The Nation · Foreign aid · Multilateral
Asian Development Bank
एसियाली विकास बैंक
Nepal's largest active multilateral creditor and donor. Energy and transport-heavy portfolio.
Active portfolio
USD 3.5B
as of 2025-01-31
Latest annual
USD 380M
CY 2024
Modality
Loans + grants
since 1966
Sectors funded
6
active areas
How the relationship works
ADB has been Nepal's continuously engaged multilateral partner since 1966. The active portfolio of around USD 3.5 billion sits across energy (transmission, hydropower), transport (highways, airports including Gautam Buddha), water and urban, agriculture, and public-sector reform. ADB's posture is steadily expanding — Country Partnership Strategy 2020-2024 was extended, and Nepal remains a top-five South Asia client.
The short version
ADB is the biggest international bank lending and giving money to Nepal. It has been doing this for almost 60 years. Most of its money goes into power lines, roads, water, and farming.
Sectors funded
Notable projects
2000–present
2014–2022
South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) roads
ongoing
Tanahu Hydropower Project
ongoing
What to watch
- ·Project execution capacity inside Nepal — ADB itself flags slow disbursement as the binding constraint, not commitment shortage.
- ·Climate-window financing — Nepal is on track to absorb significantly more ADB climate finance in 2026-2028.
Sources · cited verbatim
Asian Development Bank — Nepal — Country Operations Business Plan & active portfolio
Open release checked 2025-01-31Ministry of Finance Nepal — IECCD — Development Cooperation Report
Open release checked 2024-12-15