Key Issues Facing Women and Children:

• Poverty
• Unemployment
• Social Discrimination

Home to eight of the ten highest peaks in the world, Nepal is a beautiful land-locked country, nestled between China and India. Thirty percent of Nepalese live below the poverty line and the unemployment rate remains at about forty percent, with the lack of trained skills among the labor force a huge issue.

Nepal has experienced significant violence and civil strife combating Maoist insurgents. Women between the age of 18-49 may serve in the military. Continual ongoing clashes between the government and Maoist rebels has resulted in a significant populations of internally displaced persons, estimated at between 100,000 and 200,000 people in 2006.

Despite the fact that the Constitution does not differentiate between men and women, women in Nepal face difficulty accessing education or a political voice, with females almost twice as likely to be illiterate than their male counterparts. As a result of this severe gap in gender equality, Nepal is one of the few countries in the world where the female life expectancy is actually lower than male life expectancy. Few women hold positions of political power and voter registration for women is consistently lower than that for men, despite their larger population.

Entrenched social norms ensure that women are not considered equal to men. The influence and special place of the Hindu religion within the state places an emphasis on women’s chastity and virginity. This has resulted in increased restrictions and marginalization of women, as well as the marriage of girls at ages 12-14 in rural settings. Despite the obstacles Nepalese women face, local and international organizations are working for women’s empowerment.