Nepal floods deliver US$127 million blow to country’s economy amid climate challenges

September’s floods caused millions in damages, displacing thousands and threatening economic growth, as climate change exacerbates future risks

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A man wades through the waters of monsoon flooding in Roshi village of Nepal’s Kavre district on September 30. Photo: AFP

Published: 10:00am, 10 Oct 2024Updated: 4:23pm, 10 Oct 2024

Rajan Bajagain is faced with the heartbreaking sight of his home reduced to rubble, as the land where he once farmed is now submerged under a thick layer of muddy sludge.

The Roshi River, swollen in September, unleashed its fury upon his village in Panauti, located around 32km southeast of Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu. He said, the devastating flood left many people homeless and wiped out their hard-earned life savings.

“Our world has ended,” Bajagain, 53, said. “I lost everything I earned, and our source of livelihood has been washed away. Our farms and crops have been completely destroyed.”

Floods and landslides caused by torrential downpours wreaked havoc across Nepal, killing at least 236 people and resulting in widespread destruction. A preliminary government report estimates economic losses worth 17 billion rupees (US$127 million), but some economists say the figure could be even higher.

The World Bank ranks Nepal as the fourth most climate-vulnerable country globally. Scientists predict that adverse weather and natural disasters, such as floods, landslides, and glacial lake outburst floods, driven by climate change, will become more frequent and intense.

“It was unusual for that kind of flooding in September,” said Kabir Uddin, geographic information system and remote sensing specialist at the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development. “Climate change is triggering the problem and bringing along economic losses.”