About two-thirds of the telephones are in the Kathmandu valley, which accounts for less than 3 percent of the population.1 Twelve of the 75 districts have no direct service, and only 1,535 of the 3,996 Village Development Councils have telephone access. Though there are privatization plans, the Nepalese phone company is currently state owned. The Nepalese Internet got off to a later start than in most of the developing nations, with initial UUCP connectivity in 1994, the licensing of ISPs in 1997, and VSAT licenses in 1999. Today there are nine operating ISPs with about 9,000 accounts. Roughly 30 percent of those are commercial, but there are fewer than 100 leased lines and fixed wireless connections, and many accounts are UUCP e-mail only.
Activity is concentrated in Kathmandu.
Nepal's late start with the Internet has left little business activity. Looking at the Web sites that do exist, one sees further evidence of Nepal's late start on the Internet. Our Charge There had not been significant telecommunication progress in Nepal since the 1975 MIT study. The government has been slow to act, but Vaidya indicated it was now willing to make some investment. He asked us to make recommendations for projects and programs that might facilitate electronic commerce.