Twenty-five emerging developers and innovators in Birgunj, Madhesh Province, have successfully built functional software applications using modern artificial intelligence (AI) development workflows during an intensive training program.The “AI-Assisted Software Engineering Training” program, hosted by the Birgunj Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI), concluded with a Demo Day where teams showcased their live products to mentors, peers, and industry representatives, followed by a graduation ceremony.Participants in the training worked in collaborative groups to address real-world challenges across various sectors, including healthcare, fintech, real estate, digital marketplaces, and digital accessibility. The program ensured balanced representation, including individuals from marginalized communities.This bootcamp is the second training program under the CODE (Creating Opportunities for Youth in Digital Economy) project in Birgunj. An earlier digital marketing and content creation training was held in October.The CODE project is funded by the European Union and supported by Swisscontact, Restless Development, and the Robotics Association of Nepal (RAN).Following the success of the Birgunj edition, Leapfrog Connect, the organizer of the bootcamp, has announced that the next iteration of this program will be held in Pokhara, Gandaki Province, in the coming month.Separately, the government plans to provide free online training in AI and prompt engineering to 2,000 young people across the country. This training, titled “AI with Effective Prompt Engineering,” will be organized by the National Vocational Training Academy, under the Ministry of Labor, Employment, and Social Security, in collaboration with ING Group and Gyan Bazar Online Pvt Ltd. The program will focus on the practical use of AI tools such as ChatGPT and Claude.More than 42,000 young people applied for the free online AI training within 24 hours of applications opening, causing technical issues and temporarily blocking access to the application form. The National Vocational Training Academy stated that applicant details are securely stored and will only be used for training purposes. A new application form was made available on the academy’s official website on Monday, November 2. Selected participants will be notified via SMS.It is not yet clear what the nationality of the 25 young participants in the Birgunj bootcamp is, nor how many of the more than 42,000 applicants for the government’s free online AI training will be selected.
Background
- The Birgunj AI-Assisted Software Engineering Bootcamp is the second training program under the CODE project, following a digital marketing and content creation training in October.
- In August 2026, the European Union announced two new grants, CODE and UDAAN, totaling 1.91 million euros, to connect scholarships, skills training, and youth-led projects in Nepal.
What happens next
The government has announced plans to complete the Hulaki Highway within the next three years, as stated by Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle during the budget presentation for the fiscal year 2083/84 (BS).
