Khom Raj Kharel

Purpose: This study aims to analyze the effect of investment diversification on the profitability of non-life insurance firms in Nepal, considering recent structural reforms and mergers. Design/methodology/approach: This study employs a quantitative, explanatory research design using panel data from 14 non-life insurance companies in Nepal over five fiscal years (2019/20–2023/24), with secondary data sourced from yearly reports of non-life insurance companies in Nepal. Regression methods using panel data have been used to study how investment affects profitability, taking into account past financial data and changes over time for each company. Findings: The results indicate that both investment (current and lagged) and total premium have a statistically significant and positive impact on the net profit of non-life insurance companies in Nepal, while employment shows no significant effect. Conclusion: Boosting profitability in Nepal’s non-life insurance sector requires a strategic emphasis on investment efficiency and premium growth through innovation and market expansion. Prioritizing employee productivity over workforce expansion, coupled with data-driven decision-making, will enable insurers to achieve sustainable long-term profitability. Implications: Policies should promote efficiency and productivity in human resource management rather than incentivizing workforce expansion, aligning with the sector’s long-term profitability and sustainability goals. Originality/value: This study uniquely analyzes investment diversification’s profitability impact in Nepal’s post-merger non-life insurance sector, revealing lagged investment effects and premium growth as key drivers, with actionable insights for emerging markets. JEL Classification: C33, O16, G11, G22

This study investigates the economic consumption of Nepal, focusing on the roles of remittances, financial development, inflation, and income. The aim is to assess both short-term and long-term relationships and provide policy insights. The research employs the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bounds testing approach to analyze time-series data spanning from 1975 to 2023. Data were sourced from the Ministry of Finance, Nepal Rastra Bank, and World Bank databases. Key variables include remittances, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, consumer price indices, urban population, and private credit. Diagnostic tests ensured the model’s reliability and stability. The findings reveal significant influences of remittances on private consumption, with urban population growth exhibiting a strong positive short-term effect. Remittances initially have a negative impact on consumption but display significant long-term benefits. Inflation shows a short-term stimulatory effect on consumption, while financial development (proxied by private credit) demonstrates a delayed negative impact. Cointegration tests confirm a highly significant error correction term (-1.49), indicating long-term equilibrium and an effective adjustment mechanism, with deviations corrected within approximately 8 months (0.67 years). Private consumption in Nepal is shaped by a dynamic interplay of socio-economic factors. Urbanization and remittance inflows are key drivers, emphasizing the need for policies fostering urban planning and remittance management. Addressing inflationary pressures and enhancing financial inclusion could further optimize economic consumption, contributing to sustained economic growth and stability.

Local government-led school management has emerged as a transformative approach to enhance access, equity, and efficiency in education. In Nepal, decentralization reforms have sought to improve enrollment rates and gender equity, but their long-term effectiveness and challenges have received limited scholarly attention. This study evaluates the impact of local governance on enrollment trends using a mixed-methods approach, analyzing quantitative data from World Bank Indicator (1999–2023) and contextualizing findings with qualitative insights. Fully Modified Ordinary Least Squares (FMOLS) regression was employed to examine long-run relationships and structural changes. The results reveal a significant post- 2017 boost in primary enrollment rates, driven by decentralization reforms, but also indicate a declining growth rate in enrollment thereafter. Regarding the key variables, Net Enrollment Rates (NER), Gross Enrollment Rates (GER), and Gender Parity Index (GPI) demonstrate progress, with GPI achieving parity in primary education by 2012. However, challenges persist, including disparities in secondary education, a decline in secondary GPI, and increasing reliance on private schooling, which raises equity concerns. The FMOLS findings underscore the transformative potential of decentralization while highlighting systemic gaps in retention, public school competitiveness, and regional equity. Strengthening local leadership, addressing socio-economic barriers, and reducing disparities are essential to sustain progress. Nepal’s experience demonstrates that while local government-led reforms can ignite progress, targeted interventions are critical to ensuring inclusive and equitable educational outcomes.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the role that remittances play in enhancing the economic and social resilience of Nepal’s tourism industry in the face of socioeconomic challenges. This research highlights how remittance inflows are a financial mechanism that sustains and stabilizes the tourism industry. Rather than viewing remittances and tourism income as complementary sources of revenue, this research focuses on how remittances serve as a source of revenue. The study investigates the short-term and long-term relationships between remittances and tourism income by employing time-series data from 1975 to 2023, applying the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model, and conducting Granger causality tests. According to the findings, remittances significantly contribute to the tourism industry by increasing households’ disposable income, boosting the demand for domestic tourism, and opening up opportunities for infrastructure development. Furthermore, the Granger Causality test results indicate that remittances serve as a financial buffer, thereby mitigating the adverse effects of economic downturns and external shocks on the tourism industry. These findings highlight the importance of incorporating remittance flows into tourism development strategies to guarantee the sector’s capacity for adaptation and sustainability during economic uncertainty.

This study aims to examine the relationship between teachers’ professional development and its impact on students’ academic achievement at the educational institutions of Kaski, Nepal. Finding a consistent professional orientation was the goal of the study to improve academic performance and subsequently support quality enhancement. It used convenience sampling techniques to collect empirical shreds of evidence from one hundred thirty-five teachers of twenty-four schools in Kaski, Nepal by using close-ended questionnaires. The findings of the study show that the chi-square (X2) test of the empirical evidence showed a positive relationship between the improved pedagogical efficiency of the teachers and the augmentation of the achievement level of the academic institutions. The correlation matrix shows significant insights into the relations among many elements of the school environment and teacher evaluations. The study's conclusion reveals a substantial co-relationship between in-service professional development and institutional achievement level leading to the conclusion that appropriate professional training positively impacts academic outcomes. The policymakers, educationists, and related stakeholders, the conclusion of this empirical research can be of significant reinforcement for the amendment of the existing educational policy to make up for the inadequacy of the current instructional strategies and generalize the results to improve the quality achievement of the service pursuers-students.

This study aims to examine the relationship between CO2 emissions, forest area, and GDP in each South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) country. This study uses a panel dataset that spans South Asian countries from 1990 to 2020 for econometric analysis. The Fully Modified Least Squares (FMOLS) method adds annual forested area to the regression model. The study results show that India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka must prioritize decoupling CO2 emissions from economic growth, as their strong correlation shows significant environmental costs of development. Although Bangladesh, Bhutan, and the Maldives are in a slightly better position, they need strategies to manage emissions as they progress economically. The study once again revealed a relationship between a 1% increase in GDP and a 0.68% rise in CO2 emissions, whereas a 1% increase in forest area led to a slightly higher 0.79% rise in CO2 over the period. The hypotheses testing results confirm a positive correlation between economic growth and carbon dioxide emissions in SAARC countries, indicating that emissions rise as economies expand. Additionally, a negative relationship was found between forest area and carbon dioxide emissions, where larger forest coverage is linked to lower emissions. The conclusion is that an increase in forest area is associated with a relatively small increase in CO2 emissions, indicating that the relationship between forest area and CO2 emissions is less pronounced compared to GDP.

Background: Nepal is struggling to improve its education system due to financial deficiency, social disparities, and political instability. The government relies heavily on international aid for education improvement. Nepal's education system shows foreign aid's potential and limitations in sustainable development. Foreign aid, GDP per capita, and government spending affect Nepalese youth literacy and gross enrollment rates. This aims to examine the aid effectiveness in school enrollment and GDP growth in Nepal. Methods: This study has employed an econometric approach based on ARDL and Granger causality tests. Model I focuses on youth literacy rates as a measure of educational outcomes, while Model II examines gross enrollment ratios to assess access to education. Results: The results reveal a significant long-term role of foreign aid in improving literacy outcomes, whereas GDP per capita emerges as a critical determinant of enrollment. Granger causality tests highlight bidirectional relationships, showing how literacy improvements influence foreign aid allocation and GDP growth. The findings underscore the importance of aligning aid strategies with local priorities and enhancing the efficiency of public spending to achieve sustained educational improvements. Conclusion: This study contributes to human capital theory by exploring the interplay between education and economic development, emphasizing the need for targeted, sustainable interventions. Future research should focus on the role of institutional quality and demographic disparities in shaping education outcomes. Novelty: This study offers a comprehensive analysis of aid efficacy and its congruence with local requirements by incorporating perspectives from local educators, students, policymakers, and donor organizations.

This study investigates how various service quality dimensions affect customer satisfaction in commercial banks across Nepal. The objective of this study is to examine the impact of key service quality dimensions (responsiveness, empathy, assurance, communication, and overall service quality) on customer satisfaction in commercial banks in Nepal. A survey-based quantitative approach was employed, collecting data from 399 customers in Nepal. The study utilizes multiple linear regression analysis and hypothesis testing to determine the relationship between these factors and customer satisfaction. The results indicate that communication, assurance, and service quality positively influence customer satisfaction, with a moderate mean score of 2.317949 out of 5 and moderate variability (SD = 0.479612). These three factors are key contributors, accounting for 41.5% of the variation in satisfaction, whereas empathy and responsiveness have weaker or insignificant impacts. The study concludes that enhancing communication and service quality is crucial for improving customer satisfaction, which is essential for sustainable growth in Nepal’s financial sector.

This study investigates cattle-related carbon dioxide emissions, their sources, and their effects on Nepal's environment. This research utilizes descriptive and analytical approaches in a quantitative manner to examine the complex connection between livestock populations and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in Nepal. A comprehensive analysis was conducted on the secondary data spanning from 1990 to 2020. Various statistical tests are employed to examine the existence of both short-term and long-term relationships between variables. The findings suggest that past CO2 emissions and the number of pigs has a significant impact on current CO2 emissions, while other factors do not appear to have a statistically significant effect. There is limited evidence available to establish a clear cause-and-effect connection between variables, except for the influence of poultry on cattle and goats, which subsequently impacts poultry. The model diagnostic confirms the suitability of the ARDL model, as stability tests indicate that the model's parameters remain consistent over time. This study explores the intricate relationship between livestock populations and CO2 emissions in Nepal, highlighting the importance of further research and policy interventions to promote sustainable environmental management.