In Nepal, a Monthly Exile for Women

New York Times Nepal

In remote western Nepal, where the Himalayas brush the sky, girls spend their childhoods as they have for generations, dreading growing up. Puberty starts a monthly exile. An entrenched, superstitious practice linked to Hinduism, Chaupadi, considers menstruating women impure and bad luck, rendering them untouchables. Menstruating women are banished, often to forests where they sleep … Continued

Mothers and Babies

Nepal HNN Admin

Relief agencies move out, but the need for maternal and child care is greater than ever in quake-hit areas.

Newborns at Risk in Nepal as Monsoon Season Approaches

Nepal

Thousands of newborn babies are at serious risk of illness and neonatal death in Nepal, Save the Children warns, one month on from the earthquake that claimed at least 8,500 lives.

Emergency preparedness pays off as Kathmandu hospitals respond to earthquakes

Nepal

In Nepal, hospital retrofitting, which involves everything from repairing cracks in walls to installing seismic belts and roof bracing, has been a core part of preparedness plans.

New estimates show 126,000 pregnant women affected by Nepal quake

Nepal

Women and girls are among the most vulnerable. UNFPA has rushed the delivery of reproductive health kits, which contain the supplies required to support safe childbirth.

Nepal: Over 50,000 pregnant women affected from quake: UNFPA

Nepal

“In times of upheaval or natural disasters, pregnancy-related deaths and gender-based violence soar,” said Priya Marwh, UNFPA ’s humanitarian response coordinator in Asia and the Pacific.

Quake overwhelms Nepal’s weak healthcare system

Nepal

The country of 28 million has only 2.1 physicians and 50 hospital beds for every 10,000 people, according to a 2011 World Health Organization report.

Nearly 1 million children require urgent humanitarian assistance after Nepal earthquake

Nepal

UNICEF is mobilizing staff and emergency supplies to meet the urgent humanitarian needs of children affected by the earthquake, focusing on water and sanitation, nutrition, education and child protection.

Governments can prevent tragic death toll of mothers and babies

Nigeria, Nepal, Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Democratic Republic of the Congo, India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Pakistan

Governments could substantially reduce the tragic death toll of infants and mothers by making postnatal care services more accessible – especially to impoverished and poorly educated women in rural areas, according to a study.

Nepal: Govt to launch campaign to save newborn lives

Nepal

According to Adhikari, all ailing newborn babies of up to 28 days will get free treatment from government health facilities throughout the country under the Safe Newborn Program.