KATHMANDU, Nov 28: After announcing the March 5 House of Representatives (HoR) election in the wake of the Gen-Z movement, the government has secured the funds needed to conduct the polls. Although the current Fiscal Year (FY) 2025/26 budget had not allocated money for the election, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has arranged the required funds by cutting budgets from fragmented projects.
The Election Commission (EC) had requested around Rs 7.5 billion, but the MoF has released only about Rs 5 billion for now. The budget required for security agencies is still being prepared. Although the plan is to mobilize around 325,000 security personnel, the exact expenditure has not yet been finalized, according to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA).
During the 2022 provincial and HoR elections, around Rs 9 billion was spent on security alone. The MoF said it has secured the budget required for the upcoming election.
With a commitment to provide additional funds if needed, the MoF has ensured Rs 4.96 billion for the EC, EC spokesperson Narayan Prasad Bhattarai said. “The Finance Ministry has committed to providing additional funds based on need as expenses arise,” he said, adding, “The election will not be affected due to budget shortages.”
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Although the government had allocated around Rs 8 billion for the 2022 elections, the EC later returned about Rs 2.5 billion after failing to spend it all. “Since we did not use the full amount last time, some reduction this year is understandable,” Bhattarai said.
Even as uncertainty remains over whether the election will actually take place, the EC has moved forward with preparations. The commission requires funds for staff deployment, ballot-paper printing, voter education, transport, and several other categories. More than 50 types of materials are needed to conduct the election, including voter lists, ballot papers, ballot boxes with lids, security seals, stamp pads, stamp ink, swastika stamps, and indelible ink.
In addition, ballot-box stickers, pens, candles, glue, envelopes, thread, needles, cards, tables, and even clocks are required. Reusable items—such as ballot boxes, seals, scissors, calculators, and mats—must also be supplied.
Beyond the EC’s needs, a separate budget is required for security agencies. The election will involve the Nepal Police, temporary police, Armed Police Force (APF), National Investigation Department, and the Nepali Army. A meeting of the National Security Council on Thursday decided to mobilize the army for the March 5 election.
The MoHA and the Ministry of Defense request security budgets separately, after which the MoF allocates funds. The security budget is currently being drafted, according to MoHA spokesperson Anand Kafle. “We estimate higher expenses this time compared to previous elections,” he said.
According to MoHA data, Rs 6.78 billion was spent on security during the 2022 local elections alone. For the 2022 provincial and HoR elections, the MoF had approved Rs 8.82 billion solely for security. The current plan to mobilize around 325,000 security personnel for the March 5 election has already been approved by a meeting chaired by Home Minister Om Prakash Aryal.
The plan includes recruiting about 130,000 temporary police. Additionally, around 79,000 Nepali Army personnel, 72,000 Nepal Police personnel, 33,000 APF personnel, and 130,000 temporary police will be mobilized. Because the current government was formed after the Gen-Z movement, no election budget had been allocated in the FY 2082/83 financial plan. After taking office, Finance Minister Rameshore Khanal redirected funds from small, scattered projects to cover election costs and the reconstruction of properties damaged during the movement.
More than 1,300 projects in the current FY’s budget were found not to have been entered into the Project Bank. The MoF has redirected the budgets allocated to those projects toward reconstruction and the election. According to Minister Khanal, around Rs 110 billion had been allocated to projects not listed in the Project Bank.
Additionally, after the formation of the new government, a meeting of secretaries led by Chief Secretary Eaknarayan Aryal decided that government employees would not accept allowances and that training and seminars would be held within government offices rather than in hotels. Around Rs 12 billion allocated under categories such as seminars and workshops could also be redirected for the election.
