Central Nepal has been a region influenced by the mobility of its inhabitants for the past 200 years. This has become crucial in the recent years, mainly because of limited resources and lack of economic opportunities in the hill villages. Mobility has occurred for many reasons: bringing salt from the Tibetan border, bringing goods from the Indian border, working in the armies of Prithvi Narayan Shah of Gorkha since the mid 18th century and even in the distant past, when there has been movement to earn money and support livelihoods. This latter mobility includes foreign labour migration (for army and other jobs), long term and seasonal migration within the country and abroad. The impact of this mobility on village society and economy, particularly in the sustainability of livelihoods in recent times is described in this paper.
