ICT Sector Contributes 77.16 Million to Nepal's GDP

  1 min 23 sec to read
ICT Sector Contributes 77.16 Million to Nepal's GDP

April 19: Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) sector has been contributing Rs 77.16 billion to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS).

In an interaction held on Saturday by the Society of Economic Journalists of Nepal (SEJON) on the ‘Role of telecom sector in GDP’, Ishwori Bhandari, Director of CBS, said the contribution of ICT to GDP stands at Rs 77.16 billion. This accounts for 2.22 percent of the total GDP of the country.

According to CBS, in the fiscal year 2019/20, broadcasting sector contributed 0.48 percent, telecommunication sector contributed 1.47 percent and ICT contributed to 2.22 percent to the GDP. In the program, Prof. Dr. Pushparaj Kandel, Vice Chairman of the National Planning Commission said the contribution of this sector to the GDP is something to be proud of so ICT sector should also be developed as an industry. He said that ICT has been referred to as the driving force of economy in the 15th Plan.

 Minister for Finance Bishnu Poudel said more improvements are necessary in the ICT sector to develop the country digitally and it will be prioritized in next year’s budget. The telecom sector of the country earns Rs 100 billion annually and provides employment to around 60,000 people.

No comments yet. Be the first one to comment.