A visual story · Economy

TheRemittanceNation.

One in four Nepali rupees now comes from abroad. How money sent home from Doha, Kuala Lumpur and Seoul rebuilt a country.

By the Nepal Explained data desk · 12 min read · Scroll ↓

Nepalis hold active labour permits abroad right now. That's roughly one in every six working-age adults.

Remittance inflow, NPR billion

In 2000, money sent home was a trickle.

At the turn of the century, Nepal received about NPR 36 billion in remittances, less than 4% of GDP. Most migrants went to India, and informally.

Then the Gulf started building. Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE needed workers, and by 2010 inflows had passed NPR 230 billion.

After the 2015 earthquake, remittance became a lifeline. Families rebuilt homes with money earned in Malaysia and Korea, and inflows hit NPR 665 billion.

Today inflows top NPR 1.4 trillion a year, about 25% of GDP. Only a handful of countries depend on remittance more.

The people behind the numbers.

“Six years in Doha built our house in Dhanusha. My son has never seen me in the monsoon.”

— Ram, 38, construction foreman

“I sent money for my sisters' school fees. Now one of them is a nurse in Kathmandu.”

— Sita, 29, caregiver in Israel

“The village has new roofs and fewer young men. Both are true.”

— Ward chair, Syangja

TheRemittanceNation.

Remittance inflow, NPR billion

The people behind the numbers.

Remittance built the houses. What will build the jobs?