State of the Child Care Homes in Nepal 2015
2015
Nepal
This country page features an interactive, icon-based data dashboard providing a national-level overview of the status of children’s care and care reform efforts (a “Country Care Snapshot”), along with a list of resources and organizations in the country.
demographic_data
30.38 million
Total Population
Central Bureau of Statistics, Population Projection 2021
12.76 million
People
Total Population Under 18
Estimate
42%
Population Under 18
National Population and Housing Census, 2011
4.2
People
Mean Household Size
DHS, 2016
31.3%
Prevalence of Female-Headed Households
DHS 2016
Lower Middle Income Country
World Bank GNI Status
World Bank, 2019
25.2%
Living Below Poverty Line
Asian Development Bank, 2010
32.8
GINI Coefficient
World Bank, 2010
0.579
Human Development Index
UNDP Human Development Report, 2019
i
2.1- Nepal’s HDI value and rank. Nepal’s HDI value for 2018 is 0.579 -which put the country in the medium human development category - positioning it at 147 out of 189 countries and territories. The rank is shared with Kenya.
childrens_living_arrangement
%
Country
NO SOURCE GIVEN
57.1%
Living with Both Parents
DHS 2022
i
New ERA - 2022
35.6%
Living with One Parent
DHS 2022
i
New ERA - 2022
7%
Living with Neither Parent
DHS 2022
i
New ERA - 2022
%
Effective
NO SOURCE GIVEN
children_living_without_bio
88.5%
Living in Kinship Care
MICS 2019
1.5%
Living With a Non-Relative
MICS 2019
81%
Both Parents Alive
MICS 2019
13%
One Parent Dead
MICS 2019
6%
Both Parents Dead
MICS 2019
Children with Disabilities
92,012
Children
State of Children in Nepal 2019 (Government of Nepal Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens National Child Rights Council, 2019)
i
Children (0-14) who have any type of disabilities.
Children Affected by HIV
1,193
Children
State of Children in Nepal 2019 (Government of Nepal Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens National Child Rights Council, 2019)
i
1,193 children from infants to 14 years of age estimated to be infected from HIV/AIDS in year 2016/17.
Street Connected Children
1,011
Children
State of Children in Nepal 2019 (Government of Nepal Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens National Child Rights Council, 2019)
i
Number of children rescued by Nepal Government and rehabilitated in organizations.
81.7%
Children Experiencing Violence
Nepal Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, 2014
i
It is the percentage of children aged 1–14 years who experienced psychological aggression or physical punishment.
Children in Conflict with the Law
1,635
children
Annual Report of the Office of the Attorney General 2018/19
i
In 2019, there were a total of 821 children in child correction homes.
Children in Informal Kinship Care
47,477
Children
National Population and Housing Census, 2011
i
It is the total number of children under 16 living with relatives.
0 Families/Parents
0 Children
NO SOURCE GIVEN
0 Families/Parents
0 Children
NO SOURCE GIVEN
Total Family-Based Alternative Care
- - Families/Parents
- - Children
i
The system of formal family based care, though provided in the Act Relating to Children, 2018, is yet to be implemented.
NO SOURCE GIVEN
Foster Care
- - Foster Families/Foster Parents
- - Children
i
The system of formal family based care, though provided in the Act Relating to Children, 2018, is yet to be implemented.
NO SOURCE GIVEN
Formal Kinship Care
- - Families/Parents
- - Children
i
The system of formal family based care, though provided in the Act Relating to Children, 2018, is yet to be implemented.
NO SOURCE GIVEN
Children reintegrated into families
- - Families/Parents
495 Children
i
309 were found in abandoned or unaccompanied state and reunified with family; 186 were withdrawn from institutional care and reunified with family.
State of Children in Nepal 2019 (Government of Nepal Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens National Child Rights Council, 2019)
Total Residential Care
719 Settings
25,332 Children
State of Children in Nepal 2019 (Government of Nepal Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens National Child Rights Council, 2019)
Larger Institutions
533 Settings
15,045 Children
State of Children in Nepal 2019 (Government of Nepal Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens National Child Rights Council, 2019)
Transit Centres/ Shelters
- - Settings
6 Children
State of Children in Nepal 2019 (Government of Nepal Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens National Child Rights Council, 2019)
Rehabilitation Centers
17 Settings
237 Children
State of Children in Nepal 2019 (Government of Nepal Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens National Child Rights Council, 2019)
Martyrs Foundations
5 Settings
1,523 Children
State of Children in Nepal 2019 (Government of Nepal Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens National Child Rights Council, 2019)
Faith based institutions
164 Settings
8,521 Children
State of Children in Nepal 2019 (Government of Nepal Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens National Child Rights Council, 2019)
adoption
NO DATA AVAIABLE
Country
NO SOURCE GIVEN
521
children
Domestic Adoption
Data Source: Supreme Court Annual Reports; Date Range: 2009-2019
i
Prior to 2015, the data on domestic adoption were maintained by the Land Revenue Offices where the deeds of adoption were registered.
142
children
Inter-country Adoption
Data Source: Inter-Country Adoption Management Board; Date Range: 2009-2019
i
Since 17 August 2018, inter-country adoptions are not being processed since a new legal regime under the National Civil Code, 2017 came into effect and the detailed procedures under the new legal regime are yet to be developed.
NO DATA AVAIABLE
Effective
NO SOURCE GIVEN
96.1%
Children with Both Parents Alive
DHS 2022
3.4%
Children with One Parent Alive
DHS 2022
0.2%
Children with Both Parents Dead
DHS 2022
Country
NO SOURCE GIVEN
Effective
NO SOURCE GIVEN
NO DATA AVAILABLE
Social Welfare Spending
NO SOURCE GIVEN
$
1.50 million
Child Protection Spending
UNICEF, 2018
i
USD 1.5 million in 2017/18, 0.01% of Total National Budget. An analysis carried out by UNICEF in 2016/17 and 2017/18 suggests that the direct child protection spending is 0.01% of the total national budget. The total spending for child protection was calculated as approximately USD 1 million in 2016/17 and USD 1.5 million in 2017/18. The analysis took into consideration the budget for child welfare services and targeted programs on child protection of four agencies: Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens, Department of Women and Children, Central Child Welfare Board and Juvenile Justice Coordination Committee. Such analysis has not been possible in the recent years following the establishment of federal governance where 753 local governments, seven provinces and the federation allocate budgets for different services, including child protection.
Alternative Care Policy in Line with the 2009 Guidelines
Limited
Act Relating to Children, 2018
i
The Act provides for different forms and priorities of alternative care and the criteria/eligibility for alternative care. Further procedures and guidelines under the new law are yet to be enacted. A guidelines on alternative care was drafted in 2015 based on the previous legal and administrative regime.
Commitment to Deinstitutionalistion
Mostly
Act Relating to Children, 2018
i
The Act provides that children residing in institutional care should be reintegrated with families as per their best interest.
Comprehensive Child Protection Law
Partly
Act Relating to Children, 2018
i
The Act Relating to Children, 2018 provides several child protection measures. However, the matters relating to custody of children, parental responsibilities and authority, guardianship, and adoption continue to be regulated by the National Civil Code, 2017 which is disconnected with the approaches and mechanisms provided in the 2018 Act (e.g. Child Welfare Authorities) and do not uphold the best-interest principle.
Continuum of Alternative Care Services Available
Limited
Act Relating to Children, 2018
i
The continuum of care is fragmented. The Act Relating to Children, 2018 defines 'children in need of special protection' and makes provisions for services to them. However, in the absence of detailed procedures and authorities to provide services, such provisions are yet to be implemented.
Data System
Limited
NO SOURCE GIVEN
i
The State of Children in Nepal 2019 Report produced annually by National Child Rights Council (former Central Child Welfare Board) provides limited data of children in institutional care. There is no data of children in other forms of care.
Existence of a Regulatory Body and Regulatory System
Limited
Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens
i
The Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens is currently the de-facto regulatory body.
Gatekeeping Mechanism/Policy
Limited
Act Relating to Children, 2018
i
The Act provides for eligibility to alternative care and different forms of alternative care to implement the 'necessity' and 'suitability' principles. However, the detailed procedures to implement these provisions and authorities to make placement decisions are yet to be defined.
Means of Tracking Progress with Reforms
No
NO SOURCE GIVEN
i
Currently there is no such means to track progress. The forthcoming planning instrument on children is likely to include some indicators on this aspect.
Moratorium on Admission into Institutions for Children Under 3
No
NO SOURCE GIVEN
Moratorium on New Institutions
No
NO SOURCE GIVEN
i
Following the establishment of federal structures, the governments are provincial and local levels are also inclined to establish institutional care facilities.
National Action Plan to Guide Reforms
No
NO SOURCE GIVEN
i
Currently there is no such plan. The government is at the very initial stage of a new planning instrument for children which is likely to address care reforms.
National Standards of Care
Partly
Standards for Operation and Management of Residential Child Care Homes 2069 (2012)
i
The standards apply for institutional care facilities. There are no such standards for other forms of care.
Prevention of Separation Services Available
Limited
NO SOURCE GIVEN
i
Limited efforts on family preservation are being implemented through different national programs, such as 'guardianship for education', 'child grants', and some local programs being implemented by local governments. Non-governmental organizations are also providing some services in their respective working areas.
Support for Careleavers (in Legislation and in Practice)
No
NO SOURCE GIVEN
social_work_force
Workers
NO SOURCE GIVEN
Country
Workers
NO SOURCE GIVEN
Effective
A national workforce assessment and analysis carried out within the past four years
Partly
National Child Rights Council (former Central Child Welfare Board)
i
A study was commissioned by Central Child Welfare Board in 2017 which mapped the existing academic programs on social services along with the estimation of total graduates, professional associations of social welfare workers, and the number of government social service workforce.
A system of licensing/registration of social service professionals
Limited
Central Child Justice Committee
i
A total of 77 child psychologists and 77 social service providers have been listed for the purpose of justice proceedings involving children in conflict with law.
key_stakeholders
Key Stakeholders
Add New DataCountry
Government
i
The Ministry is the organ of the executive with the task of coordinating matters relating to children. It is also responsible for certain works relating to child trafficking, juvenile justice, and the overall child protection issues.
i
The key function of the Council is to foster coordination among different sectors on the matters affecting children. It also has advisory, monitoring, reporting, capacity building, and research functions. The Council engages in monitoring institutional care facilities and works with civil society service providers to withdraw children from poorly operated care facilities to reunite them with families or to place them in another care facility.
State Child Rights Committee
i
The functions of these mechanisms are not yet defined in any legislation. They are likely to have a broader mandate of fostering coordination among different sectors on the matters affecting children.
Local Child Rights Committee
i
The functions of these mechanisms are not yet defined in any legislation. They are likely to have a broader mandate of fostering coordination among different sectors on the matters affecting children.
Civil Society Organisations
i
UNICEF supports the government to strengthen the overall child protection system, including the alternative care services.
i
Advocacy on care reform and promotion of family based care
i
Family Reintegration, Awareness, advocacy on care reform and promotion of family based alternative care
Keeping Families Together
Bethany vision
Effective
Other Relevant Reforms
Add New DataEffective
NO SOURCE GIVEN
Child Protection
i
Nepal government now has revised Act Relating to Children 2018, which has prioritised families and family based alternative care; Ministry and NCRC is working on rolling out the implementation guideline. Different forms of alternative care is mentioned in the Act; Institutional care is allowed as interim care or alternative care measure, Children in institutional care to are to be reintegrated with family (as per their best interest); Irregular placement in institution contrary to the provisions of the Act is criminalized.
The State of Child Care Home Nepal 2015 report finds out that there are lots of institutional care providers that are yet to meet the minimum standard – facilities to the children, financial transparency, child-friendly environment and safeguarding children from exploitation and/or abuse. In course of monitoring, some facilities were found to be operating in very coor conditions which resulted in decisions to withdraw the children from such facilities.
A number of instruments are being developed by the government which will contribute towards care reform and strengthening alternative care: (i) Directives/Procedures on Alternative Care; (ii) Directives on Rescue and Family Reintegration; (iii) Procedures on Protection and Assistance to Children without Parents; (iv) Procedures on Operation, Management and Provisions of Interim Care; and (v) Case Management Guidelines and (vi) Procedural Guidance on Rescue, Protection and Management of Children in Labour Situations.
State of Child Care Home Nepal 2015, a report by CCWB
Decentralisation
i
In the federal structure, the local governments are responsible for key service delivery, such as health, education, social security, etc. This would also include measures to support families and prevent unnecessary separation of children from families. In addition, local governments are also in a position to implement the provision of mandatory reporting of violence/abuse against children particularly by health and education service providers as required under the Act Relating to Children, 2018. This will also allow the detection of neglect and other forms of violence by caregivers in different settings.
NO SOURCE GIVEN
drivers_of_institutionalisation
Drivers of Institutionaliziation
Add New DataCountry
Push Factors
Poverty
i
Poverty of parents has been identified as one of the aggravating factors for the separation of children from family, though it is not the sole reason. It is easy to get consent of parents to take their children away when someone lures them with a promise of better education and better stay for their children. Poor and uninformed families without adequate means of supports for their children see these types of offer as a better option without knowing the consequences. (State of Child Care Home Nepal, 2015)
Pull Factors
Access to Education and Work Opportunities
i
Under false promises of education and work opportunities, Nepali parents give their children to brokers who instead take them to frequently unregistered children’s homes in urban locations, where they are forced to pretend to be orphans to garner donations from tourists and volunteers; some of the children are also forced to beg on the street. (US TIP Report, 2018)
Effective
key_research_and_information
Key Data Sources
Add New DataCountry
Act Relating to Children 2018 - Nepal
18 Sep 2018
Trafficking in Persons Report June 2018
28 Jun 2018
Country Care Review: Nepal
16 Apr 2018
Effective
Acknowledgements
Data for this country care snapshot was contributed by Forget Me Not and UNICEF Nepal.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 138
This article examines the increasing phenomenon of orphanage trafficking in Nepal – a practice involving the coercive separation of children from their families and placement into unauthorized care facilities under false pretences, often for financial exploitation. It evaluates relevant constitutional provisions, national child protection and anti-trafficking legislation, and international obligations to assess Nepal’s compliance with its legal responsibilities.
File
Adoptees return to find a society that no longer recognises them, legally or socially
Foreign money fuels fake orphanages in Nepal where children are taken from their parents and marketed as victims. But the fightback is on
Case studies from the Global South provide insights on how to effectively support children who have experienced violence.
The 5th Biennial International Conference on Alternative Care for Children in Asia (BICON) will take place over two days, on 6-7th September 2023, in Kathmandu, Nepal.
This is a series of written interviews conducted with care-experienced persons from Bhutan, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka who have had experience with alternative care. These interviews were published in the September 2023 issue of the Institutionalised Children Explorations and Beyond journal.
In this editorial, Ian Forber-Pratt, editor of this tenth anniversary edition of the Institutionalised Children Explorations and Beyond, gives an of alternative care in Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bhutan.
File
This article focuses on the national efforts advancing children’s right to alternative care services in Nepal. It presents the government’s existing laws and policies in providing responsible care to children in need of special protection and for children who cannot be placed in parental care due to various reasons for family separation.
An Exploration of Poverty as a Consumption Object: Voluntourist’s Stories from an Orphanage in Nepal
This paper examines the understanding of poverty emerging in voluntourists’ accounts of their first-hand experiences of poverty alleviation. Based on the ethnography of an orphanage in Nepal, the authors show that despite voluntourists’ good intentions and even (self-)criticism of the volunteer tourism approach to poverty relief, their accounts tend to consolidate rather regressive ideas about poverty.
At a parliament meeting on June 15, Nepal’s Law and Justice Minister Govinda Bandi announced that the government is preparing to lower the legal age of marriage.