The amount of rice and paddy imports is highly contradictory and ironic for a nation which takes pride in being an agricultural country, whose economy is heavily reliant on agriculture. While agriculture provides subsistence to a large population, it also employs a large section of the populace, contributing to the GDP. However, the present reality demonstrates our increasing dependence on foreign rice, a staple food item of the majority of Nepali households. It galls the heart to know that Nepal once used to export various brands of rice. Yet, rice imports soared to 103 percent in the first half of this fiscal year as compared to the same period last year. New data on rice imports tells a sad tale: between mid-July 2024 and mid-January 2025, Nepal imported over 381,000 metric tons of rice and paddy, an alarming rise from just 187,000 metric tons during the corresponding months of the previous year. Ditto is true about the surge in revenue collected from the imports of paddy and rice, which climbed more than double—from Rs 828 million to Rs 1.768 billion. These two incidents reflect the fact that our once much-touted self-sufficiency in paddy and rice production has gone down massively in recent years. Nepal does not produce enough rice to meet the internal demand, therefore imports around 800,000 metric tons of rice to feed its people. The huge demand-supply gap has led to growing dependence on the supply from across the border.
Our nation witnessed a surge in imports as its rice production has been marred by stagnation. Despite our yearly rice output going up, the rise of only 261,000 metric tons per year has fallen short of meeting the growing rice demand. This failure to meet demands sheds light on problems such as the lack of access to modern farming tools and techniques, improper and inadequate irrigation infrastructure, and, to an extent, a dearth of incentives for farmers. Likewise, the shrinkage of arable land with rapid urbanization is another factor that hinders Nepal's agricultural products. These are the reasons why Nepal has failed to meet the demand of a rising population, compelling it to look beyond its boundaries to bring the nation’s staple food, rice. Moreover, our government, whenever it faces a food shortage, is quick to rely on imports of food grains as a quick fix. To resolve the issue of shortages of rice supply, the government imports more rice. However, depending on imports often leads to price fluctuation while making the nation vulnerable to regulatory changes of exporting nations.
Don’t throw that rice water away, use it like this!
With food vulnerabilities growing, Nepal needs to revitalize the agriculture sector through government investment in modernizing the sector through the implementation of improved irrigation systems and providing subsidies for farmers for high-yield paddy crops and fertilizers. Protecting and expanding arable land from the ill impacts of urbanization should be prioritized. As many young people are abandoning agriculture for jobs abroad, leaving only an older demographic behind tending our fields, making agriculture appealing to them is necessary. Policies aimed at ensuring fair incentives and compensation prices alongside insurance against failures and providing grants and loans could help boost agro-products. The high surge in rice imports has corroded Nepal's identity as an agricultural nation. It reminds our policymakers to go for structural reforms in our farming practices. Failure to do so will only make our nation’s tag as an agricultural nation more ironic. We must regain our agrarian legacy, aiming toward genuine self-reliance on our rice and other crop productions. The best way to reverse the trend is to roll out a phased, achievable target backed up by an implementable action plan.
