KATHMANDU, Aug 25: A decade after Nepal adopted its federal constitution, key laws needed to make federalism work remain unresolved. The current Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP)-led government has listed 166 bills for the current fiscal year, but several major bills directly linked to federalism have not been given priority.
The government has divided the bills into three phases: 64 bills in the first phase, from mid-July to mid-November (Shrawan to Kartik), 45 in the second, from mid-November to mid-March (Mangsir to Falgun), and 57 in the third, from mid-March to mid-July (Chaitra to Asar). Several laws crucial to strengthening the federal structure, particularly those related to administration, security, education and the economy, remain outside the top priority.
Delays in enacting laws governing the Federal Civil Service, Nepal Police, Armed Police Force, school education, forests and health have prevented provincial and local governments from fully exercising powers guaranteed by the Constitution. With authority still concentrated in Kathmandu, citizens have yet to fully experience the benefits of federalism.
The Constitution promulgated in September 2015 established seven provinces and 753 local governments, while also creating provincial capitals and local administrative centers. It guaranteed 33 percent representation for women in state institutions. Yet former National Assembly member and constitutional lawyer Radheshyam Adhikari says many laws needed to make these constitutional arrangements functional remain unfinished.
According to Adhikari, the absence of administrative and financial laws has weakened the practical impact of federalism. Structures have been created, he says, but the laws needed to operate them according to the spirit of federalism are still missing.
He has urged the government to prioritize federalism related legislation. Laws should also make it easier for Nepalis living abroad to invest in Nepal and establish a clear legal framework for the electricity sector. The continued absence of administrative, fiscal, education, energy and security laws, he argues, is gradually weakening federalism itself.
Experts also call for an integrated legal framework for nonresident Nepalis covering citizenship, property rights, tax exemptions and investment procedures. Clear revenue sharing, investment protection and stronger provincial economies are essential to building a sound federal financial structure.
Provincial govt undermines laws of local govts
The Constitution guarantees 33 percent representation for women in state institutions, while federalism has provided the institutional space to implement that guarantee. One analyst argues that it is therefore more accurate to say federalism opened the way to put women’s constitutional rights into practice rather than simply saying it secured those rights.
The analyst also questions why legislation concerning investment by nonresident Nepalis and the electricity sector does not feature prominently in the government’s list of 166 bills.
Apart from the Federal Civil Service Bill, legislation concerning police and school education has also been pushed into the third and final phase. Even the Federal Civil Service Bill, which was supposed to receive priority until mid-November (Kartik), had not been registered in Parliament by the first week of September.
Nepali Congress parliamentary party leader in the National Assembly Kamala Pant said the National Assembly’s Legislation Management Committee has identified 181 laws that need to be enacted, including 40 that require immediate attention.
“The Federal Civil Service, school education and police bills must be prioritized. Laws related to fundamental rights are also still pending. The government should revise its three phase schedule and prioritize these laws,” she said.
Experts say the reluctance of political leaders and the bureaucracy to transfer power from Kathmandu to the provinces is the main reason federalism related laws have remained stalled.
The Federal Civil Service Bill has already been approved twice by the House of Representatives’ State Affairs and Good Governance Committee but has failed to become law. The first version was passed by the committee and submitted to the House but was left pending after Parliament was dissolved. The government withdrew it after Parliament was restored in October 2021.
The bill was later passed again by the committee and the House and sent to the National Assembly with a message. It was under discussion in the National Assembly’s Legislation Management Committee when the House of Representatives was dissolved following the Gen Z movement, rendering the bill inactive.
Major disputes include who provincial secretaries and chief district officers should report to, whether party affiliated trade unions should be allowed, rules on entry into government service and career advancement, and the length of the cooling off period.
Police legislation faces similar disputes. Parliament has already passed the Police Adjustment Act, 2019 and the Nepal Police and Provincial Police, Operation, Supervision and Coordination Act, 2019. The Nepal Police and Armed Police Force Amendment Bill, intended to implement the federal police structure, was registered by the previous government before the Gen Z movement and had reached the House State Affairs and Good Governance Committee.
A major disagreement concerns control of security in Kathmandu Valley. The federal government wants the Valley to remain under the federal police through the Kathmandu Valley Police Office, while the Bagmati provincial government has sought greater provincial control. The federal Home Ministry has also sought to retain authority over the transfer and performance evaluation of provincial police chiefs, a position strongly opposed by provincial governments.
The School Education Bill has also been held up by disputes over teacher management, recruitment and internal competition for temporary and relief teachers, school ownership and trusts, private school scholarships and fees, teacher transfers, performance evaluation and the authority of local governments.
Under Schedule 8 of the Constitution, education up to Grade 12 falls under the exclusive jurisdiction of local governments. Yet attempts to place teacher management under the federal government or district education offices have faced strong opposition from local representatives, who say their constitutional authority is being undermined.
The bill had undergone several rounds of discussion in the House Education, Health and Information Technology Committee and reached an advanced stage before the House was dissolved following the Gen Z movement. Teacher protests over permanent appointments, transfers and pensions also forced changes to the draft.
Private school operators strongly opposed an initial proposal requiring private schools to convert into trusts within five years. The dispute further exposed the unresolved division of authority between federal and local governments.
With the police and school education bills pushed into the third phase, provinces face the prospect of remaining without full constitutional authority for even longer.
A study by the National Assembly’s Legislation Management Committee found that 40 major federal laws needed to implement the Constitution are still pending. As a result, 24 provincial laws and six local laws have also been held up.
Analysts say the government must identify the most urgent legislation and move bills currently placed in the third phase into the first phase. A fast track process may be necessary if the government genuinely wants to complete the unfinished work of federalism.
The 166-bill target is ambitious, but numbers alone will not make federalism functional. Unless laws governing the division of powers, personnel, finances, security and public services are enacted, Nepal risks having a federal structure in form while continuing to operate as a highly centralized state in practice.
