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Industry has not grown as planned

Which interventions create sustained, fairly paid work rather than only training enrolments?

Place-specific evidence and policy choices. A budget promise is not a completed service; older figures retain their reporting period. Proposed options and indicators below are for public discussion, not adopted government commitments.

Contested choiceA regional priority with choices about delivery and fairness

Which interventions create sustained, fairly paid work rather than only training enrolments?1

Updated 2026-10-13 · Version 1 · Sources · Change history

Question 1 What is the issue, and why does it matter?

The province's own review found that industrial production grew by an average of only 0.2 per cent a year in the first three years of its first plan, against a target of 13.3 per cent, and that apart from the Pundi Tar and Lokaha Khola industrial areas other industrial projects had not gained momentum. The first plan aimed for 10.2 per cent economic growth; the review expected about 4.23 per cent.1

The choice is how to improve outcomes in this province, who benefits first, and which institution can act. The figures below belong to the stated reporting period; they are not a real-time measure of today’s conditions.

Question 2 What do current law and policy say?

Federal: International trade (Sch. 5 item 18); industries and mines concurrent with provinces (Sch. 7 item 15). Provincial: Agriculture and livestock development, factories, industrialisation, trade and business (Sch. 6 item 20). Local: Agriculture, animal husbandry, agricultural extension (Sch. 8 items 15, 18); agriculture shared by all levels (Sch. 9 item 4).2

Federal: Criminal law and excise duty (Sch. 5 items 9, 30); the Narcotic Drugs (Control) Act and Liquor Act are federal laws. Provincial: 'Drugs and pesticides' are concurrent with the federation (Sch. 7 item 9) and must not conflict with federal law (Art. 57(6)); agriculture and industry are provincial (Sch. 6 item 20). Local: Local market management (Sch. 8 item 10); the Gandaki cannabis Act requires consultation with local levels before zones are set.234

Provincial executive power rests with the Council of Ministers. The Chief of Province (governor) performs constitutional and legal functions, generally on the Council’s recommendation and consent; the governor is not the department delivering these services. Provincial revenue and expenditure estimates go to the Provincial Assembly.5

Question 3 What is known, uncertain or disputed?

Known

The province's own review found that industrial production grew by an average of only 0.2 per cent a year in the first three years of its first plan, against a target of 13.3 per cent, and that apart from the Pundi Tar and Lokaha Khola industrial areas other industrial projects had not gained momentum. The first plan aimed for 10.2 per cent economic growth; the review expected about 4.23 per cent.1

Uncertain

A province-wide number does not identify the worst-served wards or prove the same problem in every municipality. Before spending, establish a current local baseline, service quality, staffing, access barriers and the full operating cost.

Disputed

The policy choice is how to balance universal access, concentrated investment, affordability and fiscal sustainability. The alternatives below are Policy Nepal’s discussion options derived from the problem evidence, not claims that officials or parties have endorsed them.

Questions 4–5 What are the options, and what do they cost and achieve?

Options are listed in no particular order. Policy Nepal does not recommend one; real policies often combine them.

Tie skills support to verified demand1

Ask employers and worker groups which occupations have vacancies, then fund paid placements and independently checked job retention.

Benefits
  • Connects training to work and makes employers share delivery responsibility.
Costs
  • Placement supervision, worker protection and follow-up cost money beyond classroom fees.
Trade-offs
  • Performance payments can exclude harder-to-place applicants unless inclusion is built into the contract.
What does implementation require?
  • Publish wage and safety conditions, recruit transparently, and check retention and earnings with workers after placement.

Remove business bottlenecks and support returnees1

Improve licensing, market access, reliable local infrastructure and advice for returnees before expanding untargeted grants or subsidised loans.

Benefits
  • Supports existing firms and self-employment as well as new businesses.
Costs
  • Needs capable advisory staff, market information and transparent beneficiary records.
Trade-offs
  • Credit can become a household debt burden when there is no viable market.
What does implementation require?
  • Use business survival, net earnings and additional jobs as measures; separate new migrants, repeat permits, returnees and people working in India.

Combining options

Start with a verified baseline and maintenance of functioning services, then test additional investment against the same outcomes. Publish who pays for capital costs, recurring costs and any household charges; an unfunded operating plan is not a sustainable solution.

Question 6 Who is responsible?

Shared
Agriculture, industry and local products

Federal: International trade (Sch. 5 item 18); industries and mines concurrent with provinces (Sch. 7 item 15). Provincial: Agriculture and livestock development, factories, industrialisation, trade and business (Sch. 6 item 20). Local: Agriculture, animal husbandry, agricultural extension (Sch. 8 items 15, 18); agriculture shared by all levels (Sch. 9 item 4).2

Shared
Cannabis and liquor regulation

Federal: Criminal law and excise duty (Sch. 5 items 9, 30); the Narcotic Drugs (Control) Act and Liquor Act are federal laws. Provincial: 'Drugs and pesticides' are concurrent with the federation (Sch. 7 item 9) and must not conflict with federal law (Art. 57(6)); agriculture and industry are provincial (Sch. 6 item 20). Local: Local market management (Sch. 8 item 10); the Gandaki cannabis Act requires consultation with local levels before zones are set.234

Provincial
Chief Minister, Council of Ministers and Provincial Assembly

Provincial executive power rests with the Council of Ministers. The Chief of Province (governor) performs constitutional and legal functions, generally on the Council’s recommendation and consent; the governor is not the department delivering these services. Provincial revenue and expenditure estimates go to the Provincial Assembly.5

Question 7 What have parties and leaders said and done?

What was said or promised is shown apart from what was recorded as done. Every entry needs a dated source. A missing entry means the position is not established, not that someone opposes or is neutral.

This dossier presents official evidence and research options. It does not assign a position to a chief minister, governor, mayor or political party without a dated source specific to this issue.

Said or promised

Position not established in reviewed sources.

Recorded actions and outcomes

Position not established in reviewed sources.

Question 8 What would progress look like, and when do we check again?

IndicatorLatest official figureOfficial targetRevisit
Employment retained after placement, with earnings and safety conditions1 Not established No official target found 2026-10-20
Business survival and net additional jobs among supported firms1 Not established No official target found 2026-10-20

Sources

Grouped by type of evidence. Government plans show what government intends; they are not proof of results. Party material shows what a party says.

Constitution & law

  1. The Constitution of Nepal (English translation, as amended by the Second Amendment, 2020), Schedules 4–9 — Nepal Law Commission, Government of Nepal, Promulgated 20 September 2015; amended 28 February 2016 and 18 June 2020 (as stated in the document). Schedule 4, list for 'Province No. 4', pp. 190–192; Schedule 5 (federal) items 7, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 22, 26, 27, 29, 30, 32, 34, pp. 193–195; Schedule 6 (provincial) items 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 17, 19, 20, pp. 196–197; Schedule 7 (federal–provincial concurrent) items 9, 11, 13, 15, 17, 18, 23, 25, pp. 198–199; Schedule 8 (local) items 4, 8, 9, 10, 11, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, pp. 200–201; Schedule 9 (all three levels) items 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 12, p. 202. Checked 2026-10-11
  2. The Constitution of Nepal (English translation, as amended by the Second Amendment, 2020): Articles 57, 60, 201 and 304 — Nepal Law Commission, Government of Nepal, Promulgated 20 September 2015; amended 2016 and 2020. Art. 57(6), pp. 34–35; Art. 60, pp. 36–37; Art. 201(2)–(4), pp. 102–103; Art. 304(1) and proviso, pp. 179–180. Checked 2026-10-11
  3. औषधिजन्य तथा औद्योगिक प्रयोजनको लागि गाँजा खेती (नियमन र उपयोग) ऐन, २०८३ — authenticated bill text — Provincial Assembly Secretariat, Gandaki Province, Authentication copy dated 2083/04/15 BS (from the file name). Preamble and s. 1(2) (commencement on a date fixed by Provincial Gazette notice), p. 1; s. 3 (cultivation zones designated by the provincial government after consulting local levels), p. 3; s. 4 (licence required; THC limit of 0.3 per cent, except under full provincial government control for medicine production for export or research), p. 3; s. 10 (five-year licence), p. 7; s. 18 (regulation unit under the ministry), p. 12; ss. 25–27 (use only for licensed purpose; ban on harmful varieties; rehabilitation centres), p. 16; s. 29 (export, sale and foreign investment to follow federal law), s. 30 (taxed as agricultural income), p. 17. Checked 2026-10-11
  4. Constitution of Nepal, English translation with first and second amendments — Nepal Law Commission. Articles 162, 166, 207–208; Schedules 6–9. English translation; Nepali text authoritative.. Checked 2026-10-13

Government plans & policy

  1. गण्डकी प्रदेशको दोस्रो पञ्चवर्षीय योजना (२०८१/८२–२०८५/८६) (Second Five-Year Plan) — Gandaki Province Policy and Planning Commission, Gandaki Province Government, 2081 BS. Ch. 1.2.2 provincial overview (per-capita income, remittance-to-GDP ratio, Pokhara declared tourism capital, 8 large and medium hydropower projects, 7 airports), printed pp. 4–5 (PDF pp. 17–18); 1.3 review of first plan (GDP share 9.1%, industrial growth 0.2% vs 13.3% target, tourism data gaps, food and livestock self-sufficiency, skills shortage), printed pp. 6–9 (PDF pp. 19–22); tourism situation ('प्रदेशको राजधानी पोखरा'; about 40% of foreign tourists; 245,000 average annual visitors; about 5 days' stay), printed p. 104 (PDF p. 117). Checked 2026-10-11
Change history
  1. 2026-10-13 — Expanded the province challenge into the same eight-question format as national issues. (Regional issues deserve equally accessible evidence, options, responsibilities and tracking. Original dates and sources retained; policy options are editorial proposals.)