Nepal's QR donation drive transforms flood relief after Bhotekoshi disaster

Nepal has opened large-scale digital donations to the Prime Minister's Disaster Relief Fund after the Bhotekoshi floods. The surge shows how QR payments and global card networks are reshaping emergency giving.Image used for representational purposes onlyNepal is seeing a sharp shift in the way disaster relief donations are being made, with digital payment systems allowing people in the country and abroad to send money directly to the Prime Minister's Disaster Relief Fund through a phone, a few taps and a QR code scan. The change has come into focus after the devastating Bhotekoshi floods of August 26, with the fund collecting more than NPR 10 billion by the 11th day, according to The Kathmandu Post.The campaign is the first time in Nepal that individuals have been able to make direct person-to-government transactions on such a large scale, sending money digitally straight into a government account. Donations have come from schoolchildren to global tech giant Nvidia, reflecting the wider reach created by Nepal's expanding digital payments infrastructure.For guitarist Bobby Lama of the band Mongolian Heart, the change was personal. During the 2015 earthquake and the COVID-19 pandemic, he joined rescue and relief efforts and carried cash himself to communities in need. The difficulty of going to a bank meant he never considered donating to a government relief fund. This time, after the floods, he scanned a QR code and sent money directly to the relief fund through mobile banking, the newspaper reported.During the 2015 earthquake, there was no similarly convenient digital channel for individuals in Nepal or abroad to transfer money directly to a government relief fund. Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle said digital payments and technology had made it considerably easier to collect relief funds. "For donors living abroad, we arranged for direct payments using dollar-denominated cards such as Visa and Mastercard. They no longer have to visit a bank or go through cumbersome international bank transfers," Wagle was quoted as saying in the report. Data from the Finance Ministry, digital payments company Fonepay and Nepal Clearing House Ltd (NCHL) show that electronic payments have emerged as a major channel for disaster donations. Of the 8,89,145 transactions processed through Fonepay's network, 8,15,219 were domestic QR payments made by people in Nepal, generating NPR 2.095 billion for the relief fund. Through NCHL's network, 2,46,614 transactions had been recorded by Saturday afternoon. Domestic QR payments accounted for the largest number, with 1,12,932 transactions generating NPR 390.5 million.Nepal's electronic payment systems are also connected to international networks, allowing Nepalis living abroad and international donors to contribute without traditional bank transfers. More than NPR 1.4 billion has been deposited directly into the relief fund through 93,850 transactions using international cards such as Visa and Mastercard, authenticated through the 3D Secure system. Contributions have also come through India's Unified Payments Interface, China's Alipay, Visa, Mastercard and UnionPay. By Saturday, UPI had generated NPR 4.854 crore for the relief fund, while Alipay had contributed NPR 1.797 crore. "In previous disasters, people had to go to banks and queue up to make donations," said Santosh Koirala, president of the Nepal Bankers' Association. "The digital transformation of banks and financial institutions now means anyone can easily send relief money through a mobile banking app," he said. The strengthening of Nepal's digital financial infrastructure has connected donors at home and abroad directly to the government relief fund.According to news portal ekantipur.com, Nepal's software and information technology companies have also stepped forward with financial assistance and relief materials for those affected by the floods. NAS-IT, the umbrella body of Nepal's software and information technology service providers, and the Computer Association Nepal Federation said they were trying to help with rescue and reconstruction by using technology along with financial assistance. Cedar Gate contributed relief materials worth NPR 130,000 for flood victims, while F1 Soft Group donated NPR 13.5 million to the Prime Minister's Disaster Relief Fund.The response to the Bhotekoshi floods has underlined how digital payments have changed relief giving in Nepal, making it easier for people within the country and abroad to donate directly to the government fund while broadening the scale of participation.With PTI Inputs- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Sep 6, 2026 16:22 IST