Short facts about the government of Nepal
| Country
name: |
conventional long
form: Kingdom of Nepal
conventional short
form: Nepal |
| Government
type: |
parliamentary democracy and
constitutional monarchy |
| Administrative divisions: |
14 zones (anchal, singular and plural);
Bagmati, Bheri, Dhawalagiri, Gandaki, Janakpur, Karnali, Kosi, Lumbini,
Mahakali, Mechi, Narayani, Rapti, Sagarmatha,
Seti |
| Independence: |
1768 (unified by Prithvi Narayan
Shah) |
| National
holiday: |
Birthday of King GYANENDRA, 7 July
(1946) |
| Constitution: |
9 November
1990 |
| Legal
system: |
based on Hindu legal concepts and
English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction |
| Suffrage: |
18 years of age;
universal |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of state:
King GYANENDRA Bir Bikram Shah (succeeded to the throne 4 June 2001
following the death of his nephew King DIPENDRA Bir Bikram Shah)
head
of government: Prime Minister Girija Prasad KOIRALA (since 22 March
2000)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch on the
recommendation of the prime minister
elections: none; the monarch
is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party
or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the
monarch
note: King BIRENDRA Bir Bikram Shah Dev died in a bloody
shooting at the royal palace on 1 June 2001 that also claimed the lives of most
of the royal family; King BIRENDRA's son, Crown Price DIPENDRA, is believed to
have been responsible for the shootings before fatally wounding himself;
immediately following the shootings and while still clinging to life, DIPENDRA
was crowned king; he died three days later and was succeeded by his
uncle |
| Legislative
branch: |
bicameral Parliament consists of the
National Council (60 seats; 35 appointed by the House of Representatives, 10 by
the king, and 15 elected by an electoral college; one-third of the members
elected every two years to serve six-year terms) and the House of
Representatives (205 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year
terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 3 and 17
May 1999 (next to be held NA May 2004)
election results: House of
Representatives - percent of vote by party - NC 37.3%, CPN/UML 31.6%, NDP 10.4%,
NSP 3.2%, Rastriya Jana Morcha 1.4%, Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal 0.8%, NWPP 0.5%,
others 14.8%; seats by party - NC 113, CPN/UML 69, NDP 11, NSP 5, Rastriya Jana
Morcha 5, Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal 1, NWPP 1 |
| Judicial
branch: |
Supreme Court or Sarbochha Adalat
(chief justice is appointed by the monarch on recommendation of the
Constitutional Council; the other judges are appointed by the monarch on the
recommendation of the Judicial Council) |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
Communist Party of Nepal/United
Marxist-Leninist or CPN/UML [Madhav Kumar NEPAL, general secretary]; National
Democratic Party or NDP (also called Rastriya Prajantra Party or RPP) [Surya
Bahadur THAPA, chairman]; Nepal Sadbhavana (Goodwill) Party or NSP [Gajendra
Narayan SINGH, president]; Nepal Workers and Peasants Party or NWPP [Narayan Man
BIJUKCHHE, party chair]; Nepali Congress or NC [Girija Prasad KOIRALA, party
president, Sushil KOIRALA, general secretary]; Rastriya Jana Morcha [Chitra
Bahadur K. C., chairman]; Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal [Lila Mani POKHAREL, general
secretary] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
Maoist guerrilla-based insurgency;
numerous small, left-leaning student groups in the capital; several small,
radical Nepalese antimonarchist groups |
| International organization participation: |
AsDB, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD,
ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol,
IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MONUC, NAM, OPCW, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNTAET, UPU, WFTU,
WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Damodar Prasad GAUTAM
chancery: 2131
Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202)
667-4550
FAX: [1] (202) 667-5534
consulate(s)
general: New York |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Ralph FRANK
embassy: Pani Pokhari,
Kathmandu
mailing address: use embassy street
address
telephone: [977] (1) 411179, 410531
FAX:
[977] (1) 419963 |
| Flag
description: |
red with a blue border around the
unique shape of two overlapping right triangles; the smaller, upper triangle
bears a white stylized moon and the larger, lower triangle bears a white
12-pointed sun | Source: World Factbook |
