Nabil Bank Opens Applications for Seventh Cohort of Nabil SSE Fellowship Program and New Certificate Course Cohorts
Nabil Bank Opens Applications for Seventh Cohort of Nabil SSE Fellowship Program and New Certificate Course Cohorts
KATHMANDU, September 16, 2026 — Nabil Bank Limited has announced the opening of applications for the seventh cohort of the Nabil School of Social Entrepreneurship (Nabil SSE) Fellowship Program, along with new cohorts of the Nabil SSE Certificate Course, reaffirming its commitment to promoting entrepreneurship as a pathway to inclusive and sustainable economic development.
Applications for both programs opened on Tuesday, September 15, 2026 (30 Bhadra 2083), and will close on October 12, 2026 (26 Asoj 2083). According to the bank, Nepali citizens at least 18 years old who have either started a business or hold innovative entrepreneurial ideas are eligible to apply, and selected participants must maintain a minimum attendance rate of 90 percent throughout the program. Nabil Bank said it particularly encourages applications from committed and capable entrepreneurs, including women, youth, and individuals from poor, disadvantaged, underserved, and marginalized communities working to build sustainable enterprises and contribute to employment generation and broader community development.
Speaking on the announcement, Nabil Bank CEO Manoj Kumar Gyawali said the bank is investing not just in enterprises but in the capabilities of people who can create sustainable economic opportunities within their communities through the Nabil SSE program. "As we open the seventh fellowship cohort and new certificate course cohorts, our objective is to identify committed entrepreneurs, strengthen their capacity, and connect them with the knowledge, networks, and ecosystem required to build sustainable enterprises and contribute to Nepal's inclusive economic development," he said.
Over its first five years, Nabil SSE has grown into a nationwide entrepreneurship development platform. Across both the Fellowship Program and the Certificate Course, the initiative has trained 1,580 participants, supported the establishment of 318 enterprises, and recorded 19,303 direct and indirect employment and livelihood opportunities, the bank said. The Fellowship Program alone has trained 113 fellows across six completed cohorts, reporting 93 fellow-led enterprises, while the Certificate Course has trained 1,467 participants and contributed to the establishment of 225 enterprises.
Established in 2021 as Nabil Bank's flagship Corporate Social Responsibility initiative, Nabil SSE supports aspiring and existing entrepreneurs in turning promising ideas and local opportunities into sustainable enterprises capable of responding to social, economic, and environmental challenges. The Fellowship Program, run in collaboration with the School of Management, Tribhuvan University (SOMTU), is an intensive five- to six-month enterprise development program for individuals with promising enterprise ideas, early-stage initiatives, or operating enterprises, combining practical learning, mentorship, peer learning, field exposure, and enterprise testing. The Certificate Course offers a roughly three-month, locally accessible, practice-oriented entrepreneurship program delivered through academic institutions, equipping aspiring entrepreneurs, students, early-stage founders, and existing micro and small enterprise operators with the tools to identify opportunities, test business ideas, and strengthen their enterprises.
For the current cycle, the Certificate Course is being offered through 10 academic implementing partners: Mahendra Morang Aadarsh Multiple Campus (tenth cohort), Birgunj Public College (ninth cohort), Monastic Secondary English Boarding School (fifth cohort), Campion College (tenth cohort), Budhanilkantha School (fourth cohort), Dibyajyoti Multiple Campus (sixth cohort), Kshitiz International (ninth cohort), Kohalpur Model College (fifth cohort), Surkhet Model College (fifth cohort), and Sudurpaschimanchal Academy (seventh cohort).
Interested applicants can apply through Nabil Bank's website. Nabil Bank is one of Nepal's leading commercial banks, and through its CSR initiatives focuses on financial literacy, entrepreneurship development, health, education, disaster risk reduction and management, and climate change.
