Mapping and Assessment of the Transport and Energy Data in Nepal

Asia has the highest number of megacities with poor air quality. The region hosts the world’s two fastest growing economies and growing GHG emitters – China and India. Large transport and energy infrastructure projects are a main source of local air pollution and GHG emissions. Limited capacity of institutions and availability of credible information, however, hampers efforts to understand the impact of existing and new infrastructure as well as design policies and measures to reduce emissions. The World Bank has a large portfolio of projects and assistance in the region and it is imperative for the World Bank to be aware of the air pollution and GHG trends in the region, so as to proactively manage risks and enhance quality of its operations. Access to credible environmental data and information therefore is required in project preparation process and implementation phase for ex-ante analysis of environmental impacts as well as for monitoring, reporting and evaluation purposes.

In this context, Winrock International carried out mapping and assessment of transport and energy data in Nepal for CAI-Asia Center