World Bank: Rasuwa flood impact to limit Nepal's economic growth to 3.7 percent in FY 2083/84
The World Bank projects Nepal's economic growth to be limited to 3.7 percent in the current fiscal year 2083/84 due to damage to transport, hydropower, and industry caused by the Rasuwa–Bhotekoshi flood. With reconstruction and resettlement accelerating, growth is estimated to reach 5.2 percent in the next fiscal year 2084/85.
Kathmandu. The World Bank has projected that Nepal's economic growth will be limited to 3.7 percent in the current fiscal year 2083/84 due to the impact of the Rasuwa–Bhotekoshi flood on transport, hydropower, and industrial businesses. According to the report released by the bank on Tuesday, as reconstruction of damaged structures and resettlement of displaced people accelerate after the devastating flood on Bhadra 10, economic activity is expected to rise, with growth estimated to reach 5.2 percent in the next fiscal year 2084/85.
The report 'Nepal Development Update: Building Back Differently for the Future' states that the widespread damage from the flood will have a negative impact on economic activity. The report notes that damage to hydropower, solar energy, electricity transmission lines, and transport infrastructure from the severe flood that occurred in the Bhotekoshi River in Rasuwa on Bhadra 10 will affect electricity generation, manufacturing activities, and the movement of goods.
Although the flood's major economic impact will be on the industrial sector, the service sector is also expected to be affected due to disruptions in trade, transport, tourism, and financial activities. The report indicates that losses in the agricultural sector could have a significant impact on households and local livelihoods in flood-affected areas.
The World Bank's earlier preliminary assessment described the Rasuwa flood as the most damaging flood in Nepal since 1993.
At the report launch event, David Sislen, World Bank Division Director for Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, said that although the flood caused huge human and economic losses, reconstruction should be pursued as an opportunity to make infrastructure and development systems more resilient.
The bank has suggested prioritizing the reassessment of multi-hazard risks, improving the location and structural design of infrastructure, and building alternative structures in reconstruction, rather than merely restoring damaged structures.