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Nepal</title> <meta name="description" content="Search results for: Nepal"> <meta name="keywords" content="Nepal"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1, minimum-scale=1, maximum-scale=1, user-scalable=no"> <meta charset="utf-8"> <link href="https://cdn.waset.org/favicon.ico" type="image/x-icon" rel="shortcut icon"> <link href="https://cdn.waset.org/static/plugins/bootstrap-4.2.1/css/bootstrap.min.css" rel="stylesheet"> <link href="https://cdn.waset.org/static/plugins/fontawesome/css/all.min.css" rel="stylesheet"> <link href="https://cdn.waset.org/static/css/site.css?v=150220211555" rel="stylesheet"> </head> <body> <header> <div class="container"> <nav class="navbar navbar-expand-lg navbar-light"> <a class="navbar-brand" href="https://waset.org"> <img src="https://cdn.waset.org/static/images/wasetc.png" alt="Open Science Research Excellence" title="Open Science Research Excellence" /> </a> <button class="d-block d-lg-none navbar-toggler ml-auto" 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class="input-group"> <i class="fas fa-search"></i> <input type="text" class="search-query" name="q" placeholder="Author, Title, Abstract, Keywords" value="Nepal"> <input type="submit" class="btn_search" value="Search"> </div> </div> </form> </div> </div> <div class="row mt-3"> <div class="col-sm-3"> <div class="card"> <div class="card-body"><strong>Commenced</strong> in January 2007</div> </div> </div> <div class="col-sm-3"> <div class="card"> <div class="card-body"><strong>Frequency:</strong> Monthly</div> </div> </div> <div class="col-sm-3"> <div class="card"> <div class="card-body"><strong>Edition:</strong> International</div> </div> </div> <div class="col-sm-3"> <div class="card"> <div class="card-body"><strong>Paper Count:</strong> 280</div> </div> </div> </div> <h1 class="mt-3 mb-3 text-center" style="font-size:1.6rem;">Search results for: Nepal</h1> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">130</span> Diversity and Utilize of Ignored, Underutilized, and Uncommercialized Horticultural Species in Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Prakriti%20Chand">Prakriti Chand</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Binayak%20Prasad%20Rajbhandari"> Binayak Prasad Rajbhandari</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Ram%20Prasad%20Mainali"> Ram Prasad Mainali</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Local indigenous community in Lalitpur, Nepal, use Ignored, Underutilized and Uncommercialized Horticultural Species (IUUHS) for medicine, food, spice, pickles, and religious purposes. But, research and exploration about usage, status, potentialities, and importance of these future sustainable crops are inadequately documented and have been ignored for a positive food transformation system. The study aimed to assess the use and diversity of NUWHS in terms of current status investigation, documentation, management, and future potentialities of IUUHS. A wide range of participatory tools through the household survey ( 100 respondents), 8 focus group discussions, 20 key informant interviews was followed by individual assessment, participatory rural assessments and supplemented by literature review. This study recorded 95 IUUHS belonging to 43 families, of which 92 were angiosperms, 2 pteridophytes, and 1 gymnosperm. Twenty seven species had multiple uses. The IUUHS observed during the study were 31 vegetables, 20 fruits, 14 wild species, 7 spices, 7 pulses, 7 pickle, 7 medicine, and 2 religious species. Vegetables and fruits were the most observed category of IUUHS. Eighty nine species were observed as medicinally valued species, and 86% of the women had taken over all the agricultural activities. 84% of respondents used these species during food deficient period. IUUHS have future potential as an alternative food to major staple crops due to its remarkable ability to be adapted in marginal soil and thrive harsh climatic condition. There are various constraints regarding the utilization and development of IUUHS, which needs initiation of promotion, utilization, management, and conservation of species from the grass root level. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=agrobiodiversity" title="agrobiodiversity">agrobiodiversity</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Ignored%20and%20underutilized%20species" title=" Ignored and underutilized species"> Ignored and underutilized species</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=uncultivated%20horticultural%20species" title=" uncultivated horticultural species"> uncultivated horticultural species</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=diversity%20use" title=" diversity use"> diversity use</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/141568/diversity-and-utilize-of-ignored-underutilized-and-uncommercialized-horticultural-species-in-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/141568.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">270</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">129</span> Nutritional Status of People Living with Human Immuno Virus/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome Attending Anti-Retro Viral Treatment Clinic of BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Ghimire%20K.">Ghimire K.</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Mehta%20R.%20S."> Mehta R. S.</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Parajuli%20P."> Parajuli P.</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Chettri%20R."> Chettri R.</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Background: Malnutrition is a common hallmark of Human Immuno Virus (HIV) disease. It plays a synergistic role in immunosuppression which is initiated by Human Immuno Virus itself, and malnutrition forms an independent risk factor for disease progression. Objectives: The objective of the study is to assess the nutritional status of the people living with Human Immuno Virus/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome attending the Anti-Retro viral Treatment Clinic and find the association of nutritional status with different socio-demographic variables. Methods: A total of 101 people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) were selected by convenient sampling technique. The study was conducted at the ART clinic of BPKIHS. A subjective global assessment tool was used for data collection. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for data analysis. Results: The study demonstrated that the mean age of the respondents was 40.97+8.650 years. 65.3% were well-nourished, and 34.7% of the participants were mildly/moderately malnourished, whereas none of them were severely malnourished. BMI was statistically significant with education status, family income, and duration of illness of the participants, and nutritional status was statistically significant with gender, marital status, education status, and family history of HIV. Conclusion: On the basis of the result, it can be concluded that more than half of the respondents were well nourished. Gender, marital status, and education are associated with nutritional status. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=nutritional%20status" title="nutritional status">nutritional status</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=people%20living%20with%20HIV%2FAIDS" title=" people living with HIV/AIDS"> people living with HIV/AIDS</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=ART%20treatment" title=" ART treatment"> ART treatment</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Nepal" title=" Nepal"> Nepal</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/153770/nutritional-status-of-people-living-with-human-immuno-virusacquired-immune-deficiency-syndrome-attending-anti-retro-viral-treatment-clinic-of-bp-koirala-institute-of-health-sciences-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/153770.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">86</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">128</span> Reproductive Health Knowledge, Attitude and Health Services Utilization among Adolescents in Kaski District of Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Dipendra%20Kumar%20Yadav">Dipendra Kumar Yadav</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Rajani%20Ghimire"> Rajani Ghimire</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Saroj%20Yadav"> Saroj Yadav</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Background: The concern about adolescent on reproductive health has grown due to unprecedented increasing rates of early pregnancies and sexually transmitted Infections and they do not have adequate awareness and knowledge about it. Access to these services as well as information about them is, therefore, crucial for adolescents to utilize and benefit from sexual and reproductive health services. The objective of the study was to assess the reproductive health knowledge, attitude and health services utilization among adolescents in rural and urban areas of Kaski district. Materials and Methods: A community-based descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among adolescents (10-19 years of age) in rural and urban areas of Kaski district, Nepal. The period of data collection was October to November, 2014. Altogether 419 participants were taken for the study. Results: The mean age of the respondents was 15.86 and standard deviation was ±2.305. More than half (58.7 %) of the respondents were females and 41.3 % were males. Out of 419, majority (78.8%) of the respondents were known about family planning, among them only 70 % of respondents were aware about family planning methods. Fifty-one percentages of the respondents were aware about the sexually transmitted diseases. Before giving a birth there is need to consult with partner with this fact 68.7 % of the respondents were agree, 23.6 % of them were neutral and very few (7.6%) of them were disagree. Nearly twenty six percentage of the respondents were faced the reproductive health problems within one month. Out of 107 respondents, 57.9 % did not utilize reproductive health services because of different reasons. Conclusions: The overall level of knowledge towards reproductive health among adolescents was found low. However, levels of attitude towards different reproductive health components were found favorable. Only 42.1% of the respondents were utilized reproductive health services among those who was faced the reproductive health problems within one month which was low coverage of reproductive health services utilization. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=reproductive%20health%20knowledge" title="reproductive health knowledge">reproductive health knowledge</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=reproductive%20health%20attitudes" title=" reproductive health attitudes"> reproductive health attitudes</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=adolescent" title=" adolescent"> adolescent</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=service%20utilization" title=" service utilization "> service utilization </a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/25831/reproductive-health-knowledge-attitude-and-health-services-utilization-among-adolescents-in-kaski-district-of-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/25831.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">407</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">127</span> Socio-Economic Influences on Soilless Agriculture</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=George%20Vernon%20Byrd">George Vernon Byrd</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Bhim%20Bahadur%20Ghaley"> Bhim Bahadur Ghaley</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Eri%20Hayashi"> Eri Hayashi</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> In urban farming, research and innovation are taking place at an unprecedented pace, and soilless growing technologies are emerging at different rates motivated by different objectives in various parts of the world. Local food production is ultimately a main objective everywhere, but adoption rates and expressions vary with socio-economic drivers. Herein, the status of hydroponics and aquaponics is summarized for four countries with diverse socio-economic settings: Europe (Denmark), Asia (Japan and Nepal) and North America (US). In Denmark, with a strong environmental ethic, soilless growing is increasing in urban agriculture because it is considered environmentally friendly. In Japan, soil-based farming is being replaced with commercial plant factories using advanced technology such as complete environmental control and computer monitoring. In Nepal, where rapid loss of agriculture land is occurring near cities, dozens of hydroponics and aquaponics systems have been built in the past decade, particularly in “non-traditional” sites such as roof tops to supplement family food. In the US, where there is also strong interest in locally grown fresh food, backyard and commercial systems have proliferated. Nevertheless, soilless growing is still in the research and development and early adopter stages, and the broad contribution of hydroponics and aquaponics to food security is yet to be fully determined. Nevertheless, current adoption of these technologies in diverse environments in different socio-economic settings highlights the potential contribution to food security with social and environmental benefits which contribute to several Sustainable Development Goals. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=aquaponics" title="aquaponics">aquaponics</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=hydroponics" title=" hydroponics"> hydroponics</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=soilless%20agriculture" title=" soilless agriculture"> soilless agriculture</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=urban%20agriculture" title=" urban agriculture"> urban agriculture</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/164471/socio-economic-influences-on-soilless-agriculture" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/164471.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">97</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">126</span> Patients' Understanding of Their Treatment Plans and Diagnosis during Discharge in Emergency Ward at B. P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Ajay%20Kumar%20Yadav">Ajay Kumar Yadav</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Masum%20Paudel"> Masum Paudel</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Ritesh%20Chaudhary"> Ritesh Chaudhary</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Background: Understanding the diagnosis and the treatment plan is very important for the patient which reflects the effectiveness of the patient care as well as counseling. Large groups of patients do not understand their emergency care plan or their discharge instructions. With only a little more than 2/3ʳᵈ of the adult population is literate and poorly distributed health service institutions in Nepal, exploring the current status of patient understanding of their diagnosis and treatment would help identify interventions to improve patient compliance with the provided care and the treatment outcomes. Objectives: This study was conducted to identify and describe the areas of patients’ understanding and confusion regarding emergency care and discharge instructions at the Emergency ward of B. P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences teaching hospital, Dharan, Nepal. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 426 patients discharged from the emergency unit of BPKIHS. Cases who are leaving against medical advice absconded cases and those patients who came just for vaccination are excluded from the study. Patients’ understanding of the treatment plan and diagnosis was measured. Results: There were 60% men in this study. More than half of the participants reported not being able to read English. More than 90% of the respondents reported they could not read their prescription at all. While patient could point out their understanding of their diagnosis at discharge, most of them could not tell the names and the dosage of all the drugs prescribed to them at discharge. More than 95% of the patients could not tell the most common side effects of the drugs that they are prescribed. Conclusions: There is a need to further explore the factors influencing the understanding of the patients regarding their treatment plan. Interventions to understand the health literacy needs and ways to improve the health literacy of the patients are needed. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=discharge%20instruction" title="discharge instruction">discharge instruction</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=emergency%20ward" title=" emergency ward"> emergency ward</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=health%20literacy" title=" health literacy"> health literacy</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=treatment%20plan" title=" treatment plan"> treatment plan</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/98640/patients-understanding-of-their-treatment-plans-and-diagnosis-during-discharge-in-emergency-ward-at-b-p-koirala-institute-of-health-sciences" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/98640.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">143</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">125</span> Screening of Different Native Genotypes of Broadleaf Mustard against Different Diseases</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Nisha%20Thapa">Nisha Thapa</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Ram%20Prasad%20Mainali"> Ram Prasad Mainali</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Prakriti%20Chand"> Prakriti Chand</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Broadleaf mustard is a commercialized leafy vegetable of Nepal. However, its utilization is hindered in terms of production and productivity due to the high intensity of insects, pests, and diseases causing great loss. The plant protection part of the crop’s disease and damage intensity has not been studied much from research perspectives in Nepal. The research aimed to evaluate broadleaf mustard genotypes for resistance against different diseases. A total of 35 native genotypes of broadleaf mustard were screened at weekly intervals by scoring the plants for ten weeks. Five different diseases, such as Rhizoctonia root rot, Alternaria blight, black rot, turnip mosaic virus disease, and white rust, were reported from the broad leaf mustard genotypes. Out of 35 genotypes, 23 genotypes were found with very high Rhizoctonia Root Rot severity, whereas 8 genotypes showed very high Alternaria blight severity. Likewise, 3 genotypes were found with high Black rot severity, and 1 genotype was found with very high Turnip mosaic virus disease incidence. Similarly, 2 genotypes were found to have very high White rust severity. Among the disease of national importance, Rhizoctonia root rot was found to be the most severe disease with the greatest loss. Broadleaf mustard genotypes like Rato Rayo, CO 1002, and CO 11007 showed average to the high level of field resistance; therefore, these genotypes should be used, conserved, and stored in a mustard improvement program as the disease resistance quality or susceptibility of these genotypes can be helpful for seed producing farmers, companies and other stakeholders through varietal improvement and developmental works that further aids in sustainable disease management of the vegetable. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=genotype" title="genotype">genotype</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=disease%20resistance" title=" disease resistance"> disease resistance</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Rhizoctonia%20root%20rot%20severity" title=" Rhizoctonia root rot severity"> Rhizoctonia root rot severity</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=varietal%20improvement" title=" varietal improvement"> varietal improvement</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/160605/screening-of-different-native-genotypes-of-broadleaf-mustard-against-different-diseases" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/160605.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">80</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">124</span> Influence of Mothers’ Knowledge, Attitude and Behavior on Diet and Physical Activity of Their Pre-School Children: A Cross-Sectional Study from a Semi-Urban Area of Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Natalia%20Oli">Natalia Oli</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Abhinav%20Vaidya"> Abhinav Vaidya</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Katja%20Pahkala"> Katja Pahkala</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Gabriele%20Eiben"> Gabriele Eiben</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Alexandra%20Krettek"> Alexandra Krettek</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> The nutritional transition towards a high fat and energy dense diet, decreasing physical activity level, and poor cardiovascular health knowledge contributes to a rising burden of cardiovascular diseases in Nepal. Dietary and physical activity behaviors are formed early in life and influenced by family, particularly by mothers in the social context of Nepal. The purpose of this study was to explore knowledge, attitude and behavior of mothers regarding diet and physical activity of their pre-school children. Cross-sectional study was conducted in the semi-urban area of Duwakot and Jhaukhel communities near the capital Kathmandu. Between August and November 2014, nine trained enumerators interviewed all mothers having children aged 2 to 7 years in their homes. Questionnaire contained information about mothers’ socio-demographic characteristics; their knowledge, attitude, and behavior regarding diet and physical activity as well as their children’s diet and physical activity. Knowledge, attitude and behavior responses were scored. SPSS version 22.0 was used for data analyses. Out of the 1,052 eligible mothers, 962 consented to participate in the study. The mean age was 28.9 ± 4.5 years. The majority of them (73%) were housewives. Mothers with higher education and income had higher knowledge, attitude, and behavior scores (All p < 0.001) whereas housewives and farmers had low knowledge score (p < 0.001). They, along with laborers, also exhibited lower attitude (p<0.001) and behavior scores (p < 0.001). Children’s diet score increased with mothers’ level of education (p <0.001) and income (p=0.041). Their physical activity score, however, declined with increasing level of their mothers’ education (p < 0.001) and income (p < 0.001). Children’s overall behavior score correlated poorly with mothers’ knowledge (r = 0.009, p=0.003), attitude (r =0.012, p=0.001), and behavior (r = 0.007, p= 0.008). Such poor correlation can be due to existence of the barriers among mothers. Mothers reported such barriers as expensive healthy food, difficulty to give up favorite food, taste preference of others family members and lack of knowledge on healthy food. Barriers for physical activity were lack of leisure time, lack of parks and playgrounds, being busy by caring for children and old people, feeling lazy and embarrassed in front of others. Additionally, among the facilitators for healthy lifestyle, mentioned by mothers, were better information, family eating healthy food and supporting physical activity, advice of medical personnel regarding healthy lifestyle and own ill health. The study demonstrated poor correlation of mothers’ knowledge and attitude with children’s behavior regarding diet and physical activity. Hence improving mothers’ knowledge or attitude may not be enough to improve dietary and physical activity habits of their children. Barriers and facilitators that affect mothers’ practices towards their children should also be addressed due to future intervention. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=attitude" title="attitude">attitude</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=behavior" title=" behavior"> behavior</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=diet" title=" diet"> diet</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=knowledge" title=" knowledge"> knowledge</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=mothers" title=" mothers"> mothers</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=physical%20activity" title=" physical activity "> physical activity </a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/61087/influence-of-mothers-knowledge-attitude-and-behavior-on-diet-and-physical-activity-of-their-pre-school-children-a-cross-sectional-study-from-a-semi-urban-area-of-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/61087.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">288</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">123</span> Perception of Health Care Providers: A Need to Introduce Screening of Maternal Mental Health at Primary Health Care in Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Manisha%20Singh">Manisha Singh</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Padam%20Simkhada"> Padam Simkhada</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Background: Although mental health policy has been adapted in Nepal since 1997, the implementation of the policy framework is yet to happen. The fact that mental health services are largely concentrated in urban areas more specific to treatment only provides a clear picture of the scarcity of mental health services in the country. The shreds of evidence from around the world, along with WHO’s (World Health Organization) Mental Health Gap Action Program (mhGAP) suggest that effective mental health services can be provided from Primary Health Care (PHC) centers through community-based programs without having to place a specialized health worker. However, the country is still facing the same challenges to date with very few psychiatrists and psychologists, but they are largely based in cities. Objectives: The main objectives of this study are; (a) to understand the perception of health workers at PHC on maternal mental health, and (b) to assess the availability of the mental health services at PHC to address maternal mental health. Methods: This study used a qualitative approach where an in-depth interview was conducted with the health workers at the primary level. “Mayadevi” rural municipality in Rupendehi District that comprised of 13 small villages, was chosen as the study site. A total 8 health institutions which covered all 13 sites were included where either the health post in- charge or health worker working in maternal and child health care was interviewed for the study. All the health posts in the study area were included in the study. The interviews were conducted in Nepali; later, they were translated in English, transcribed, and triangulated. NViVO was used for the analysis. Results: The findings show that most of the health workers understood what maternal mental health was and deemed it as a public health issue. They could explain the symptoms and knew what medication to prescribe if need be. However, the majority of them failed to name the screening tools in place for maternal mental health. Moreover, they hadn’t even seen one. None of the health care centers had any provision for screening mental health status. However, one of the centers prescribed medication when the patients displayed symptoms of depression. But they believed there were a significant number of hidden cases in the community due to the stigma around mental health and being a woman with mental health problem makes the situation even difficult. Nonetheless, the health workers understood the importance of having screening tools and acknowledged the need of training and support in order to provide the services from PHC. Conclusion: Community health workers can identify cases with mental health problems and prevent them from deteriorating further. But there is a need for robust training and support to build the capacity of the health workers. The screening tools on mental health needs to be encouraged to be used in the PHC levels. Furthermore, community-based culture-sensitive programs need to be initiated and implemented to mitigate the stigma related issues around mental health. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=maternal%20mental%20health" title="maternal mental health">maternal mental health</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=health%20care%20providers" title=" health care providers"> health care providers</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=screening" title=" screening"> screening</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Nepal" title=" Nepal"> Nepal</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/125985/perception-of-health-care-providers-a-need-to-introduce-screening-of-maternal-mental-health-at-primary-health-care-in-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/125985.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">127</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">122</span> Effectiveness of Management Transfer Programs for Managing Irrigation Resources in Developing Countries: A Case Study of Farmer- and Agency-Managed Schemes from Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Tirtha%20Raj%20Dhakal">Tirtha Raj Dhakal</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Brian%20Davidson"> Brian Davidson</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Bob%20Farquharson"> Bob Farquharson</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Irrigation management transfer has been taken as the important policy instrument for effective irrigation resource management in many developing countries. The change in governance of the irrigation schemes for its day-to-day operation and maintenance has been centered in recent Nepalese irrigation policies also. However, both farmer- and agency-managed irrigation schemes in Nepal are performing well below than expected. This study tries to link the present concerns of poor performance of both forms of schemes with the institutions for its operation and management. Two types of surveys, management and farm surveys; were conducted as a case study in the command area of Narayani Lift Irrigation Project (agency-managed) and Khageri Irrigation System (farmer-managed) of Chitwan District. The farm survey from head, middle and tail regions of both schemes revealed that unequal water distribution exists in these regions in both schemes with greater percentage of farmers experiencing this situation in agency managed scheme. In both schemes, the cost recovery rate was very low, even below five percent in Lift System indicating poor operation and maintenance of the schemes. Also, the institution on practice in both schemes is unable to create any incentives for farmers’ willingness to pay as well as for its economical use in the farm. Thus, outcomes from the study showed that only the management transfer programs may not achieve the goal of efficient irrigation resource management. This may suggest water professionals to rethink about the irrigation policies for refining institutional framework irrespective of the governance of schemes for improved cost recovery and better water distribution throughout the irrigation schemes. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=cost%20recovery" title="cost recovery">cost recovery</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=governance" title=" governance"> governance</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=institution" title=" institution"> institution</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=irrigation%20management%20transfer" title=" irrigation management transfer"> irrigation management transfer</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=willingness%20to%20pay" title=" willingness to pay"> willingness to pay</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/54944/effectiveness-of-management-transfer-programs-for-managing-irrigation-resources-in-developing-countries-a-case-study-of-farmer-and-agency-managed-schemes-from-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/54944.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">293</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">121</span> Decentralized Forest Policy for Natural Sal (Shorea robusta) Forests Management in the Terai Region of Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Medani%20Prasad%20Rijal">Medani Prasad Rijal</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> The study outlines the impacts of decentralized forest policy on natural Sal (shorea robusta) forests in the Terai region of Nepal. The government has implemented community forestry program to manage the forest resources and improve the livelihood of local people collectively. The forest management authorities such as conserve, manage, develop and use of forest resources were shifted to the local communities, however, the ownership right of the forestland retained by the government. Local communities took the decision on harvesting, distribution, and sell of forest products by fixing the prices independently. The local communities were putting the low value of forest products and distributed among the user households on the name of collective decision. The decision of low valuation is devaluating the worth of forest products. Therefore, the study hypothesized that decision-making capacities are equally prominent next to the decentralized policy and program formulation. To accomplish the study, individual to group level discussions and questionnaire survey methods were applied with executive committee members and user households. The study revealed that the local intuition called Community Forest User Group (CFUG) committee normally took the decisions on consensus basis. Considering to the access and affording capacity of user households having poor economic backgrounds, low pricing mechanism of forest products has been practiced, even though the Sal timber is far expensive in the local market. The local communities thought that low pricing mechanism is accessible to all user households from poor to better off households. However, the analysis of forest products distribution opposed the assumption as most of the Sal timber, which is the most valuable forest product of community forest only purchased by the limited households of better economic conditions. Since the Terai region is heterogeneous by socio-economic conditions, better off households always have higher affording capacity and possibility of taking higher timber benefits because of low price mechanism. On the other hand, the minimum price rate of forest products has poor contribution in community fund collection. Consequently, it has poor support to carry out poverty alleviation activities to poor people. The local communities have been fixed Sal timber price rate around three times cheaper than normal market price, which is a strong evidence of forest product devaluation itself. Finally, the study concluded that the capacity building of local executives as the decision-makers of natural Sal forests is equally indispensable next to the policy and program formulation for effective decentralized forest management. Unilateral decentralized forest policy may devaluate the forest products rather than devolve of power to the local communities and empower to them. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=community%20forestry%20program" title="community forestry program">community forestry program</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=decentralized%20forest%20policy" title=" decentralized forest policy"> decentralized forest policy</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Nepal" title=" Nepal"> Nepal</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Sal%20forests" title=" Sal forests"> Sal forests</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Terai" title=" Terai"> Terai</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/34007/decentralized-forest-policy-for-natural-sal-shorea-robusta-forests-management-in-the-terai-region-of-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/34007.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">333</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">120</span> People's Perspective on Water Commons in Trans-Boundary Water Governance: A Case Study from Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Sristi%20Silwal">Sristi Silwal</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> South Asian rivers support ecosystems and sustain well-being of thousands of riparian communities. Rivers however are also sources of conflict between countries and one of the contested issues between governments of the region. Governments have signed treaties to harness some of the rivers but their provisions have not been successful in improving the quality of life of those who depend on water as common property resources. This paper will present a case of the study of the status of the water commons along the lower command areas of Koshi, Gandka and Mahakali rivers. Nepal and India have signed treaties for development and management of these rivers in 1928, 1954 and 1966. The study investigated perceptions of the local community on climate-induced disasters, provision of the treaties such as water for irrigation, participation in decision-making and specific impact of women. It looked at how the local community coped with adversities. The study showed that the common pool resources are gradually getting degraded, flood events increasing while community blame ‘other state’ and state administration for exacerbating these ills. The level of awareness about provisions of existing treatise is poor. Ongoing approach to trans-boundary water management has taken inadequate cognizance of these realities as the dominant narrative perpetuates cooperation between the governments. The paper argues that on-going discourses on trans-boundary water development and management need to use a new metrics of taking cognizance of the condition of the commons and that of the people depended on them for sustenance. In absence of such narratives, the scale of degradation would increase making those already marginalized more vulnerable to impacts of global climate change. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=climate%20change%20vulnerability" title="climate change vulnerability">climate change vulnerability</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=conflict" title=" conflict"> conflict</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=cooperation" title=" cooperation"> cooperation</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=water%20commons" title=" water commons"> water commons</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/45347/peoples-perspective-on-water-commons-in-trans-boundary-water-governance-a-case-study-from-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/45347.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">236</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">119</span> Human-Elephant Conflict and Mitigation Measures in Buffer Zone of Bardia National Park, Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Rabin%20Paudel">Rabin Paudel</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Dambar%20Bahadur%20Mahato"> Dambar Bahadur Mahato</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Prabin%20Poudel"> Prabin Poudel</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Bijaya%20Neupane"> Bijaya Neupane</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Sakar%20Jha"> Sakar Jha</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Understanding Human-Elephant Conflict (HEC) is very important in countries like Nepal, where solutions to escalating conflicts are urgently required. However, most of the HEC mitigation measures implemented so far have been done on an ad hoc basis without the detailed understanding of nature and extent of the damage. This study aims to assess the current scenario of HEC in regards to crop and property damages by Wild Asian Elephant and people’s perception towards existing mitigating measures and elephant conservation in Buffer zone area of Bardia National Park. The methods used were a questionnaire survey (N= 178), key-informant interview (N= 18) and focal group discussions (N= 6). Descriptive statistics were used to determine the nature and extent of damage and to understand people’s perception towards HEC, its mitigation measures and elephant conservation. Chi-square test was applied to determine the significance of crop and property damages with respect to distance from the park boundary. Out of all types of damage, crop damage was found to be the highest (51%), followed by house damage (31%) and damage to stored grains (18%) with winter being the season with the greatest elephant damage. Among 178 respondents, the majority of them (82%) were positive towards elephant conservation despite the increment in HEC incidents as perceived by 88% of total respondents. Among the mitigation measures present, the most applied was electric fence (91%) followed by barbed wire fence (5%), reinforced concrete cement wall (3%) and gabion wall (1%). Most effective mitigation measures were reinforced concrete cement wall and gabion wall. To combat increasing crop damage, the insurance policy should be initiated. The efficiency of the mitigation measures should be timely monitored, and corrective measures should be applied as per the need. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=crop%20and%20property%20damage" title="crop and property damage">crop and property damage</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=elephant%20conflict" title=" elephant conflict"> elephant conflict</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Asiatic%20wild%20elephant" title=" Asiatic wild elephant"> Asiatic wild elephant</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=mitigation%20measures" title=" mitigation measures"> mitigation measures</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/111975/human-elephant-conflict-and-mitigation-measures-in-buffer-zone-of-bardia-national-park-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/111975.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">149</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">118</span> Utilization of Family Planning Methods and Associated Factors among Women of Reproductive Age Group in Sunsari, Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Punam%20Kumari%20Mandal">Punam Kumari Mandal</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Namita%20Yangden"> Namita Yangden</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Bhumika%20Rai"> Bhumika Rai</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Achala%20Niraula"> Achala Niraula</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Sabitra%20Subedi"> Sabitra Subedi</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> introduction: Family planning not only improves women’s health but also promotes gender equality, better child health, and improved education outcomes, including poverty reduction. The objective of this study is to assess the utilization of family planning methods and associated factors in Sunsari, Nepal. methodology: A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted among women of the reproductive age group (15-49 years) in Sunsari in 2020. Nonprobability purposive sampling was used to collect information from 212 respondents through face-to-face interviews using a Semi-structured interview schedule from ward no 1 of Barju rural municipality. Data processing was done by using SPSS “statistics for windows, version 17.0(SPSS Inc., Chicago, III.USA”). Descriptive analysis and inferential analysis (binary logistic regression) were used to find the association of the utilization of family planning methods with selected demographic variables. All the variables with P-value <0.1 in bivariate analysis were included in multivariate analysis. A P-value of <0.05 was considered to indicate statistical significance at a level of significance of 5%. results: This study showed that the mean age and standard deviation of the respondents were 26±7.03, and 91.5 % of respondent’s age at marriage was less than 20 years. Likewise, 67.5% of respondents use any methods of family planning, and 55.2% of respondents use family planning services from the government health facility. Furthermore, education (AOR 1.579, CI 1.013-2.462)., husband’s occupation (AOR 1.095, CI 0.744-1.610)., type of family (AOR 2.741, CI 1.210-6.210)., and no of living son (AOR 0.259 CI 0.077-0.872)are the factors associated with the utilization of family planning methods. conclusion: This study concludes that two-thirds of reproductive-age women utilize family planning methods. Furthermore, education, the husband’s occupation, the type of family, and no of living sons are the factors associated with the utilization of family planning methods. This reflects that awareness through mass media, including behavioral communication, is needed to increase the utilization of family planning methods. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=family%20planning%20methods" title="family planning methods">family planning methods</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=utilization.%20factors" title=" utilization. factors"> utilization. factors</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=women" title=" women"> women</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=community" title=" community"> community</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/158598/utilization-of-family-planning-methods-and-associated-factors-among-women-of-reproductive-age-group-in-sunsari-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/158598.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">136</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">117</span> WASH Governance Opportunity for Inspiring Innovation and a Circular Economy in Karnali Province of Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Nirajan%20Shrestha">Nirajan Shrestha</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Karnali is one of the most vulnerable provinces in Nepal, facing challenges from climate change, poverty, and natural calamities across different regions. In recent years, the province has been severely impacted by climate change stress such as temperature rises in glacier lake of mountainous region and spring source water shortages, particularly in hilly areas where settlements are located, and water sources have depleted from their original ground levels. As a result, Karnali could face a future without enough water for all. Deep causes of sustainable safe water supply have always been neglected in rural areas of Nepal, and communities are unfairly burdened with a challenge of keeping water facilities functioning in areas affected by frequent natural disasters where there is a substantial, well-documented funding gap between the revenues from user payments and the full cost of sustained services. The key importance of a permanent system to support communities in service delivery has been always underrated so far. The complexity of water service sustainability as a topic should be simplified to one clear indicator: the functionality rate, which can be expressed as uptime or the percentage of time that the service is delivered over the total time. For example, a functionality rate of 80% means that the water service is operational 80% of the time, while 20% of the time the system is not functioning. This represents 0.2 multiplied by 365, which equals 73 days every year, or roughly two and a half months without water. This percentage should be widely understood and used in Karnali. All local governments should report their targets and performance in improving it, and there should be a broader discussion about what target is acceptable and what can be realistically achieved. In response to these challenges, the Sustainable WASH for All (SUSWA) project has introduced innovative models and policy formulation strategies in various working local government. SUSWA’s approach, which delegates rural water supply and sanitation responsibilities to local governments, has been instrumental in addressing these issues. To keep pace with the growing demand, the province has adopted a service support center model, linking local governments with federal authorities to ensure effective service delivery to the communities By enhancing WASH governance through local governments engagement, capacity building and inclusive WASH policy frameworks, there is potential to address WASH gaps while fostering a circular economy. This strategy emphasizes resource recovery, waste minimization and the creation of local employment generation opportunities. The research highlights key governance mechanisms, innovative practices and policy interventions that can be scaled up across other regions. It also provides recommendations on how to leverage Karnali’s unique socio-economic and environmental context nature-based solutions to inspire innovation and drive sustainable WASH solutions. Key findings suggest that with strong ownership and leadership of local governments, community engagement and appropriate technology, Karnali Province can become a model for integrating WASH governance with circular economy concept, providing broader lessons for other regions in Nepal. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=vulnerable%20provinces" title="vulnerable provinces">vulnerable provinces</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=natural%20calamities" title=" natural calamities"> natural calamities</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=climate%20change%20stres" title=" climate change stres"> climate change stres</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=spring%20source%20depletion" title=" spring source depletion"> spring source depletion</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=resources%20recovery" title=" resources recovery"> resources recovery</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=governance%20mechanisms" title=" governance mechanisms"> governance mechanisms</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=appropriate%20technology" title=" appropriate technology"> appropriate technology</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=community%20engagement" title=" community engagement"> community engagement</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=innovation" title=" innovation"> innovation</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/192226/wash-governance-opportunity-for-inspiring-innovation-and-a-circular-economy-in-karnali-province-of-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/192226.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">14</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">116</span> Health and the Politics of Trust: Multi-Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis in Kathmandu</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Mattia%20Testuzza">Mattia Testuzza</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Public health is a social endeavour, which involves many different actors: from extremely stratified, structured health systems to unofficial networks of people and knowledge. Health and diseases are an intertwined individual and social experiences. Both patients and health workers navigate this public space through relations of trust. Trust in healthcare goes from the personal trust between a patient and her/his doctor to the trust of both the patient and the health worker in the medical knowledge and the healthcare system. Trust it is not a given, but it is continuously negotiated, given and gained. The key to understand these essential relations of trust in health is to recognise them as a social practice, which therefore implies agency and power. In these terms, health is constantly public and made public, as trust emerges as a meaningfully political phenomenon. Trust as a power relation can be observed at play in the implementation of public health policies such as the WHO’s Directly-Observed Theraphy Short-course (DOTS), and with the increasing concern for drug-resistance that tuberculosis pose, looking at the role of trust in the healthcare delivery system and implementation of public health policies becomes significantly relevant. The ethnographic fieldwork was carried out in four months through observation of the daily practices at the National Tuberculosis Center of Nepal, and semi-structured interviews with MultiDrug-Resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB) patients at different stages of the treatment, their relatives, MDR-TB specialised nurses, and doctors. Throughout the research, the role which trust plays in tuberculosis treatment emerged as one fundamental ax that cuts through all the different factors intertwined with drug-resistance development, unfolding a tension between the DOTS policy, which undermines trust, and the day-to-day healthcare relations and practices which cannot function without trust. Trust also stands out as a key component of the solutions to unforeseen issues which develop from the overall uncertainty of the context - for example, political instability and extreme poverty - in which tuberculosis treatment is carried out in Nepal. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=trust" title="trust">trust</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=tuberculosis" title=" tuberculosis"> tuberculosis</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=drug-resistance" title=" drug-resistance"> drug-resistance</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=politics%20of%20health" title=" politics of health"> politics of health</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/79427/health-and-the-politics-of-trust-multi-drug-resistant-tuberculosis-in-kathmandu" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/79427.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">253</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">115</span> Freshwater Fish Diversity and IUCN Status of Glacial-fed (Bheri) and Spring-fed (Babai) Rivers in the Wake of Inter-basin Water Transfer</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Kumar%20Khatri">Kumar Khatri</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Bibhuti%20Ranjan%20Jha"> Bibhuti Ranjan Jha</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Smriti%20Gurung"> Smriti Gurung</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Udhab%20Raj%20Khadka"> Udhab Raj Khadka</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Freshwater fishes are crucial components of aquatic ecosystems but are being affected by a range of anthropogenic activities. A large number of freshwater bodies in Nepal are under different anthropogenic threats, thereby affecting freshwater biodiversity, including fish fauna. Inter-basin water transfer (IBWT) involving damming and diversion has been considered as one of the major threats to the rivers, yet many such projects are in the pipeline. Impact assessment of such projects include generation of baseline information on different biotic and abiotic variables. The aim of this study was to generate baseline information on fish diversity from the glacial-fed Bheri and the spring-fed Babai rivers and their selected tributaries from Western Nepal in the wake of the first inter-basin water transfer from the former to the latter. A total of 10 sites, 5 each from Bheri and Babai systems, were chosen strategically. Seasonal electrofishing was conducted in 2018 following the standard method. A total of 32 species with Catch per Unite Effort (CPUE) of 46.94±24.06 from Bheri and 42 species with CPUE of 63.02±51.80 from Babai were recorded. Cyprinidae, followed by Nemacheilidae, were the most dominant fish Family in both river systems. Barilius vagra and Schistura beavani were the most dominant species in the Bheri and the Babai systems, respectively. Species richness and abundance showed a significant difference between the rivers. The difference in fish assemblages reflects differences in the ecological regimes of these rivers. Of the total species, at least 8 are in the threatened categories of the IUCN Red List, which need active conservation measures. The findings provide a reference to assess the impacts of water transfers on fish in these river systems and could be helpful to other similar river systems in the future. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=babai%20river" title="babai river">babai river</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=bheri%20river" title=" bheri river"> bheri river</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=fish%20diversity" title=" fish diversity"> fish diversity</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=damming" title=" damming"> damming</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/166162/freshwater-fish-diversity-and-iucn-status-of-glacial-fed-bheri-and-spring-fed-babai-rivers-in-the-wake-of-inter-basin-water-transfer" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/166162.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">87</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">114</span> Training During Emergency Response to Build Resiliency in Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Lee%20Boudreau">Lee Boudreau</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Ash%20Kumar%20Khaitu"> Ash Kumar Khaitu</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Laura%20A.%20S.%20MacDonald"> Laura A. S. MacDonald</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> In April 2015, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Nepal, killing, injuring, and displacing thousands of people. The earthquake also damaged water and sanitation service networks, leading to a high risk of diarrheal disease and the associated negative health impacts. In response to the disaster, the Environment and Public Health Organization (ENPHO), a Kathmandu-based non-governmental organization, worked with the Centre for Affordable Water and Sanitation Technology (CAWST), a Canadian education, training and consulting organization, to develop two training programs to educate volunteers on water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) needs. The first training program was intended for acute response, with the second focusing on longer term recovery. A key focus was to equip the volunteers with the knowledge and skills to formulate useful WASH advice in the unanticipated circumstances they would encounter when working in affected areas. Within the first two weeks of the disaster, a two-day acute response training was developed, which focused on enabling volunteers to educate those affected by the disaster about local WASH issues, their link to health, and their increased importance immediately following emergency situations. Between March and October 2015, a total of 19 training events took place, with over 470 volunteers trained. The trained volunteers distributed hygiene kits and liquid chlorine for household water treatment. They also facilitated health messaging and WASH awareness activities in affected communities. A three-day recovery phase training was also developed and has been delivered to volunteers in Nepal since October 2015. This training focused on WASH issues during the recovery and reconstruction phases. The interventions and recommendations in the recovery phase training focus on long-term WASH solutions, and so form a link between emergency relief strategies and long-term development goals. ENPHO has trained 226 volunteers during the recovery phase, with training ongoing as of April 2016. In the aftermath of the earthquake, ENPHO found that its existing pool of volunteers were more than willing to help those in their communities who were more in need. By training these and new volunteers, ENPHO was able to reach many more communities in the immediate aftermath of the disaster; together they reached 11 of the 14 earthquake-affected districts. The collaboration between ENPHO and CAWST in developing the training materials was a highly collaborative and iterative process, which enabled the training materials to be developed within a short response time. By training volunteers on basic WASH topics during both the immediate response and the recovery phase, ENPHO and CAWST have been able to link immediate emergency relief to long-term developmental goals. While the recovery phase training continues in Nepal, CAWST is planning to decontextualize the training used in both phases so that it can be applied to other emergency situations in the future. The training materials will become part of the open content materials available on CAWST’s WASH Resources website. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=water%20and%20sanitation" title="water and sanitation">water and sanitation</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=emergency%20response" title=" emergency response"> emergency response</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=education%20and%20training" title=" education and training"> education and training</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=building%20resilience" title=" building resilience"> building resilience</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/42383/training-during-emergency-response-to-build-resiliency-in-water-sanitation-and-hygiene" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/42383.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">305</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">113</span> Factors Associated with Contraceptive Use and Nonuse, among Currently Married Young (15-24 Years) Women in Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Bishnu%20Prasad%20Dulal">Bishnu Prasad Dulal</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Sushil%20Chandra%20Baral"> Sushil Chandra Baral</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Radheshyam%20Bhattarai"> Radheshyam Bhattarai</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Meera%20Tandan"> Meera Tandan</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Background: Non-use of contraceptives is a leading cause of unintended pregnancy. This study was done to explore the potential predictors of contraceptive used by young women, and the findings can inform policy makers to design the program to reduce unintended pregnancy for younger women who have a longer time of fecundity. Methodology: A nationally representative cross-sectional household survey was conducted by Health Research and Social Development Forum in 2012. Total 2259 currently married young women (15-24 years) were selected for the analysis out of 8578 women of reproductive age interviewed from the total 10260 households using systematic sampling. Binary logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with the use of modern contraceptive methods. Findings: The prevalence of modern contraceptive methods among young women was 25.2 %. Use of contraceptives was significantly associated with age at first marriage <15 year of age (OR:1.95) and ever delivered (OR: 1.8). Muslim women were significantly less likely to use contraceptives. Development region, wealth quintile, and awareness of abortion site were also statistically associated factors to use of contraceptives. Conclusion: The prevalence of contraceptives uses among young married women (25.2%) was lower than national prevalence (43%) of contraceptives use among married women of reproductive age. Our analysis focused on examining the association between women’s characteristics-related factors and use and nonuse of modern contraceptives. Awareness of safe abortion site is significantly associated while level of education was not. It is an interesting finding but difficult to interpret which needs further analysis on the basis of education. Maybe due to the underlying socio-religious practice of Muslim people, they had lower use of contraceptives. Programmers and policy makers could better help young women by increasing intervention activities to have a regular use of contraceptive-covering poor, Dalit and Muslim, and low aged women in order to reduce unintended pregnancy. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=unintended%20pregnancy" title="unintended pregnancy">unintended pregnancy</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=contraceptive" title=" contraceptive"> contraceptive</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=young%20women" title=" young women"> young women</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Nepal" title=" Nepal"> Nepal</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/66081/factors-associated-with-contraceptive-use-and-nonuse-among-currently-married-young-15-24-years-women-in-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/66081.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">455</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">112</span> Quality of Life among Female Sex Workers of Selected Organization of Pokhara: A Methodological Triangulation</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Sharmila%20Dahal%20Paudel">Sharmila Dahal Paudel</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Background: There are around twenty-four thousand to twenty-eight thousand Female Sex Workers in Nepal. FSWs are the vulnerable groups for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections which directly and indirectly ease to reduce the quality of life of such groups. Due to their highly marginalized status, FSWs in Nepal have limited access to information about reproductive health and safe sex practices. The objectives of the study are to assess the quality of life of female sex workers and the factors affecting them. Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study with methodological triangulation was conducted among 108 FSWs on the basis of service record of selected organization of Pokhara valley. The complete enumerative sampling was used to select FSWs. Structured interview schedule, WHOQOL-BREF and in-depth questionnaire were used to collect the data. The descriptive and inferential statistics were used to interpret the result. Results: The mean age of participants were 23.44 years and the mean quality of life score was 174.06 ranging from 56.54 to 370.78. Among the domain scores, the mean score is highest in social domain (55.89) followed by physical (45.42), psychological (39.27) and the environmental (34.23). Regarding the association of QOL with socio-demographic, occupation and health-related variables, the multi-linear regression suggests that the satisfaction with occupation was highly significant with the total QOL score (B=-50.50, SE=10.46; p= <0.001) and there is negative relation between QOL and feeling of exploitation and facing STI problems. This means those who feels exploited have significantly less QOL comparing with those who did not feel the same. In correlation analysis, all the domains are positively co-related with each domain which is found to be significant at 1% level of significance. Conclusion: The highest mean score was in social domain, and the lowest is in environmental domain which suggests that the items included in environmental domains could not be utilized or hindrance were there. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=FSWs" title="FSWs">FSWs</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=HIV" title=" HIV"> HIV</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=QOL" title=" QOL"> QOL</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=WHOQOL-BREF" title=" WHOQOL-BREF"> WHOQOL-BREF</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/57355/quality-of-life-among-female-sex-workers-of-selected-organization-of-pokhara-a-methodological-triangulation" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/57355.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">168</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">111</span> Pricing Effects on Equitable Distribution of Forest Products and Livelihood Improvement in Nepalese Community Forestry</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Laxuman%20Thakuri">Laxuman Thakuri</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Despite the large number of in-depth case studies focused on policy analysis, institutional arrangement, and collective action of common property resource management; how the local institutions take the pricing decision of forest products in community forest management and what kinds of effects produce it, the answers of these questions are largely silent among the policy-makers and researchers alike. The study examined how the local institutions take the pricing decision of forest products in the lowland community forestry of Nepal and how the decisions affect to equitable distribution of benefits and livelihood improvement which are also objectives of Nepalese community forestry. The study assumes that forest products pricing decisions have multiple effects on equitable distribution and livelihood improvement in the areas having heterogeneous socio-economic conditions. The dissertation was carried out at four community forests of lowland, Nepal that has characteristics of high value species, matured-experience of community forest management and better record-keeping system of forest products production, pricing and distribution. The questionnaire survey, individual to group discussions and direct field observation were applied for data collection from the field, and Lorenz curve, gini-coefficient, χ²-text, and SWOT (Strong, Weak, Opportunity, and Threat) analysis were performed for data analysis and results interpretation. The dissertation demonstrates that the low pricing strategy of high-value forest products was supposed crucial to increase the access of socio-economically weak households, and to and control over the important forest products such as timber, but found counter productive as the strategy increased the access of socio-economically better-off households at higher rate. In addition, the strategy contradicts to collect a large-scale community fund and carry out livelihood improvement activities as per the community forestry objectives. The crucial part of the study is despite the fact of low pricing strategy; the timber alone contributed large part of community fund collection. The results revealed close relation between pricing decisions and livelihood objectives. The action research result shows that positive price discrimination can slightly reduce the prevailing inequality and increase the fund. However, it lacks to harness the full price of forest products and collects a large-scale community fund. For broader outcomes of common property resource management in terms of resource sustainability, equity, and livelihood opportunity, the study suggests local institutions to harness the full price of resource products with respect to the local market. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=community" title="community">community</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=equitable" title=" equitable"> equitable</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=forest" title=" forest"> forest</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=livelihood" title=" livelihood"> livelihood</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=socioeconomic" title=" socioeconomic"> socioeconomic</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Nepal" title=" Nepal"> Nepal</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/29512/pricing-effects-on-equitable-distribution-of-forest-products-and-livelihood-improvement-in-nepalese-community-forestry" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/29512.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">536</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">110</span> Sustainability in Community-Based Forestry Management: A Case from Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Tanka%20Nath%20Dahal">Tanka Nath Dahal</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Community-based forestry is seen as a promising instrument for sustainable forest management (SFM) through the purposeful involvement of local communities. Globally, forest area managed by local communities is on the rise. However, transferring management responsibilities to forest users alone cannot guarantee the sustainability of forest management. A monitoring tool, that allows the local communities to track the progress of forest management towards the goal of sustainability, is essential. A case study, including six forest user groups (FUGs), two from each three community-based forestry models—community forestry (CF), buffer zone community forestry (BZCF), and collaborative forest management (CFM) representing three different physiographic regions, was conducted in Nepal. The study explores which community-based forest management model (CF, BZCF or CFM) is doing well in terms of sustainable forest management. The study assesses the overall performance of the three models towards SFM using locally developed criteria (four), indicators (26) and verifiers (60). This paper attempts to quantify the sustainability of the models using sustainability index for individual criteria (SIIC), and overall sustainability index (OSI). In addition, rating to the criteria and scoring of the verifiers by the FUGs were done. Among the four criteria, the FUGs ascribed the highest weightage to institutional framework and governance criterion; followed by economic and social benefits, forest management practices, and extent of forest resources. Similarly, the SIIC was found to be the highest for the institutional framework and governance criterion. The average values of OSI for CFM, CF, and BZCF were 0.48, 0.51 and 0.60 respectively; suggesting that buffer zone community forestry is the more sustainable model among the three. The study also suggested that the SIIC and OSI help local communities to quantify the overall progress of their forestry practices towards sustainability. The indices provided a clear picture of forest management practices to indicate the direction where they are heading in terms of sustainability; and informed the users on issues to pay attention to enhancing the sustainability of their forests. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=community%20forestry" title="community forestry">community forestry</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=collaborative%20management" title=" collaborative management"> collaborative management</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=overall%20sustainability" title=" overall sustainability"> overall sustainability</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=sustainability%20index%20for%20individual%20criteria" title=" sustainability index for individual criteria"> sustainability index for individual criteria</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/43332/sustainability-in-community-based-forestry-management-a-case-from-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/43332.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">248</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">109</span> Examining Child Rape Provisions of Bangladesh in Comparison with Other South Asian Countries</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Monira%20Nazmi%20Jahan">Monira Nazmi Jahan</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Child rape or child abuse is a serious and fearsome crime against children, which is an epidemic almost in every state of today’s world. However, in the case of Bangladesh, the scenario is terrifying. The objective of this paper is to examine the laws relating to child rape in Bangladesh as according to a renowned Daily Newspaper 'Prothom Alo', nearly 346 children are being raped since January 2019. This paper discusses and draws the difference of child rape provisions of Bangladesh with other South-Asian countries, comprises of India, Maldives, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and Afghanistan. In Bangladesh, girls below 18 years are considered to be a child. ‘The Penal Code, 1860’ and a special law ‘Nari O Shishu Nirjatan Daman Ain, 2012’ provides that any person committing child rape will be punished with rigorous life imprisonment and fine. This piece of law also gives provisions for punishment in case of child’s death after the commission of rape and gang rape, and the punishment is the death penalty. In India there is ‘The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012’ (POSCO) which has separate provisions for sexual assault, penetrative sexual assault and aggravated penetrative sexual assault by different categories of person such as relatives, institutional officers and trustees and also for mentally and physically challenged child victims and provides punishment up to death penalty. In Pakistan, there is ‘Pakistan Penal Code Amended Act, 2016’ which has only two provisions for child rape. In case offence committed by one person, the punishment is 10 to 25 years of imprisonment and fine. In case of offence committed by two or more persons, each shall be liable to death or imprisonment for life. Unfortunately, Afghanistan has no laws for the protection of rape victims of women let alone children, whereas there are a lot of child rape cases, including both girls and boys who are used for sexual slavery. The Maldives has a special law named ‘Special Provisions Act to Deal with Child Sex Abuse Offenders.’ This has categorized the offenders like POSCO and has provided punishments accordingly. The punishments are: punishments range from 1 to 25 years accordingly, whereas Bangladesh has lesser provisions, but the gravity and duration of punishments are much higher. The Penal Code of Sri Lanka imposes a minimum sentence of 10 years for those convicted of raping a child under 18 years. In Bhutan, child rape provision is made according to the age of a child. ‘The Penal Code of Bhutan, 2004’, mentions provisions for the rape of a child in case of child rape below and above 12 years, gang rape of a child below and above 12 years and has graded the punishments as first, second and third degree. Though Bangladesh has better provisions for punishments, the ages are not categorized in the laws. In Nepal there is ‘Act relating to Children, 2018’ provisions are made for offenders who use or cause or engage child sexual exploitation, and the punishment is same for rape offenders according to prevailing laws in Nepal. No separate punishments for child offenders are made. The ultimate conclusion that can be drawn is Bangladesh has better punishments than all other South-Asian countries and same punishment as India however, Bangladesh can make or amend the laws and categorize offenders as like POSCO of India, Special provisions of Maldives and Bhutan. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=child%20rape" title="child rape">child rape</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=death%20penalty" title=" death penalty"> death penalty</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=sexual%20slavery" title=" sexual slavery"> sexual slavery</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=South%20Asia" title=" South Asia"> South Asia</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/109473/examining-child-rape-provisions-of-bangladesh-in-comparison-with-other-south-asian-countries" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/109473.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">110</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">108</span> Accessing Livestock Depredation by the Himalayan Wolf in Neshyang Valley, Manag, Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Tenzing%20Lama">Tenzing Lama</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Ganga%20Ram%20Regmi"> Ganga Ram Regmi</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Thakur%20Silwal"> Thakur Silwal</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Rinzin%20Punjok%20Lama"> Rinzin Punjok Lama</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Livestock depredation by a wolf and associated financial loss suffered by herders is perhaps the most important issue leading to human-wolf conflict. As a result, recolonized wolves remained one of the most persecuted large carnivores in Nepal Himalaya suffering high mortality due to retaliatory killings by herdsmen. Reducing such depredation are crucial in gaining herder’s support in conservation program to ensure the long-term survival of such carnivores. In February 2018, a study was conducted through questionnaire survey with 33 herders from different settlements in Neshyang valley of Manang district to assess the status of human-wolf conflict in terms of livestock loss and herder’s attitude. A total of 36 livestock were lost to the wolf with an average loss of 1.09 ± 0.48 (SE) livestock heads per herder between March 2017 to February 2018 which represents 1.5% of the total holdings. The estimated financial value of livestock loss was equivalent to US$ 25,428 with an average of US$ 770 per herder. Majority of the herders (80%) expressed a negative attitude towards the wolf, but only a few herders (6.06%) suggested removal of the wolf from the valley. The incidences of livestock loss differed significantly with highest in day time and seasonally highest in winter, when herders freely leaves their livestock (except goat/sheep) in the pastures. Wolf showed positive selectivity to the horse (EI=0.59), yak (EI=0.24) and cattle (EI=0.14) but strong avoidance to goat/sheep (EI=-1). This study suggests that livestock depredation by wolf could be minimized through improved livestock husbandry practices and implication of mitigation measures (e.g. coral improvement) and immediate relief to the victims. Conservation education and awareness programs to enhance herders knowledge about the ecological importance of wolf, provision of relief scheme and law enforcement. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=canis%20lupus%20canco" title="canis lupus canco">canis lupus canco</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=conservation%20education" title=" conservation education"> conservation education</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=human%20wildlife%20conflict" title=" human wildlife conflict"> human wildlife conflict</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=compensation%20schemes" title=" compensation schemes"> compensation schemes</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/192686/accessing-livestock-depredation-by-the-himalayan-wolf-in-neshyang-valley-manag-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/192686.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">16</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">107</span> Role of Community Based Forest Management to Address Climate Change Problem: A Case of Nepalese Community Forestry</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Bikram%20Jung%20Kunwar">Bikram Jung Kunwar</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Forests have central roles in climate change. The conservation of forests sequestrates the carbon from the atmosphere and also regulates the carbon cycle. However, knowingly and unknowingly the world’s forests were deforested and degraded annually at the rate of 0.18% and emitted the carbon to the atmosphere. The IPCC reports claimed that the deforestation and forest degradation accounts 1/5th of total carbon emission, which is second position after fossil fuels. Since 1.6 billion people depend on varying degree on forests for their daily livelihood, not all deforestation are undesirable. Therefore, to conserve the forests and find the livelihood opportunities for forest surrounding people is prerequisites to address the climate change problems especially in developing countries, and also a growing concern to the forestry sector researchers, planners and policy makers. The study examines the role of community based forest management in carbon mitigation and adaptation taking the examples of Nepal’s community forestry program. In the program, the government hands over a part of national forests to the local communities with sole forest management authorities. However, the government itself retained the ownership rights of forestland. Local communities organized through a local institution called Community Forest User Group (CFUG) managed the forests. They also formed an operational plan with technical prescriptions and a constitution with forest management rules and regulations. The implementation results showed that the CFUGs are not only found effective to organize the local people and construct a local institution to forest conservation and management activities, but also they are able to collect a community fund from the sale of forest products and carried out various community development activities. These development activities have decisive roles to improve the livelihood of forest surrounding people and eventually to address the climate change problems. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=climate%20change" title="climate change">climate change</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=community%20forestry" title=" community forestry"> community forestry</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=local%20institution" title=" local institution"> local institution</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Nepal" title=" Nepal"> Nepal</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/29103/role-of-community-based-forest-management-to-address-climate-change-problem-a-case-of-nepalese-community-forestry" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/29103.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">301</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">106</span> Spatial Distribution and Habitat Preference of Indian Pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) in Madhesh Province, Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Asmit%20Neupane">Asmit Neupane</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Narayan%20Prasad%20Gautam"> Narayan Prasad Gautam</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Prabin%20Bhusal"> Prabin Bhusal</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Indian pangolin, locally called as ‘Salak’, ‘Sal machha’, ‘Pakho machha’, is a globally endangered species, nationally categorized as a critically endangered species, protected under the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (NPWC) Act 1973 and appended in Appendix I of CITES. Indian pangolins occur in the tropical areas of Terai region and Chure foothills of eastern Nepal, and India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. They utilize a wide range of habitats, including primary and secondary tropical forest, limestone forest, bamboo forest, grassland, and agricultural lands. So, in regard to this fact, this research is aimed to provide detailed information regarding the current distribution pattern, status, habitat preference, prevailing threats and attitude of local people towards species conservation in Madhesh Province, Nepal. The study was conducted in four CFs, two from Bara district and two from Dhanusha district. The study area comprised of Churia range and foothills with tropical and sub-tropical vegetation. A total of 24 transects were established, each of 500*50 m2, where indirect signs of Indian pangolin, including active/old burrows, pugmarks and scratches, were found. Altogether 93 burrows were found, where only 20 were active burrows. Similarly, a vegetation survey and social survey was also conducted. The data was analyzed using Stata 16 and SPSS software. Distance from settlement, ground cover, aspect, presence/absence of ants/termites and human disturbance were the important habitat parameters having statistically significant relationship with the distribution of Indian pangolin in the area. The species was found to prefer an elevation of 360 to 540m, 0-15º slope, red soil, North-east aspect, moderate crown and ground cover, without fire and rocks, vicinity of water, roads, settlement, Sal dominated forest and minimum disturbed by human activities. Similarly, the attitude of local people towards Indian pangolin conservation was found to be significantly different with respect to age, sex and education level. The study concludes that majority of active burrows were found in Churia hills, which indicates that Indian pangolin population is gradually moving uphill towards higher elevation as hilly area supports better prey availability and also less human disturbance. Further studies are required to investigate microhabitat preferences, seasonal variability and impacts of climate change on the distribution, habitat and prey availability of Indian pangolin for the sustainable conservation of this species. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=conservation" title="conservation">conservation</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=IUCN%20red%20list" title=" IUCN red list"> IUCN red list</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=local%20participation" title=" local participation"> local participation</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=small%20mammal" title=" small mammal"> small mammal</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=status" title=" status"> status</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=threats" title=" threats"> threats</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/169149/spatial-distribution-and-habitat-preference-of-indian-pangolin-manis-crassicaudata-in-madhesh-province-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/169149.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">80</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">105</span> Linking Access to Land, Tenure Security with Food Sufficiency of Tenants/Landless or Small Holder Farmers of Parsa District</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Subesh%20Panta">Subesh Panta</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> The land is a one of the major boosting factors of production for the agricultural country like Nepal where access to land has been a major source of livelihood of tenants and small farmers. But there is an absence of secure land tenure arrangement which drastically affect the overall production of farmers leading towards food insecurity. Sharecropping is practiced in Nepal especially in tarai region from early period, but there is the gap in the academic study whether the sharecropping has benefitted tenant farmers and make them food sufficient or not. This study attempts to find out the food sufficiency among the tenant households. The research was carried in the three VDCs of Parsa district -Paterwa (Sugauli), Jitpur and Nirchuta. A total of 111 households were determined as the sample size from each of the three VDCs was randomly visited for interview in the study. The size of land rent-in was found to be very small and fragmented. At the same time, the land tenure security was not found to be secured among the tenants. Due to lack of land tenure security, on one hand tenants and small farmers were not found to be motivated to investment in agriculture as they need to share fifty percent of their production with the land owners, and on other hand land owners were also not interested in investing as they have other alternative sources of livelihood rather than agriculture. In conclusion, the study highpoint that the crop production and food sufficiency level of the tenants’ farmers of the Parsa district are decreasing. Many tenants’ farmers are seeking alternative opportunities for livelihood rather than sharecropping due to insecure land tenure, feudalistic practice, lack of storage for agriculture production, lack of proper agro-market. The situation is such that, if no action is taken timely, there may be a situation that we will have to depend on imports for all the food requirements. Thus, the study discloses that the sharecropping could act as catalyst for ensuring food sufficiency for all, if proper land tenure police are promoted to tenants/small farmers with legal titles to their land or promoted with sustainable agriculture methods. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=agriculture" title="agriculture">agriculture</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=food%20sufficiency" title=" food sufficiency"> food sufficiency</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=land" title=" land"> land</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=tenant%20farmes" title=" tenant farmes"> tenant farmes</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/49259/linking-access-to-land-tenure-security-with-food-sufficiency-of-tenantslandless-or-small-holder-farmers-of-parsa-district" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/49259.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">235</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">104</span> Rapid Monitoring of Earthquake Damages Using Optical and SAR Data</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Saeid%20Gharechelou">Saeid Gharechelou</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Ryutaro%20Tateishi"> Ryutaro Tateishi</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Earthquake is an inevitable catastrophic natural disaster. The damages of buildings and man-made structures, where most of the human activities occur are the major cause of casualties from earthquakes. A comparison of optical and SAR data is presented in the case of Kathmandu valley which was hardly shaken by 2015-Nepal Earthquake. Though many existing researchers have conducted optical data based estimated or suggested combined use of optical and SAR data for improved accuracy, however finding cloud-free optical images when urgently needed are not assured. Therefore, this research is specializd in developing SAR based technique with the target of rapid and accurate geospatial reporting. Should considers that limited time available in post-disaster situation offering quick computation exclusively based on two pairs of pre-seismic and co-seismic single look complex (SLC) images. The InSAR coherence pre-seismic, co-seismic and post-seismic was used to detect the change in damaged area. In addition, the ground truth data from field applied to optical data by random forest classification for detection of damaged area. The ground truth data collected in the field were used to assess the accuracy of supervised classification approach. Though a higher accuracy obtained from the optical data then integration by optical-SAR data. Limitation of cloud-free images when urgently needed for earthquak evevent are and is not assured, thus further research on improving the SAR based damage detection is suggested. Availability of very accurate damage information is expected for channelling the rescue and emergency operations. It is expected that the quick reporting of the post-disaster damage situation quantified by the rapid earthquake assessment should assist in channeling the rescue and emergency operations, and in informing the public about the scale of damage. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Sentinel-1A%20data" title="Sentinel-1A data">Sentinel-1A data</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Landsat-8" title=" Landsat-8"> Landsat-8</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=earthquake%20damage" title=" earthquake damage"> earthquake damage</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=InSAR" title=" InSAR"> InSAR</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=rapid%20damage%20monitoring" title=" rapid damage monitoring"> rapid damage monitoring</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=2015-Nepal%20earthquake" title=" 2015-Nepal earthquake"> 2015-Nepal earthquake</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/75778/rapid-monitoring-of-earthquake-damages-using-optical-and-sar-data" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/75778.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">172</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">103</span> Differential in Dynamics of Contraceptive Practices with Women's Sexual Empowerment in Selected South Asian Countries: Evidence from Two Decades DHS Surveys, 1990 and 2012</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Brajesh">Brajesh</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Introduction: It is generally believed that women's lack power to making decision may restrict their use of modern contraceptives practices. However, few studies have examined the different dimensions of women's empowerment and contraceptive use in Asian content. Pervasive gendered inequities and norms regarding the subordination of women give Asian men disproportionately more power than women, particularly in relation to the sex. We hypothesize that lack of sexual empowerment may pose an important barrier to reproductive health and adoption of family planning methods. Using the Demographic Health Survey, we examine the association between women’s sexual empowerment and contraceptive use in Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Objectives: To understand the trend and pattern of contraceptive choices and use among women due to sexual empowerment in selected south Asian countries. To examine the association between women’s sexual empowerment and contraceptive practices among non-pregnant married and partnered women in Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Methods: Data came from the latest round of Demographic and Health Surveys conducted between 2010-12 in and during deacde1990 -92 in Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Responses from married or cohabiting women aged 15-49 years were analyzed for six dimensions of empowerment and the current use of female-only methods or couple of methods. Bi-variate and multivariate multinomial regressions were used to identify associations between the empowerment dimensions and method use. Results: Positive associations were found between the overall empowerment score and method use in all countries (relative risk ratios, 1.1-1.3). In multivariate analysis, household economic decision-making was associated with the use of either female-only or couple methods (relative risk ratios -1. 1 for all), as was agreement on fertility preferences (RRR-1.3-1.6) and the ability to negotiate sexual activity (RRR -1. 1-1.2). In Bangladesh, women's negative attitudes toward domestic violence were correlated with the use of couple of methods (RRR -1. 1). Increasing levels of sexual empowerment were found to be associated with use of contraceptives, even after adjusting for demographic predictors of contraceptive use. This association is moderated by the wealth. Formal education, increasing wealth, and being in an unmarried partnership are associated with contraceptive use, whereas women who identify as being Muslim are less likely to use contraceptives than those who identify as being Hindus or other. These findings suggest that to achieve universal access to reproductive health services, gendered disparities in sexual empowerment, particularly among economically disadvantaged women, need to be better addressed. Conclusions: Intervention programs aimed at increasing contraceptive use may need to involve different approaches, including promoting couples' discussion of fertility preferences and family planning, improving women's self-efficacy in negotiating sexual activity and increasing their economic independence. Policies are needed to encourage the rural families to give their girls a chance of attending higher level education and professional course so that can get a better job opportunity and can economically support their family as son are expected to do. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=reproductive%20and%20child%20health%20%28RCH%29" title="reproductive and child health (RCH)">reproductive and child health (RCH)</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=relative%20risk%20ratios%20%28RRR%29" title=" relative risk ratios (RRR)"> relative risk ratios (RRR)</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=demographic%20and%20health%20survey%20%28DHS%29" title=" demographic and health survey (DHS)"> demographic and health survey (DHS)</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=women%E2%80%99s%20sexual%20empowerment%20%28WSE%29" title=" women’s sexual empowerment (WSE)"> women’s sexual empowerment (WSE)</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/40240/differential-in-dynamics-of-contraceptive-practices-with-womens-sexual-empowerment-in-selected-south-asian-countries-evidence-from-two-decades-dhs-surveys-1990-and-2012" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/40240.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">251</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">102</span> Home Garden: A Food-Based Strategy to Achieve Sustainable Impact on Household Nutrition of Resource-Poor Families in Nepal</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Purushottam%20P.%20Khatiwada">Purushottam P. Khatiwada</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Bikash%20Paudel"> Bikash Paudel</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Ram%20B.%20Rana"> Ram B. Rana</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Parshuram%20Biswakarma"> Parshuram Biswakarma</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Roshan%20Pudasaini"> Roshan Pudasaini</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Nepal has been putting its efforts into securing food and nutrition security for its citizens adopting different models and approaches. Home Garden approach, that integrates vegetables, fruits, small livestock, poultry along with other components like fish, honeybee, mushroom, spices for the promotion of nutritional security of resource-poor and disadvantaged groups was implemented during March 2009 to July 2013 spreading over 16 districts of Nepal covering 115 farmers groups, directly working with 3500 households. Sustained long-term impact of development interventions targeted to the resource-poor and disadvantaged groups has been a recurrent issue for donors, policymakers and practitioners alike. Considering the issue, a post-project evaluation was carried out in a selected project group (Dangibari of Jhapa) after four years of project completion in 2017 in order to evaluate the impact and understand the factors associated with its success. Qualitative information was collected through focus group discussion with group members and associated local institutions. For quantitative information, a quick survey was carried out to the same group members only selecting few indicators. The results are compared with the data obtained from the baseline study conducted by the project in March 2009. The impact of project intervention was evident as compared to the benchmarks established during the baseline, even after four years of project completion. The area under home garden is increased to 729 m² from 386 m² and average food self-sufficiency months increased to 10.22 from 8.11. Seven to eleven fruit species are maintained in the home gardens. An average number of vegetable species grown increased to 15.85 from 9.86. It has resulted in an increase in vegetables self-sufficient month to 8.74 from 4.74 and a huge increase in cash income NPR 6142.8 (USD 59.6) from NPR 385.7 (USD 3.9) from the sale of surplus vegetables. Coaching and mentoring including nutrition sensitization by the project staff at the beginning, inputs and technical support during the project implementation phase and projects effort on the institutional building of disadvantaged farmers were the key drivers of home garden sustainability and expansion. Specifically, package of home garden management trainings provided by the project staff, availability of group funds for buying inputs even after the project, uniting home garden group members in a cooperative, resource leveraging by local institutions through group lobbying, farmers innovations for maintaining home garden diversity and continuous backstopping support by few active members as local resource persons to other members are some additional factors contributing to sustain and/or improve the home garden status by the resource-poor and disadvantaged group. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=food-based%20nutrition" title="food-based nutrition">food-based nutrition</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=home%20garden" title=" home garden"> home garden</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=resource-poor%20and%20disadvantaged%20group" title=" resource-poor and disadvantaged group"> resource-poor and disadvantaged group</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=sustained%20impact" title=" sustained impact"> sustained impact</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/91041/home-garden-a-food-based-strategy-to-achieve-sustainable-impact-on-household-nutrition-of-resource-poor-families-in-nepal" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/91041.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">145</span> </span> </div> </div> <div class="card paper-listing mb-3 mt-3"> <h5 class="card-header" style="font-size:.9rem"><span class="badge badge-info">101</span> Catastrophic Health Expenditures: Evaluating the Effectiveness of Nepal's National Health Insurance Program Using Propensity Score Matching and Doubly Robust Methodology</h5> <div class="card-body"> <p class="card-text"><strong>Authors:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Simrin%20Kafle">Simrin Kafle</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Ulrika%20Enemark"> Ulrika Enemark</a> </p> <p class="card-text"><strong>Abstract:</strong></p> Catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) is a critical issue in low- and middle-income countries like Nepal, exacerbating financial hardship among vulnerable households. This study assesses the effectiveness of Nepal’s National Health Insurance Program (NHIP), launched in 2015, to reduce out-of-pocket (OOP) healthcare costs and mitigate CHE. Conducted in Pokhara Metropolitan City, the study used an analytical cross-sectional design, sampling 1276 households through a two-stage random sampling method. Data was collected via face-to-face interviews between May and October 2023. The analysis was conducted using SPSS version 29, incorporating propensity score matching to minimize biases and create comparable groups of enrolled and non-enrolled households in the NHIP. PSM helped reduce confounding effects by matching households with similar baseline characteristics. Additionally, a doubly robust methodology was employed, combining propensity score adjustment with regression modeling to enhance the reliability of the results. This comprehensive approach ensured a more accurate estimation of the impact of NHIP enrollment on CHE. Among the 1276 samples, 534 households (41.8%) were enrolled in NHIP. Of them, 84.3% of households renewed their insurance card, though some cited long waiting times, lack of medications, and complex procedures as barriers to renewal. Approximately 57.3% of households reported known diseases before enrollment, with 49.8% attending routine health check-ups in the past year. The primary motivation for enrollment was encouragement from insurance employees (50.2%). The data indicates that 12.5% of enrolled households experienced CHE versus 7.5% among non-enrolled. Enrollment into NHIP does not contribute to lower CHE (AOR: 1.98, 95% CI: 1.21-3.24). Key factors associated with increased CHE risk were presence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) (AOR: 3.94, 95% CI: 2.10-7.39), acute illnesses/injuries (AOR: 6.70, 95% CI: 3.97-11.30), larger household size (AOR: 3.09, 95% CI: 1.81-5.28), and households below the poverty line (AOR: 5.82, 95% CI: 3.05-11.09). Other factors such as gender, education level, caste/ethnicity, presence of elderly members, and under-five children also showed varying associations with CHE, though not all were statistically significant. The study concludes that enrollment in the NHIP does not significantly reduce the risk of CHE. The reason for this could be inadequate coverage, where high-cost medicines, treatments, and transportation costs are not fully included in the insurance package, leading to significant out-of-pocket expenses. We also considered the long waiting time, lack of medicines, and complex procedures for the utilization of NHIP benefits, which might result in the underuse of covered services. Finally, gaps in enrollment and retention might leave certain households vulnerable to CHE despite the existence of NHIP. Key factors contributing to increased CHE include NCDs, acute illnesses, larger household sizes, and poverty. To improve the program’s effectiveness, it is recommended that NHIP benefits and coverage be expanded to better protect against high healthcare costs. Additionally, simplifying the renewal process, addressing long waiting times, and enhancing the availability of services could improve member satisfaction and retention. Targeted financial protection measures should be implemented for high-risk groups, and efforts should be made to increase awareness and encourage routine health check-ups to prevent severe health issues that contribute to CHE. <p class="card-text"><strong>Keywords:</strong> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=catastrophic%20health%20expenditure" title="catastrophic health expenditure">catastrophic health expenditure</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=effectiveness" title=" effectiveness"> effectiveness</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=national%20health%20insurance%20program" title=" national health insurance program"> national health insurance program</a>, <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Nepal" title=" Nepal"> Nepal</a> </p> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/190171/catastrophic-health-expenditures-evaluating-the-effectiveness-of-nepals-national-health-insurance-program-using-propensity-score-matching-and-doubly-robust-methodology" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">Procedia</a> <a href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/190171.pdf" target="_blank" class="btn btn-primary btn-sm">PDF</a> <span class="bg-info text-light px-1 py-1 float-right rounded"> Downloads <span class="badge badge-light">24</span> </span> </div> </div> <ul class="pagination"> <li class="page-item"><a class="page-link" href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Nepal&page=5" rel="prev">&lsaquo;</a></li> <li class="page-item"><a class="page-link" href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Nepal&page=1">1</a></li> <li class="page-item"><a class="page-link" href="https://publications.waset.org/abstracts/search?q=Nepal&page=2">2</a></li> <li class="page-item"><a class="page-link" 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