Germany announced a EUR 55.6 million or Rs 7.55 billion grant to Nepal as part of the two-day negotiations on development cooperation that ended in Berlin on September 20, 2018.

A substantial portion of this grant will be distributed among three key sectors of Nepal: Energy (EUR 24.55 million), Sustainable economic development (EUR 13 million) and Health (EUR 11.95 million).

By geography, the cooperation will have its special focus on rural areas of Mid and Far West Nepal, along with additional support to selected districts badly hit by the 2015 earthquake.

Health:
Mother & Child Care in the Kathmandu Valley is the major aspect that the cooperation is looking at as the biggest project with a EUR 8.3 million grant for 2018.

As part of this project, the cooperation intends to support the expansion of Paropakar Maternity and Women’s Hospital services in Kathmandu to the surrounding areas.

Improving availability, access and quality of healthcare services, particularly in the maternal and new-born health, establishment of social health security program to support Nepal’s goal of Universal Health Coverage, are among other activities to be covered under healthcare support.

Economy:
Cooperation in the field of economic development covers creation of sustainable income and job opportunities, especially among disadvantaged groups.

According to the German Embassy in Kathmandu, all the fresh commitments will go in line with Nepal’s Development Co-operation Policy.

With the fresh grant, Germany’s financial aid to Nepal reached approximately EUR 1.2 billion since 1961.

Energy:

The cooperation stands committed to Germany’s continued support for energy efficiency with the Nepali Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation as the lead partner.

The post Nepal Bags Another Foreign Aid for Local Progress appeared first on Nepali Sansar.

While NDHS usually provides survey reports on various health issues, the 2016 NDHS- the fifth edition has come up with its findings on hypertension for the first time in its history.

Major Progress in Maternal and Child Health

The 2016 survey highlighted major progress in maternal and child health situation in Nepal over the last 20 years.

The findings have shown a decline in the percentage of stunted children by 14% during 2001-06, by an additional 16% during 2006-11 and a drop by 12% during 2011-16, with a similar trend downwards in case of underweight children.

According to the survey, the nutritional status of children in Nepal has improved over the two decades.

                  (Source: 2016 NDHS Report)

            (Source: 2016 NDHS Report)

Decline in Line with Millennium Development Goals

“This decline has been in line with the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target. However, there is still a long way to go to meet the SDG target of reducing stunting to 31% and underweight to 25 percent among children under 5 by 2017 (NPC 2015),” said the report.

                      (Source: 2016 NDHS Report)

With regard to infant mortality, there has been a decline from 78 per 1,000 live births to 32 during 1996-2016.

Pointing at a sharp decline in under-five mortality from 118 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1996 to 39 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2016, the survey found that more children in the country are surviving early childhood than ever before.

Fertility levels and preferences, marriage, sexual activity, nutrition, breast feeding practices, anemia, childhood and maternal mortality, maternal and child health, HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections and domestic violence are among other health issues covered under the survey.

Data Relevant to National Health Strategy

             (Source: 2016 NDHS Report)

The 2016 NDHS also provides indicators relevant to the Nepal Health Sector Strategy (NHSS) 2016-2021 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), informed an official release.

The data collection for the survey was carried out from June 19, 2016 to January 31, 2017.

The 2016 NDHS was implemented by New Era under the aegis of the Ministry of Health, Nepal and was funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The post Global Health Issues: 2016 Nepal Demographic and Health Survey Highlights appeared first on Nepali Sansar.

In a major move, the Nepali Parliament yesterday endorsed the historic Health Insurance Bill that aims at ensuring universal health coverage for Nepalis.

This bill mandates the enrolment of all Nepali households in the universal healthcare program, which covers preventive, promotive, curative and rehabilitative support while also addressing related financial challenges of the needy.

Placing the bill in the Parliament, Minister for Health Giriraj Mani Pokharel said, “The insurance premium for the families who cannot afford to pay will be borne by the government.”

Meanwhile, the former Nepali Health Minister and Congress leader Gagan Thapa termed the bill as a historic move, while also urging the government to monitor private hospitals and control prices of medicines for an effective implementation of the program.

“It is an important step towards ensuring health care services to all the citizens as envisioned by the constitution,” read Thapa’s statement.

It’s noteworthy that the bill was approved during Thapa’s tenure and later passed on to the Parliament.

Existing Program Holds Limited Scope

Nepal currently has the health security program in place in a few districts. However, its expansion as a nation-wide plan could not happen due to regulations and legal issues associated with it.

Whereas, the new bill succeeded in terms of universal coverage.

With regard to insurance coverage, the current program mandates a household of five to pay an annual premium of Rs 2,500 to enjoy services worth Rs 50,000, and every additional member will be levied Rs 425 for services worth Rs 10,000.

Unlike the current bill, the new health policy levies premium based on the family’s income.

It also has a provision of Health Service Board to be headed by a chairman appointed by the government and representatives from the insurance firms.

The post New Health Bill Ensures Universal Health Coverage for Nepalis appeared first on Nepali Sansar.

In the light of the flood situation in Nepal, the Office of UN Resident Coordinator Nepal has released a report titled ‘Flooding Response Plan (August 2017-February 2018)’, wherein, it sought global attention for supporting flood victims.

Under the plan, the Office aims at offering humanitarian assistance to around 1.7 million victims hit by the recent floods across 35 districts of the country.

As part of relief measures, the Office informed that the Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) is seeking USD 41.4 million to provide immediate humanitarian assistance to support the flood victims over the coming six months, under various sectors including Health, Nutrition, Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), Food Security, Protection, Shelter, Livelihood, Education and Early Recovery.

Sector-wise Funding Requirements

• USD 8 million assistance separately for WASH (targeting 800,000 people across 13 districts) & Nutrition (to cover 1 million people across 18 districts) and USD 3 million aid for Education sector (to cover 79,000 children and 1,975 teachers) from UNICEF
• USD 6.85 million Food Aid from World Food Programme (WFP) targeting 300,000 people across 10 districts
• USD 4.5 million from Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) targeting 300,000 people across 10 districts
• USD 4.12 million from the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) to support 300,000 population across 5 districts
• USD 3.4 million Early Recovery assistance from United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) targeting 1.7 million across 10 districts
• USD 1.78 million Health assistance from WHO targeting 1.7 million population across 30 flood-hit districts
• USD 900,000 Protection assistance from UNFPA targeting 200,000 people across 11 districts
• USD 750,000 assistance from International Organization for Migration (IOM) for Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) targeting 300,000 population across 7 districts
• USD 100,000 from United Nations Resident Coordinator’s Office to support Humanitarian agencies and the Government of Nepal targeting 35 affected districts

Initial Rapid Assessment of Flood Situation

The Office, in its Initial Rapid Assessment (IRA) conducted across 28 districts, concluded that 1.7 million population was affected by the flooding in Nepal, with almost 65,000 houses destroyed, 460,000 people displaced, an estimated 19,000 people currently residing in informal displacements sites including schools and some 40 communities remaining inaccessible.

The recent floods have badly hit the country’s critical infrastructure, said the report, informing that around 80 schools across 28 districts (710 damaged) and 10 health posts (64 partially damaged) were destroyed. Around 64,000 hectares of standing crops have also been destroyed in the 10 worst-affected districts of the country.

According to the report, this situation will affect communities’ livelihood and compromise food security, as food stocks have also been destroyed.

In terms of public health, the report informed that nutrition needs have increased since the onset of flooding with the average rate of global acute malnutrition (GAM) now beyond critical levels.

This situation will likely deteriorate further amongst children under five and pregnant and breastfeeding women without emergency measures, it added.

According to the report, the governmental efforts including deployment of 27,000 security personnel and civil servants for measures and providing more than USD 11.3 million fund assistance could not completely suffice the humanitarian needs caused by the crisis.

The post #NepalFloods2017: UN Nepal Releases Response Plan, Seeks USD 41 Million Immediate Grant appeared first on Nepali Sansar.

In a move enhancing US-Nepal bilateral ties, Nepali Health Minister Giriraj Mani Pokharel and Michael C. Gonzales, Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargé d’Affaires at the US Embassy in Kathmandu met in Kathmandu on Monday.

In their meeting at Singh Durbar, both the officials discussed US-Nepal bilateral relations and expressed willingness to further strengthen ties between the two nations.

Recalling US support to Nepal, Pokharel lauded assistance offered by the Government of United States to Nepal during and post earthquake in 2015. He also said that the support given by US missions and agencies for elimination of malaria in Dang district in Western Nepal, was remarkable.

In response, the US official called on the Government of Nepal to utilize support provided by the US Government. He expressed the US Government’s readiness to contribute towards the development of the Nepali health sector.

It is noteworthy that Nepal has recently agreed to receive a major foreign grant of Rs 51.38 billion from the United States’ Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) for the development of road and electricity transmission line in Nepal.

The post US Committed to Development of Nepali Health Sector appeared first on Nepali Sansar.