US Suspended Millennium Challenge Corporation Nepal Compact? No, Viral Claim Is Misleading

Claim
The US has suspended the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Nepal compact.
Fact
No, the US has not suspended MCC aid in Nepal. The viral claim is old and misleading.

A video claiming that the US has suspended its aid to Nepal under Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) is going viral on TikTok.

The United States Millennium Challenge Corporation Nepal Compact is worth approximately NRs 55 billion , has become the most hotly debated issue in Nepal with partners of the current ruling alliance arguing for and against the aid. Nepal’s Parliament ratified the MCC compact on February 27, 2022, following intense debate and the inclusion of a 12-point “interpretative declaration” The official implementation of the project was implemented on August 30, 2025.

Against this backdrop, TikTok user @realnepalstories posted a video claiming that the MCC Nepal compact has been suspended. Audio accompanying the video says, “The US has stopped the Millennium Challenge Corporation assistance to Nepal. The US aid project MCC activities have been halted. In a statement, the Ministry of Finance has informed that the payments related to MCC project have been stopped.” Text superimposed on the video reads, “MCC project has been cancelled in Nepal. Balen Shah has been working in the style of former King Mahendra. People’s victory and defence of national sovereignty.”

The video posted on April 18 has garnered 2668 likes, 208 people have commented and 91 people have shared it.

Newschecker found the claim to be misleading.

Fact Check /Verification

To check the veracity of the claim, Newschecker began by searching for the news related to the suspension of Millennium Challenge Corporation Nepal compact after the formation of new government under Rastriya Swatantra Party leader Balendra Shah. But we could not find any credible reports to substantiate the claim.

We then searched for news related to the MCC Nepal compact and found a recent news article, dated April 29, 2026, posted on Khaburhub online. The article carrying a photo of a US official reported that the upgrade of the 40-km Dhankhola–Lamahi road section along the East–West Highway has officially begun under the MCC Nepal Compact, indicating that the MCC Nepal compact has continued its work without any obstruction.

We also found another article, dated May 1, 2026, posted on Kathmandu Post online. The article noted that visiting US special envoy Sergio Gor and Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal held discussions on deepening bilateral cooperation with emphasis on expanding trade and advancing initiatives under the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC).  

On digging further, we found an article, dated February 19, 2025, posted on Onlinekhabar regarding the suspension of MCC. The news article reported that the Ministry of Finance officially informed through a press release issued on Tuesday that the MCA Nepal program has been suspended for three months.  Another article in the Kathmandu Post, dated February 18, 2026, noted that the suspension of MCC was in compliance with a 90-day freeze imposed by an executive order of the US President on January 20, 2025.

We found from several media reports (See here) that the suspension was lifted in July 2025.

Further, we also searched if the incumbent government led by Balendra Shah has made any decisions regarding the MCC. We did not find any relevant reports.

Thus, our findings clearly showed that old news of MCC Nepal compact’s suspension was exaggerated and shared in a misleading manner.

Conclusion

No, the US has not suspended the MCC Nepal compact. Neither the current Balen administration has made any decisions regarding the MCC Nepal compact. The MCC Nepal compact has been carrying out its tasks without any obstruction. Thus, the viral claim is misleading.

Result: Misleading

Sources
Kathmandu Post, May 1, 2026
Khabarhub, April 29, 2026
Onlinekhabar, Feb 29, 2025
Kathmandu Post, February 18, 2025
Kathmandu Post, July 26, 2025