Nepal in Asia
According to a2zgov, Nepal is among the poorest countries in the world. A crucial step towards progress is a showdown with discriminatory societal structures that restrict women, ethnic groups and people from lower castes.
FACTS ABOUT NEPAL
Population: 29,717,587 million inhabitants (2018)
Proportion of population below national poverty line: 25 percent
Can read and write: Men: 76.4 percent Women: 53.1 (2015)
Life expectancy: Men: 70.6 Women: 72 (2018)
Location measured by prosperity and development: 149 out of 189 countries (Human Development Index 2018)
GDP per capita (2016): $ 2.5 (number 199 out of 230)
On an elongated strip of land between India and China, 29 million people live in the mountainous nation of Nepal . The country is among the poorest in the world.
Discrimination, stereotypical gender roles and a hierarchical structure of society are crucial obstacles in the pursuit of prosperity and prosperity. In many places in Nepal, the caste system is rigidly maintained, making some people from birth considered less valuable than others. There are also a large number of ethnic minorities in the country, some of whom rank high in the social order, while others are hardly considered full citizens of the state of Nepal . For example, they end up at the back of the queue at the health clinics and have to fight to ensure a proper schooling for their children.
As in many other developing countries, many people seek out the big city to try to improve their living situation. This has led to large slums in the capital Kathmandu, where residents are struggling to be evicted from their humble homes, but also fighting discrimination and the stigma associated with living in a slum.
Inter-People’s Cooperation collaborates with local Nepalese organizations. We bring together poor people in village groups who work to gain access to public pools for local development and to hold government officials accountable for providing proper schooling and health services to all Nepalese citizens. The village groups not least give women the opportunity to step out of the men’s all-dominating shadow.
Inter-People’s Cooperation in Nepal also helps to give a voice to young people in Nepal who are passionate about creating a more just society. This is done through Mellemfolkeligt Samvirke’s international youth network Activista.
DEMOCRATIC EFFORTS
Nepal is taking small steps towards a more democratic society. In 2008, a historic election put an end to a 10-year civil war started by Maoist rebels, and the new parliament definitively abolished the kingdom of Nepal. Thus also began a process of writing a new constitution to provide better conditions for Dalits (people from the lower castes), ethnic minorities and women.
In 2017, elections have been held in the country’s provinces for the first time since 1997. And although the elections have been surrounded by some chaos, they show that the democratic process in Nepal is, after all, back on track.
SHOCKING SETBACK
In April 2015, the already fragile mountain nation was shaken by a violent earthquake . About 9,000 people lost their lives, 602,257 homes were destroyed and a further 285,099 homes and buildings, as well as much of the country’s infrastructure, were damaged.
Reconstruction is still slow and there is still a risk of buildings collapsing. The reconstruction has been pulled out, i.a. because the government has hesitated to pay the promised subsidies to the people who lost their homes.
Inter-People’s Cooperation was present with emergency relief after the earthquake . The effort has helped more than 133,000 people with i.a. temporary housing, temporary training centers, hygiene kits and grain silos.
The youth network Activista helped mobilize young Nepalese who helped in the chaotic weeks and months after the earthquake.
Today, we continue to work on a reconstruction program that puts local communities at the forefront of comprehensive efforts. The program runs until 2018, and will hopefully help to get the country back on its feet.
And hopefully more than that.
