The restructuring of the agriculture sector in Nepal has changed the overall governance system of the sector. In this context, we examined the current status and scenario of functions, institutions, and policies related to agriculture in order to illuminate further policy issues which require attention in the changed governance structures. A study was done in three Municipalities (one from Province 1, and 2 from Karnali Province), in Karnali Province overall, and at the Federal level. Qualitative methods, such as eight focused group discussions (FGDs), 50 key informant interviews (KIIs), and direct observations at selected institutions at all levels were undertaken to collect data. Findings revealed that the three tiers of governments have established institutions, and simultaneously are formulating policies according to their constitutional authority. However, the key findings from the FGDs and KIIs have clearly revealed that there is a distinct lack in coordination between the three levels of the governments. Furthermore, the deficit in institutional arrangements has been observed at Province level for several functions – such as the standardization of quality, implementation of regulations, and supply and management of seeds, fertilizers and pesticides. Another important observation is that the Federal level has heavy institutional structures with more implementation arrangements which contradicts the notion of decentralizing agriculture service delivery to local levels. The Federal level clearly needs to increase the support for establishment and strengthening of the institutional arrangements at local and provincial levels to ensure efficient agriculture sector federalization.
Keywords: Constitution, Governance, Unbundling, federal, local level, province
