Kathmandu. Nepal on Thursday banned social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram and YouTube among others for failing to register with the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology within the given deadline.
According to the notice issued by the ministry, the social media companies were given seven days from August 28 to register.
Even when the deadline expired on Wednesday night, none of the large social media platforms — including Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp), Alphabet (YouTube), X (formerly Twitter), Reddit, and LinkedIn —submitted applications.
However, TikTok, Viber, Witk, Nimbuzz, and Popo Live have been listed, while Telegram and Global Diary have applied and are in the process of approval, according to the ministry.
Facebook and other social media companies have not yet made any comments on the Nepal government’s decision.
The decision to ban social media platforms that do not comply with the registration process mandated under the directives for Managing the Use of Social Networks, 2023, was taken at a meeting chaired by Minister of Communications and IT Prithvi Subba Gurung, as per the sources in the ministry.
The ministry also directed the Nepal Telecommunications Authority to disable unregistered social sites. The ban will come into effect from Thursday mid night, the ministry sources added.
