Victorian Opposition Leader Jess Wilson has promised $1 million towards a new multipurpose hall at the Australian Nepalese Multicultural Centre in Diggers Rest if the Liberals and Nationals win government at the November state election.
The election commitment would fund the first stage of a purpose-built hall intended to give Victoria’s growing Nepali community a larger permanent venue for festivals, cultural celebrations, language programs, youth activities and interfaith events.
Wilson announced the commitment alongside Shadow Minister for Multicultural and Multifaith Affairs Evan Mulholland, ANMC president Dr Tilak Pokharel and Nepali community representatives at Parliament House.
The funding would be delivered in two instalments — $500,000 in 2027–28 and another $500,000 in 2028–29 — and would contribute to the hall’s core structure and essential infrastructure, including works needed to make the venue accessible, safe and weather-protected.
Wilson said Melbourne’s north and west were home to a large and growing Nepali community, but many major events still depended on temporary outdoor arrangements or rented venues.
“The Victorian Nepalese community has spent more than a decade building the concept of the ANMC from the ground up, through fundraising, volunteering and sheer determination,” Wilson said.
“The Liberals and Nationals are proud to back this community project with a $1 million commitment.”
The Australian Nepalese Multicultural Centre was established in 2014 and is based at 100 Duncans Lane, Diggers Rest. The organisation says it has more than 1,500 life members, owns about 15 acres of land and has raised more than $2 million towards developing the site. Australian Nepalese Multicultural Centre
The centre already operates as an important cultural and religious hub for Melbourne’s Nepali community, hosting Hindu and Buddhist activities, cultural events and community programs.
Its roots go back even further. Community reporting has traced the concept for a dedicated Nepali cultural centre to discussions dating back to the late 1990s, with the Diggers Rest land ultimately purchased in 2019 after years of community fundraising.
The proposed hall would be designed to support celebrations including Dashain, Tihar, Teej, Holi and Maha Shivaratri, as well as Nepali and Sanskrit language classes, youth and seniors programs, religious and interfaith activities and broader multicultural events.
Shadow Minister Mulholland said the centre had outgrown its existing facilities and argued the next stage of development would reduce its dependence on tents, parks and rented spaces.
“ANMC has outgrown its current facilities, with thousands of people attending major festivals like Dashain, Holi, Maha Shivaratri, Tihar and Teej in temporary outdoor tents or rented venues,” he said.
“This community deserves a modern, weather-protected facility they can call their own.”
The proposal builds on earlier Coalition commitments to the centre.
Through Victoria’s Multicultural Community Infrastructure program, the ANMC received $281,587 for works that included temple rooms, a meditation room, office space, upgraded toilets, a kitchen, parking, accessible facilities and an outdoor event area. The Victorian Government said those works had helped turn the centre into a hub for cultural, religious and community activity.
The Department of Premier and Cabinet’s 2024–25 annual report also records a further $16,501 grant to the Australian Nepalese Multicultural Centre.
That history means the latest Liberal-Nationals announcement is not funding for a new organisation, but rather a commitment towards the next major stage of an existing community centre that has been progressively developed over several years.
The need for larger facilities has become increasingly visible as community events have grown.
This year, the Melbourne Indra Jatra celebration at the Diggers Rest centre attracted about 6,000 people, according to Newa Guthi Victoria. The festival featured traditional Newa music, dance and religious processions.
The centre again hosted Indra Jatra on September 26 this year, drawing members of the Nepali, Newa and wider multicultural communities for a day of traditional music, dance, food and cultural performances.
Victoria’s Nepali population has grown rapidly over the past decade.
The 2021 Census recorded 20,154 Victoria residents born in Nepal, including 18,510 in Greater Melbourne. It also recorded 23,408 Victorians identifying Nepalese ancestry. Almost half of Victoria’s Nepal-born population was aged between 25 and 34 at the time of the Census.
The Victorian Government has described the Nepali community as one of the state’s fastest-growing communities.
Wilson and Mulholland also used the announcement to acknowledge the devastation caused by recent flash floods in Nepal.
Before outlining the funding commitment, they extended condolences to families affected by the disaster, including Victorian families who have lost relatives or have been waiting for news about loved ones.
The August disaster had a direct impact on Nepali communities across Australia, with community organisations organising vigils, fundraising campaigns and support for affected families. ABC reporting documented widespread anxiety among Nepali Australians trying to contact relatives after the floods, while the Nepalese Association of Victoria publicly expressed solidarity with families who had lost loved ones or whose relatives remained missing.
The Australian Nepalese Multicultural Centre itself hosted a prayer gathering following the disaster, as members of Melbourne’s Nepali community came together to remember those killed and support families still searching for missing relatives.
The Coalition says the Diggers Rest investment forms part of its broader approach to multicultural infrastructure, particularly in Melbourne’s rapidly growing outer suburbs.
Mulholland said the facility would serve not only the Nepali community but also support greater engagement between cultural and faith communities.
“This $1 million commitment will ensure our growing outer-western and northern suburbs have world-class multicultural infrastructure that supports language education, youth programs and interfaith engagement for generations to come,” he said.
For the ANMC, the immediate issue is practical: the centre has a large site, established community support and existing facilities, but its organisers say a permanent multipurpose hall is needed to accommodate events that now draw thousands of people.
If the Liberals and Nationals form government, the promised $1 million would go towards turning that long-running ambition into the centre’s next major construction stage.
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