KATHMANDU: Nepal’s capital expenditure hit a decade-low in the last fiscal year 2025/26 (excluding the COVID-19 lockdown period of FY 2019/20), severely impacting job creation and infrastructure development.

According to the Financial Comptroller General Office, the government spent only Rs 190.84 billion on development, a mere 46.79% of its original Rs 407.88 billion target, and a Rs 31 billion drop compared to the previous fiscal year.

Development expenditure accounted for a meager 12% of the government’s total annual spending of Rs 1,583.42 billion.

In stark contrast to the sluggish capital spending, recurrent administrative expenditure reached Rs 1,043.99 billion (or 88.4% of its target), while financial management spending (primarily for debt servicing) saw the highest utilization at Rs 347.33 billion.