Locations
Nepal
Environmental Sustainability, Climate, and Disaster Resilience
Overview
Nepal has a rich geography, with tall mountains spanning its northern border. But behind this beauty, grave disaster risks lurk. Globally, it is ranked fourth, eleventh and thirtieth in terms of vulnerability to climate change, earthquake and flood risks respectively. Around 80% of Nepal’s population lives in rural areas and 70% of the population depends on subsistence agriculture which due climate change suffers high economic costs due to climate variability and extremes. Thus, even slight changes in climatic conditions can have a major impact on their lives and livelihoods.
Our goals
Addressing current and future risks requires a comprehensive resilience and preparedness programme which integrates anticipatory action, preparedness and responses into development programming—as well as a solid repository of disaster knowledge and trained human resources. While enhancing resilience of communities, it is equally important to improve living standards so that they can better adapt to changes in the environment. UNDP’s support is helping to mitigate and reduce the impact of these threats and provide the rural poor with clean renewable energy and climate resilient livelihoods. A key part of UNDP’s support across these areas aims at promoting pro-poor environmental management, risk reduction, and climate change adaptation at the national and local levels.
How does UNDP ensure its programmes and projects promote Gender & Social Inclusion?
Under the resilience portfolio, UNDP supports the people and the Government of Nepal to advance gender equality and social inclusion through the following measures in line with the Country Programme Document 2023-2027:
Gender & Social Inclusion
- Strengthening participation of women, socially excluded and disadvantaged groups in decision-making process on climate adaptation, mitigation and disaster risk reduction.
- Documenting and reporting disaster damage/loss data disaggregated by age, sex & PWD.
- Strengthening policy and institutional mechanism for integrating gender responsive climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction (CCA/DDR) and environmental management in national and key sectors development planning, considering the fact that disaster events generally affect women and the poor disproportionately.
- Strengthening capacities of subnational government and communities particularly of women and marginalized groups including persons with disabilities for effective preparedness and response, environment management, CCA/DRR.
- Increasing the number of women and marginalized groups benefiting from ecosystem services through enhanced management of natural resources, biodiversity and watersheds.
- Increasing the number of women benefiting from livelihood related recovery measures.
- Increasing women and marginalized groups’ access to affordable and renewable energy for productive end use and employment generation.
- Promoting GESI through various research and advocacy under the resilience portfolio.
Our Achievements
- UNDP extended its support in policymaking, planning and capacity building at all levels of the government to foster inclusive governance, growth, and resilience. More than 20 policies were supported in the areas of: Green Recovery and Sustainable Waste Management, Disaster Risk Reduction, Preparedness & Relief, Risk Sensitive Land Use Planning for Municipalities, Climate-Friendly Watershed Management, Private Sector Financing for Climate Smart Projects and NDC Implementation and Net-Zero Emission.
- 157,000 people got earthquake-safe homes with UNDP assisting reconstruction of 31,500 houses after the 2015 earthquake.
- 300,000 Nepalis in remote areas gained access to renewable energy with the generation of additional 10 megawatts of off grid electricity.
- Nepal prepared a long-term strategy for net-zero emission by 2045 and an enhanced Nationally Determined Contributions and adopted a plan to implement the commitment.
- 7 provincial and 16 local governments adopted disaster risk reduction policies and strategic action plans formalizing climate-resilient development planning.
- Nepal gained access to international climate finance with the accreditation of two national entities with the Green Climate Fund
- Successfully reduced GLOF risks at Imja glacier and installed early warning system making lives safer for over 90,000 local people and tourists living or visiting the area. Further, identified a list of dangerous glacial lakes in the Himalayas that require immediate action.
- Partnered with the Government to install automated climate data collection system and installed early warning system in seven river systems.
- Incentivized 51,000 km of cycle rides, reduced 26 tons of CO2.
