In the past decade, Nepal has made considerable efforts towards adopting digital technologies through support for entrepreneurs, enhanced financial inclusion, and access to better education and healthcare services in urban as well as rural areas. The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the private sector has visibly increased in education, health, and agriculture sectors, among others. The public sector, though slow to adopt these new technologies, has shown a keen interest in it nonetheless.
Now, with its first-ever comprehensive National AI policy approved by the Cabinet on August 16, 2025, the government has made it clear as to its intentions of using these new technologies to become a key instrument of socio-economic development in the country. The primary objective is to create an environment that will allow entrepreneurs and innovators to flourish while safeguarding privacy and security of data and maintaining ethical boundaries. It also mentions the development of skilled talent within the Information Technology (IT) sector in order to make it a more significant contributor to the economy. Further, the policy highlights the need to create a robust legal framework in order to counter the various possible negatives of the wider adoption of new technologies within existing frameworks.
Additionally, the government, through the creation of AI excellence centers in all provinces, aims to create hubs for research, innovation, and collaboration. The framework for these centers will be developed and governed by an AI Regulation Council to be chaired by the Minister of Communications and Information Technology. Along with other related ministries, this body will be tasked with the challenge of drawing up the regulations and guidelines that will govern the use of AI across both public and private sectors. The policies drawn up by the council are to be reviewed every two years so as to maintain its relevance as well as keep up with new emerging technologies and the challenges that arise along the way.
This comes at a background in which, at this stage, there are already several stakeholders in the private and public sectors that have taken an initiative to start using AI-based technologies within their respective industries. In the private sector, for example, Plantsat Nepal is helping farmers manage their crops more efficiently through the use of their satellite monitoring data. They are also working to digitize crop and livestock insurance in Nepal, aiding insurance companies to optimize operational efficiency. Geokrishi, another company working in agriculture, has developed an ‘intelligent digital agriculture platform’ with the aim to help commercial as well as small-scale farmers overcome their challenges through a more data-driven approach.
On the other hand, NAAMI, a not-for-profit organization, created by Nepali researchers, aims to work towards finding ways to use AI in tackling some key issues faced in remote areas of Nepal. Of the several research projects they currently undertake, one of them deals with using AI as a tool towards early detection systems for diseases such as cancer. Another of their research projects is developing AI chatbots that provide verified information specific to maternal and reproductive health to the general public. They hope to further expand this product into a possible outlet for health workers dealing with women’s health and counseling.
Similarly, in the education sector, Cognify is trail blazing the path forward with their cognitive learning app that caters to the individual needs of each student through custom-made learning exercises. One of their major goals is to reduce the drop-out rates in Nepali schools by making learning personal and accessible for everyone.
Meanwhile, in the public sector, the Lalitpur Metropolitan City (LMC) has successfully deployed a pioneering AI-based intelligent traffic light system in certain major junctions in the city to manage the traffic situation more efficiently. This system uses real-time data to adjust timings at traffic signals automatically, thereby significantly reducing the need for on-the-ground traffic police intervention.
The passing of the National AI Policy marks the beginning of the long and constantly changing road that is technology today. It is one of the significant factors to impact our social, political, and economic lives in the years to come, and the fact that our government has taken the initiative to have a national policy for it is definitely a positive sign. The policy hits all the right notes that one would expect from a national level program to develop and regulate the usage of AI in all its forms. However, translating words into actions is definitely going to be an uphill task.
We in Nepal are used to listening to tall tales without actual work taking place at the ground level. The country has many priorities to deal with on very basic issues such as health, education, food security, economic inequalities etc. And where AI stands in that long list of priorities is a great debate of its own. To conclude, one could say that it is a welcome initiative on part of the government to adopt a policy on AI, particularly relevant when it comes to the issues of data security and privacy. Yet, one cannot ignore the country’s lack of resources to tackle the great many issues that lie ahead of us and, in such a situation, whether spending on AI centers around the country is a prudent thing to do may not be the most challenging question one has to answer.
Shaheen is a digital product designer who leads teams to build products from scratch or improve existing products in chaotic environments. She works with global startups, agencies and service teams to solve complex problems by leveraging data, design, and behavioural psychology. She studied design from National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Bangalore India.
