Kathmandu (; Nepali: काठमाडौं, Nepali pronunciation: [ËŒkɑʈʰmɑɳˈɖuË]) is the capital and largest metropolis of Nepal, with a population of around 2.5 million. Kathmandu Valley is growing at 4 percent per year according to World Bank in 2010, one of the fastest-growing metropolitan areas in South Asia, and the first region in Nepal to face the unprecedented challenges of rapid urbanization and modernization at a metropolitan scale.