Preparations are being made by the Nepalese government to set up two universities in Nepalgunj and Janakpur which lie in the mid-western and eastern parts of Nepal respectively. In a country where the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in tertiary education is estimated to be only about 17 per cent, adding more universities would generally be considered good news, however the seemingly unplanned manner in which this is being implemented has drawn criticism from some of the most renowned academics in the country.

Key issues that academics have with this decision of the government are:

• The poor state of existing universities brought on by budget crunch, decline in students, lack of infrastructure etc.
• Reduction in budget on higher education adding financial burden to existing students
• Seemingly political motives behind the location of the proposed universities
• Poor timing; the country is about to promulgate a new constitution. Further, the Higher Education Bill drafted in 2010 has still not been endorsed which would guide the creation of new universities.

To read more about this interesting issue please refer the links below.

For details regarding activities and opportunities in Nepal, please contact Abhinav Shakya (Head of SIEM operations in Nepal).

Email: abhinav.shakya@britishcouncil.org.np
Phone: +977-1-4410 798 ext 3154