It has been just over 100 days since Nepal witnessed a political earthquake, one that began with the Gen Z uprising on September 8–9, 2025. What started as a youth-led protest demanding good governance and an end to corruption and nepotism quickly escalated into a nationwide movement that toppled the established Nepali Congress-CPN-UML coalition government. The reverberations of this revolt continue to shape Nepal’s political, economic, and social landscape, sparking debates about generational change, the future of governance, and the country’s place between two global giants, India and China.
The immediate outcome of the Gen Z movement was dramatic and unprecedented. According to The Kathmandu Post, the youth revolt led to the installation of an interim government headed by former chief justice Sushila Karki—Nepal’s first woman prime minister. The House of Representatives was dissolved on September 12, and fresh elections were announced for March 5, 2026. In the aftermath, a three-member judicial commission was formed to investigate the violence and protester deaths, with its three-month term now nearing its end. The commission has interviewed nearly all key officials, save for former prime minister KP Sharma Oli, whose statement is still pending.
The government’s response to the unrest has been multi-faceted. On December 10, an agreement was signed between the interim administration and Gen Z groups, officially recognizing the September uprising as a ‘people’s movement’. Political analyst Hari Sharma told The Kathmandu Post, “It can’t be said that nothing has happened, nor can it be said that everything has happened. But the Gen Z movement has certainly brought a kind of tremor in the political process.” Sharma highlighted that the issue of intergenerational change has become more prominent, not only within political parties but also in other institutions and even families. “A mindset has developed that the voices of youngsters must be heard, which is in itself a positive achievement,” he said.
The scale of the protests and their aftermath was significant. The government’s own assessment revealed that the Gen Z protests led to the loss of 2,353 jobs and inflicted physical damage totaling Rs84.45 billion. A committee tasked with evaluating the losses and preparing a reconstruction plan reported on December 11 that employment for 2,999 people was affected and goods and services worth Rs13.84 billion were disrupted. The unrest saw major landmarks like Singha Durbar set ablaze and substantial damage to the Supreme Court and Parliament building.
Yet, the movement’s legacy is complicated. The UML party, which led the government at the time of the uprising, has claimed that the protests were infiltrated by criminal elements and hinted at conspiracies behind the scenes. Despite these suspicions, Sharma argues, “Conspiracy is the antithesis of democracy.” He cautioned against viewing social movements solely through the lens of hidden plots. Nepali Congress youth leader Shankar Tiwari echoed this sentiment, describing the Gen Z movement as more of a political upheaval than a conventional movement. “The modality of uprising may not be defined well using set political concepts,” Tiwari said. He pointed out that unlike traditional protests, this one was not called by a political party and lacked a formal organizational structure, making it difficult to institutionalize its gains. “Nevertheless, the Gen Z movement succeeded in placing the issue of change among political parties and this should be seen in a positive light.”
From a broader perspective, the Gen Z uprising was the culmination of a generational shift already underway. Sujeev Shakya, founder chair of the Nepal Economic Forum, told The Hindu that he had long warned about the disconnect between Nepal’s globally connected, youthful population—half of whom are under 25—and the entrenched, aging political elite. “I was seeing this coming, though not in this way,” Shakya said. He noted that in the 2022 elections, 81% of winners were new faces, signaling a shift that the 2025 youth revolt merely accelerated. “Now they’ve tasted what it’s like not having corruption in government services. That’s what they will expect.”
The interim technocrat government, despite its limited mandate, has already delivered tangible improvements in governance and service delivery. Disaster warnings for citizens and tourists, previously neglected, are now routine. “People are getting a sense of what government can do for them in service delivery and governance,” Shakya observed. The political landscape is also evolving toward coalition governments and the rise of new political forces. Campaigning has shifted from traditional methods to social media engagement, reflecting the influence of younger voters. As Shakya put it, “The medium has changed. You can use AI, you can use a big army to do this, but it won’t go that far. You can’t use the war chest to bring disruptions because the way social media and algorithms are designed, people will find out and good prevails over evil.”
Economically, Nepal stands at a crossroads. The country boasts around $20 billion in foreign exchange reserves, and remittances remain a cornerstone of the economy, accounting for 26.6% of GDP as of late 2025, according to Reuters. Migration is nothing new for Nepal: with Nepalis living in 174 countries and a long tradition of both internal and external migration, remittances are likely to keep growing. “Nepalis go and are liked. They’re preferred employees. People like to have them, and they move up the food chain quickly. The next generation gets better jobs, starts as entrepreneurs. The money cycle is accelerating,” Shakya explained.
Hydropower is another area of hope. With abundant water resources, Nepal is poised to become a regional energy hub, selling electricity to India and Bangladesh. “We have a market, production potential, and production know-how. That’s the easiest way for Nepal to move up,” Shakya argued. However, he cautioned that environmental considerations must be integrated into project planning, not treated as bureaucratic hurdles. “Shortcuts in environmental impact assessments can impact your bottom line and profits. It’s a realisation we need to have, not something you tick off.”
Geopolitically, Nepal’s position between India and China presents both opportunities and challenges. As Shakya noted, “In 2050, India and China are going to be the two largest economies of the world… When India and China were in that position, Nepal benefited as a transit state.” He suggested that Nepal could again serve as a bridge for trade and energy, but warned against playing one neighbor off the other. “Rather than getting into this, to say what can we get out of China, what can we get out of India, and how can we help these two countries trade with each other better.”
Still, the future remains uncertain. The 10-point agreement between the government and Gen Z groups is seen as a milestone, but even movement leaders like Amit Khanal ‘Urja’ express doubts about its full implementation. Political analyst Chandra Dev Bhatta told The Kathmandu Post that while the government has been preoccupied with day-to-day affairs, the real test will come after the elections. “The decisions of the government coming after the elections will determine whether the current political discourse will translate into action.”
For now, Nepal’s Gen Z has forced a reckoning with old ways of doing politics. Whether this generational tremor leads to lasting transformation or fades into another chapter of unfinished business will depend on the choices made in the months to come.
