An $85M World Bank Loan Is Backing a Major Push to Develop Lumbini

The Greater Lumbini Area Development Project, backed by an $85 million World Bank loan, aims to build out infrastructure around Buddha's birthplace and connect it more directly into regional Buddhist pilgrimage circuits.

The World Bank has approved an $85 million loan to support the Greater Lumbini Area Development Project, aimed at boosting tourism and infrastructure around Lumbini, the UNESCO World Heritage site marking Buddha's birthplace. The project is explicitly framed around strengthening Nepal's position as a spiritual and pilgrimage destination.

On the ground, one of the more immediate changes is a revival of electric bus services around Lumbini, aimed at giving visitors an eco-friendly way to move between the site's various monasteries and monuments rather than relying entirely on private vehicles.

The nearby Gautam Buddha International Airport is also part of the bigger picture — better regional connectivity there is meant to integrate Lumbini more directly into broader Buddhist pilgrimage circuits across South and Southeast Asia, rather than requiring a long overland trip from Kathmandu for every visitor.