Our investment is bringing fast, affordable broadband to underserved communities, improving access to digital services and driving wider market change
Connecting people to fast, reliable and affordable internet opens up opportunities for businesses, families and entire communities. Yet until recently, large parts of Nepal remained unconnected. In 2018, less than one-third of the population had internet access and only 6 per cent of households had fixed broadband subscriptions.
In 2019, we invested in internet service provider WorldLink, which had committed to expanding high-quality, fibre-to-the-home internet connectivity beyond Kathmandu Valley and into Nepal’s smaller cities and remote areas. Since then, the company has expanded from around 300,000 connected households to more than one million, with most of this growth from outside the Kathmandu Valley. Over the same period, access to fixed broadband across the country has increased sharply, reaching around 48 per cent of households by 2024.
The wider impact has been at a market level. By proving the commercial viability of fibre networks beyond major cities, WorldLink has helped to catalyse competition across the sector. This has contributed to a step up in service quality, with internet speeds increasing substantially while prices have fallen, improving access and affordability for consumers across Nepal. WorldLink has demonstrated that high-speed, reliable internet can be delivered at scale outside major urban centres, opening up access to digital services for businesses, households and communities that had previously been underserved.
