies continuing uncertainty caused by the absence of a comprehensive federal civil-service framework, multiple categories of staff working under different service conditions, political interference, weak career progression, excessive reliance on contract employees and shortages of skilled technical personnel at local level. Proposed reforms include an integrated civil service, predictable intergovernmental transfers and promotions, stronger training and digital administration, equal benefits for local employees and more stable local administrative leadership. A separate study on inclusion finds that affirmative-action policies have significantly increased representation of women and marginalized groups, but workplace barriers such as patriarchal culture, caste stigma, implicit bias, microaggressions and exclusion from informal power networks continue to limit genuine emotional inclusion and advancement.
The English-language studies broaden the journal’s focus to public participation in lawmaking, judicial review, political influence on service delivery, digital procurement, access to justice and international trade. They call for stronger public participation frameworks, better enforcement of court decisions, reduced judicial delays, improved legal aid and institutional capacity, and wider use of transparent digital procurement systems. The trade study, based on 46 partner countries and data from 2001–2022, finds that larger partner economies positively influence Nepal’s trade while geographical distance remains a major constraint, reinforcing the need for trade diversification, improved connectivity and policies that better exploit Nepal’s unrealized export potential.
