KATHMANDU: Chief ministers of all seven provinces have agreed to establish a joint forum to press the federal government to fully implement constitutional provisions on federalism, citing delays in power devolution, limited fiscal autonomy and incomplete administrative restructuring.
The agreement was reached at a two-day interprovincial chief ministers’ conference organised by the Koshi provincial government in Biratnagar on Tuesday and Wednesday. The conference concluded with the issuance of the Koshi Declaration-2026.
The proposed Interprovincial Chief Ministers’ Partnership Forum will bring together all seven chief ministers to coordinate common agendas, monitor the implementation of joint commitments and promote cooperation on development projects. The chief ministers also agreed to hold meetings or conferences at least once a year to review progress.
The declaration identifies incomplete devolution of powers, inadequate provincial financial autonomy and delays in transferring administrative structures as major obstacles to effective federalism.
The chief ministers said unclear divisions of responsibility, delays in enacting necessary laws, difficulties in managing civil servants and insufficient financial resources had weakened provincial governments’ ability to exercise their constitutional powers.
Police adjustment emerged as one of the key demands raised by the provincial governments. Although policing and public security fall under provincial governments’ exclusive jurisdiction under Schedule 6 of the Constitution, the chief ministers said the required federal laws and institutional arrangements had yet to be fully implemented.
They called on the federal government to transfer police personnel, infrastructure, property, records and equipment to provincial governments to enable them to maintain law and order effectively.
The declaration also calls for the enactment and implementation of the Federal Civil Service Act in a manner that respects provincial constitutional powers. The chief ministers urged the government to resolve uncertainty surrounding the management of provincial chief secretaries, secretaries and chief administrative officers in local governments.
The provincial governments have also called for predictable and adequate financial transfers from the federal government.
They demanded the full release of fiscal equalisation grants and urged the federal government not to reduce allocations midway through or towards the end of a fiscal year.
The chief ministers also called for an increase in equalisation grants based on provincial expenditure needs and revenue-generating capacity, alongside a gradual reduction in conditional grants.
According to the declaration, provinces should have greater flexibility to allocate resources based on local priorities. The chief ministers also urged the federal government to stop using conditional grants to finance federal projects that overlap with areas under provincial jurisdiction.
They further demanded adequate funding to complete projects transferred from the federal government but left unfinished due to budget shortages.
The chief ministers called for legal and institutional arrangements allowing provincial governments to approve investments exceeding Rs6 billion in sectors under their exclusive jurisdiction.
They also demanded a fair and transparent distribution of revenue and royalties generated from hydropower, forests, mines and minerals, river-based materials and forest products.
The declaration proposes that revenue-sharing arrangements take into account the contributions of provincial and local governments to natural resource conservation and management, as well as the needs of communities affected by resource extraction.
The seven provinces have also pledged to pursue joint development initiatives in road connectivity and economic corridors, air connectivity, agricultural production and exports, tourism, energy, river-basin management and disaster preparedness.
They agreed to work towards removing unnecessary taxes and administrative barriers that obstruct interprovincial trade and investment.
The proposed forum is intended to provide a more permanent mechanism for coordination among provincial governments rather than relying solely on occasional meetings.
However, the effectiveness of the initiative will depend on whether the common demands translate into concrete action by the federal government. Progress on police adjustment, civil service management, fiscal transfers and investment authority will require legislative changes, administrative decisions and adequate financial resources.
The Koshi Declaration-2026 establishes a shared agenda for the seven provinces, but its implementation will be a key test of Nepal’s commitment to strengthening federalism.
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