Nepal forms committees to strengthen response to gender-based violence

Nepal's government is implementing a new mechanism to bolster its response to gender-based violence by forming coordination committees across federal, provincial, and local government tiers. This initiative seeks to improve cooperation among the various agencies responsible for preventing violence, supporting survivors, and delivering justice.

The Ministry of Women, Children, Gender and Social Security has introduced the ‘Gender-Based Violence Prevention Coordination Committee Formation and Operation Procedure 2026’. This framework mandates institutional coordination across all levels of government, aiming to ensure effective prevention, provide quality services to victims, and strengthen collaboration among government bodies and service providers.

These committees will coordinate critical services for victims, including rescue, protection, medical treatment, psychosocial counseling, legal assistance, and rehabilitation. They will also serve as a conduit for information sharing between federal, provincial, and local authorities, and foster stronger partnerships with One-Stop Crisis Management Centres, Nepal Police, government attorneys, health institutions, local governments, and support organizations.

Abha Shrestha Karna, chief of the ministry’s Women Empowerment Division, emphasized that reducing gender-based violence requires a collective effort. "Gender-based violence cannot be reduced by a single ministry or a single institution," Karna stated. "Development partners, civil society organisations and government agencies all have important roles. The new procedure is intended to institutionalise that cooperation and establish effective coordination among the three levels of government." Committees have already been formed at the federal level and in two provinces, with others in the process of establishment.

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Gender-based violence cannot be reduced by a single ministry or a single institution. Development partners, civil society organisations and government agencies all have important roles. The new procedure is intended to institutionalise that cooperation and establish effective coordination among the three levels of government.