Women’s leadership and investment are vital to many aspects of development, including economic resilience, community development, social fairness, global competitiveness, and long-term prosperity. Investing in women’s education and business generates tremendous social and economic benefits for entire communities. Prioritizing women in leadership and business improves economic stability and growth while also promoting inclusive and equitable development, ensuring a successful and sustainable future.
To ensure gender equality in all aspects of life, Article 38 of Nepal’s Constitution guarantees women’s rights, stating that women have the right to participate in all governmental bodies and to exceptional opportunities education, health, work, and social security based on positive discrimination. In addition, Nepal has a 33 percent reservation quota as an affirmative policy measure to boost female participation in political representation and civil service. In these fronts, some improvments have been noted, but the status of women in business in Nepal is still gloomy.

The Current Landscape of Women Entrepreneurship in Nepal
According to the International Finance Corporation’s Gender in South Asia report, women’s labor force participation rate in this region is 25.6 percent, compared to 74.7 percent for men. According to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2023, this way, closing gender gaps in this region will take 149 years. This index analyses nations’ progress towards gender equality in terms of health and survival, educational attainment, economic participation and opportunity, and political empowerment.
In Nepal, the Gender Gap Index rank fell from 96th in 2022 to 116th in 2023. Particularly, economic participation and opportunity saw a significant decline. This highlights the impact of Covid-19, that led to job losses or reduced working hours for Nepali female workers, alongside significant wage reductions across various sectors.
The gender gap in labor force participation is stark in Nepal, with only 26.3 percent of women compared to 53.8 percent of men participate in labor force. Further, females report a higher unemployment rate of 13.1 percent, which is 2.8 percentage points higher compared to males. Nepalese employees earned an average of Rs. 17,809 per month. However, in average, males earn Rs. 5,384 more monthly than that of females for the same job (Source: Nepal Labor Force Survey 2017/18).
For successfully running an entrepreneurial venture, a women shall be financially literate. Financial knowledge would help them obtain loans, make suitable investents, manage cash flows, budgets, and expenses, manage debtors and creditors payment cycles, and such. But, financial literacy score in male is higher than female by 7.5 percentage point in Nepal. Financial knowledge score of male is higher than female by 17.9 percent. Such a difference in financial knowledge between genders is found in all provinces. (Source: Baseline Survey on Financial Literacy in Nepal, 2022)
However, Nepal is slowly undergoing transformation in terms of entrepreneurship. Historically, the entrepreneurial scene in our country has been male-dominated, but we are witnessing a growing presence of women in various sectors, from agriculture and handicrafts to technology and social enterprises. The National Economic Census (GoN, 2019) states that there are 923,000 SME’s in Nepal, out of which 30 percent are female owned (22 percent in manufacturing and less than 10 percent in IT, but 40 percent in accomodation and food sector).
This is an encouraging figure, but it still points to significant room for improvement. Women in rural areas are also increasingly becoming active in microenterprises and cooperatives, supported by initiatives like Nepal’s Micro-Enterprise Development Programme (MEDEP), and jointly run by Government of Nepal, United Nations Development Program and Australian Aid. This program has helped more than 90,000 micro-entrepreneurs, of whom 70 percent are women.
Similarly, I am pleased to share that female participation in Nepal’s banking sector has improved significantly in recent years. For example, in commercial banks, whereas around 40 percent of all employees are female, the percentage is 34 percent at the officer level and 19 percent at the management level. The proportion of women on the Board of Directors in commercial banks is roughly 13.6 percent, whereas the proportion in top management is approximately 9 percent.
Female participation is also expanding in the Nepal Rastra Bank. The proportion of female employees has reached 27.2 percent, with 51.3 percent of female employees holding officer positions. And in this sense, I am pleased to report that I am designated in the capacity as Deputy Governor in achieving the central bank’s primary objectives. Based on this trend, we should expect to see more females in positions of leadership in the central bank.
Based on all of this, it is clear that the only way to truly achieve gender equality, long-term transformation, and continuous benefits for families and society is through substantial long-term investment for women’s empowerment. Sustainable female empowerment is a pressing necessity today, and it must be achieved through the creation of strong female leaders, leading both institutions and businesses.

The Role of Nepal Rastra Bank
As the Senior Deputy Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank, I am proud to share that we are taking significant steps to address these challenges through policy initiatives and financial inclusion programs:

1. NRB has been providing different types of concessional loan facility with interest subsidies to promote commercial agriculture, youth employment, women entrepreneurship, marginalized ethnic groups and such. The outstanding concessional loans amounts to Rs. 126.8 billion in 2023/24. Out of that, Rs. 38.29 billion loan have been mobilized for supporting entrepreneurial ventures owned by 71,886 womens. This is a key part of our strategy to address gender inequality in entrepreneurship.
2. Nepal’s thriving microfinance sector has proven to be a lifeline for women entrepreneurs, especially in rural areas. Currently, there are 5.99 million members in a total of 77 microfinance companies in Nepal. Out of which, 96 percent of them are women. Microfinance institutions provide small loans without collateral, enabling women to engage in small-scale businesses like farming, handicrafts, and retail.
3. Through the monetary policy 2024/25, NRB aims to revise the existing interest rate and cost related provisions of microfinance institutions and provide credit rescheduling facility to genuinely vulnerable customers. I believe that this would surely help women entrepreneurs.
4. Nepal Rastra Bank has recently published Financial Literacy Framework 2022. And accordingly, the bank has launched numerous financial literacy programs targeting women. We understand that financial inclusion goes beyond access to banking—it requires empowering women with the skills to manage their finances effectively. By fostering entrepreneurship from the grassroots level, these initiatives can lead to long-term, sustainable growth.
5. To foster innovation, we are also focusing on digital payment solutions that help women-led enterprises gain better market access. E-commerce and mobile banking platforms are being promoted, which allow women entrepreneurs to participate more effectively in the digital economy.

Challenges Women Entrepreneurs Face
Despite these advancements, women in Nepal still face considerable challenges in their entrepreneurial journey:

1. Access to finance is, defacto, limited: As per Nepal Financial Inclusoin Report 2023, the disparity between women and men with access to formal financial services had decreased to 1 percent (89 percent women versus 90 percent men) in 2022. However, in reality, women often struggle to secure loans due to lack of collateral, as property ownership in Nepal is still largely in the hands of men. Without collateral, it is difficult for women to secure the capital needed to start or scale their businesses.
2. Societal norms and gender bias is hindering the progress: Socio-cultural expectations still burden women disproportionately, often relegating them to unpaid domestic roles. Women entrepreneurs face not only gender discrimination in the marketplace but also resistance from their own families. Balancing business responsibilities with societal roles remains a significant barrier.
3. Limited training and mentorship is constraining potential growth: Entrepreneurial education and training, especially in rural areas, are still insufficient. Women entrepreneurs often lack access to business development services and mentorship, which are critical for the success and sustainability of their ventures.
4. Lack of market access is an obstacle : Women entrepreneurs often operate in informal sectors, producing goods that cater to local markets, and struggle to expand their businesses beyond their immediate geographic or economic circles.
5. Prevalence of Sexual Harassment demotivates women to take initiations : The prevalence of sexual harassment in the businesses and workplaces has adversely affected many organizations’ work environments. It violates fundamental human rights, including dignity and trust. I absolutely believe that its abolition is not just a priority, but also an urgent imperative.
6. Crisis has had an improportionate impact on Women-led businesses: While Covid-19 pandemic affected the overall economy, the extended periods of lockdown had significantly impacted women-led entreprises. Domestication due to lockdowns added responsibilites on women due to gender roles prescribed in our Nepalese society. This over-burdening of household chores made it difficult for women entrepreneurs to invest their time in their businesses.

The Way Forward
While the journey of women entrepreneurship in Nepal is gaining momentum, we have miles to go. We need to intensify efforts to close the economic and gender gaps. Women’s entrepreneurship is key to achieving this, as it contributes not only to economic growth but also to the overall well-being of families and communities.
I urge all stakeholders—government bodies, financial institutions, development partners, and civil society organizations—to continue their support. Together, we must create an enabling ecosystem that not only encourages women to start businesses but helps them thrive and scale.
To address the existing barriers in promoting women entrepreneurship, at first the government must continue to create policies and programs that assist and empower and invest in women while also promoting gender equality in entrepreneurship.
Second, women’s education is vital. It provides them with the knowledge and skills needed to excel in their ventures while also assisting them in breaking down gender barriers and stereotypes. Focusing on financial literacy will be effective in promoting entrepreneurship.
Third, establishing diversity and inclusion training programs, as well as enforcing zero-discrimination, will benefit entrepreneurial women. Fourth, government can work on provisions for child day-care facilities, hybrid work models with flexibility and remote work options, stringent legal provisions against sexual harassment, improved work culture, professional courses and mentoring, networking, and sponsorship opportunities.

Conclusion
As we look ahead, let us recognize that fostering women entrepreneurship is not just a matter of gender equality—it is a matter of national progress. By empowering women, we are empowering families, communities, and ultimately, the nation as a whole. Let us, therefore, commit ourselves to a future where women are not just participants in the economy but are leading it.