Editing Nepal (section)

== Demographics ==
{{Main|Demographics of Nepal}}
[[File:Largest Ethnicity-Caste in Nepal's District.png|thumb|upright=1.1|Largest Ethnicity/Caste in Districts of Nepal]]
The citizens of Nepal are known as [[Nepali people|Nepali]] or Nepalese. The Nepali are descendants of three major migrations from India, [[Tibet]] and North Burma, and the Chinese province of [[Yunnan]] via [[Assam]]. Among the earliest inhabitants were the [[Kirat]] of the eastern region, [[Newar]]s of the [[Kathmandu Valley]], aboriginal [[Tharu people|Tharus]] of the Terai plains and the Khas Pahari people of the far-western hills. Despite the migration of a significant section of the population to the Terai in recent years, the majority of Nepalese still live in the central highlands, and the northern mountains are sparsely populated.

Nepal is a multicultural and multiethnic country, home to 125 distinct ethnic groups, speaking 123 different mother tongues and following a number of indigenous and folk religions in addition to Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam and Christianity.{{sfn|2011 National Census|p=4}} According to the 2011 census, Nepal's population was 26.5&nbsp;million, almost a threefold increase from nine million in 1950. From 2001 to 2011, the average family size declined from 5.44 to 4.9. The census also noted some 1.9&nbsp;million absentee people, over a million more than in 2001; most are male labourers employed overseas. This correlated with the drop in sex ratio to 94.2 from 99.8 for 2001.{{sfn|2011 National Census|p=3}} The annual population growth rate was 1.35% between 2001 and 2011, compared to an average of 2.25% between 1961 and 2001; also attributed to the absentee population.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://nepal.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/pub-pdf/Nepal%20Population%20Situation%20Analysis.pdf|title=Population situation analysis of Nepal|publisher=[[UNFPA]]|year=2017|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=17 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221117092009/https://nepal.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/pub-pdf/Nepal%20Population%20Situation%20Analysis.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

Nepal is one of the ten least urbanised, and the ten fastest urbanizing countries in the world. {{As of| 2014}}, an estimated 18.3% of the population lived in urban areas. Urbanisation rate is high in the Terai, doon valleys of the inner Terai and valleys of the middle hills, but low in the high Himalayas. Similarly, the rate is higher in central and eastern Nepal compared to further west.<ref>{{cite report|title=Urbanisation and urban growth in Nepal (GSDRC Helpdesk Research Report 1294)|year=2015|publisher=UK:GSDRC|location=University of Birmingham, Birmingham|last=Bakrania|first=S.}}</ref> The capital, [[Kathmandu]], nicknamed the "City of temples", is the largest city in the country and the cultural and economic heart. Other large cities in Nepal include [[Pokhara]], [[Biratnagar]], [[Lalitpur, Nepal|Lalitpur]], [[Bharatpur, Nepal|Bharatpur]], [[Birgunj]], [[Dharan, Nepal|Dharan]], [[Hetauda]] and [[Nepalgunj]]. Congestion, pollution and drinking water shortage are some of the major problems facing the rapidly growing cities, most prominently the Kathmandu Valley.
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=== Largest cities ===
{{Largest cities of Nepal}}

=== Language ===
{{Main|Languages of Nepal}}
[[File:MOST SPOKEN LANGUAGE IN NEPAL.png|upright=1.1|thumb|Nepalese languages (2021)]]
Nepal's diverse linguistic heritage stems from three major language groups: [[Indo-Aryan languages|Indo-Aryan]], [[Sino-Tibetan]] and various [[indigenous language]] isolates. The major languages of Nepal (percent spoken as native language) according to the 2011 census are [[Nepali language|Nepali]] (44.6%), [[Maithili language|Maithili]] (11.7%), [[Bhojpuri language|Bhojpuri]] (6.0%), [[Tharu language|Tharu]] (5.8%), [[Tamang language|Tamang]] (5.1%), [[Nepal Bhasa]] (3.2%), [[Bajjika dialect|Bajjika]] (3%) and [[Magar language|Magar]] (3.0%), [[Doteli language|Doteli]] (3.0%), [[Urdu]] (2.6%), [[Awadhi language|Awadhi]] (1.89%), and [[Sunwar language|Sunwar]]. Nepal is home to at least four indigenous [[Nepali Sign Language|sign languages]].{{Citation needed|date=May 2022}}

Descendent of [[Sanskrit]], [[Nepali language|Nepali]] is written in [[Devanagari]] script. It is the official language and serves as ''lingua franca'' among Nepali of different ethnolinguistic groups. The regional languages [[Maithili language|Maithili]], [[Awadhi language|Awadhi]] and Bhojpuri are spoken in the southern Terai region; [[Urdu]] is common among [[Nepali Muslims]]. [[Tibetic languages|Varieties of Tibetan]] are spoken in and north of the higher Himalaya where standard literary Tibetan is widely understood by those with religious education. Local dialects in the Terai and hills are mostly unwritten with efforts underway to develop systems for writing many in Devanagari or the Roman alphabet.{{Citation needed|date=May 2022}}

=== Religion ===
{{Main|Religion in Nepal}}
[[File:Sadus at Pashupatinath temple.JPG|thumb|[[Sadhu]]s in [[Pashupatinath Temple]]]]
Nepal is a secular country, as declared by the Constitution of Nepal 2012 (Part 1, Article 4), where secularism 'means religious, cultural freedom, along with the protection of religion, culture handed down from time immemorial ({{Langx|hi|सनातन|label=none}})'.<ref>{{Cite web|date=20 September 2015|title=The Constitution of Nepal|url=https://www.wipo.int/edocs/lexdocs/laws/en/np/np029en.pdf|access-date=7 May 2021|work=Nepal Gazette|archive-date=15 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215043835/https://www.wipo.int/edocs/lexdocs/laws/en/np/np029en.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Constitution of Napal (in Nepali)|url=https://mohp.gov.np/downloads/Constitution%20of%20Nepal_2072_Nepali.pdf|access-date=7 May 2021|website=mohp.gov.np/|archive-date=27 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210427084728/https://mohp.gov.np/downloads/Constitution%20of%20Nepal_2072_Nepali.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> The 2011 census reported that the religion with the largest number of followers in Nepal was [[Hinduism in Nepal|Hinduism]] (81.3% of the population), followed by [[Buddhism in Nepal|Buddhism]] (9%); the remaining were [[Islam in Nepal|Islam]] (4.4%), [[Kirat Mundhum|Kirant]] (3.1%), [[Christianity in Nepal|Christianity]] (1.4%) and ''Prakriti'' or nature worship (0.5%).{{sfn|2011 National Census|pp=4, 184}} By percentage of population, Nepal has the largest population of Hindus in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.beliefnet.com/columnists/religion101/2012/11/hindu-demographics-denominations-part-one.html|title=Hindu Demographics & Denominations (Part One)|date=28 November 2012|website=Religion 101|language=en|access-date=21 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190821130245/https://www.beliefnet.com/columnists/religion101/2012/11/hindu-demographics-denominations-part-one.html|archive-date=21 August 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Nepal was officially a Hindu Kingdom until recently, and [[Shiva]] was considered the guardian deity of the country.<ref>''Anthologia anthropologica. The native races of Asia and Europe;'' by James George Frazer, Sir; Robert Angus Downie</ref> Although many government policies throughout history have disregarded or marginalised minority religions, Nepalese societies generally enjoy religious tolerance and harmony among all religions, with only isolated incidents of religiously motivated violence.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://myrepublica.nagariknetwork.com/news/22579/|title=Eid highlights Nepal's religious tolerance|last=KHADKA|first=UPENDRA LAMICHHANE and BASANT|website=My Republica|language=en|access-date=2 December 2019|archive-date=13 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230813212544/https://myrepublica.nagariknetwork.com/news/22579/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://np.usembassy.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/79/NEPAL-2018-INTERNATIONAL-RELIGIOUS-FREEDOM-REPORT.pdf|title=Nepal-2018-international-religious-freedom-report|publisher=US Embassy Nepal|access-date=1 December 2019|archive-date=21 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721111738/https://np.usembassy.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/79/NEPAL-2018-INTERNATIONAL-RELIGIOUS-FREEDOM-REPORT.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> Nepal's constitution does not give anyone the right to convert any person to another religion. Nepal also passed a more stringent [[anti-conversion law]] on 2017.<ref>{{cite web|title=Nepal: Nepal: Bill criminalises religious conversion|url=https://www.csw.org.uk/2017/08/21/press/3676/article.htm|access-date=5 February 2021|website=csw.org.uk|archive-date=11 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210111121259/http://www.csw.org.uk/2017/08/21/press/3676/article.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Nepal has the second-largest number of [[Hindu]]s in the world after India.<ref name="PewDec2012">{{cite web|url=https://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-exec/|title=The Global Religious Landscape|date=December 2012|publisher=Pew Research Center|access-date=5 November 2018|archive-date=26 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180926222120/http://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-exec/|url-status=live}}</ref>

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=== Education ===
{{Main|Education in Nepal}}
Nepal entered modernity in 1951 with a literacy rate of 5% and about 10,000 students enrolled in 300 schools.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}} By 2017, there were more than seven million students enrolled in 35,601 schools.<ref name=moe17>{{cite report|title=Education in figures 2017|publisher=Ministry of Education, Nepal|year=2017|url=https://moe.gov.np/assets/uploads/files/Education_in_Figures_2017.pdf|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=11 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191211215228/https://moe.gov.np/assets/uploads/files/Education_in_Figures_2017.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> The overall literacy rate (for population age five years and above) increased from 54.1% in 2001 to 65.9% in 2011.{{sfn|2011 National Census|p=4}} The net primary enrolment rate reached 97% by 2017,<ref name="undp">{{cite web|url=https://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/NPL.html|title=Human Development Report 2010&nbsp;– Nepal|publisher=Hdrstats.undp.org|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120415135354/https://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/NPL.html|archive-date=15 April 2012|access-date=25 January 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.unicef.org/nepal/education|title=Education|publisher=UNICEF|language=en|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231204180641/https://www.unicef.org/nepal/education|url-status=live}}</ref> yet enrolment was less than 60% at the secondary level (grades 9 –12),<ref name=uis>{{cite web|url=https://uis.unesco.org/en/country/np|title=Nepal|date=27 November 2016|publisher=UNESCO|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=24 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240224143945/https://uis.unesco.org/en/country/np|url-status=live}}</ref> and around 12% at the tertiary level.<ref name=uis/> Though there is significant gender disparity in overall literacy rate,{{sfn|2011 National Census|p=4}} girls have overtaken boys in enrolment to all levels of education.<ref name=uis/> Nepal has eleven universities and four independent science academies.<ref name=moe17/> Nepal was ranked 109th in the [[Global Innovation Index]] in 2024.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://www.wipo.int/web-publications/global-innovation-index-2024/en/|title=Global Innovation Index 2024. Unlocking the Promise of Social Entrepreneurship|access-date=2024-10-22|author=[[World Intellectual Property Organization]]|year=2024|isbn=978-92-805-3681-2|doi= 10.34667/tind.50062|location=Geneva|page=18}}</ref>

Lack of proper infrastructures and teaching materials, and a high student-to-teacher ratio, as well as politicisation of school management committees<ref>{{cite web|url=https://therisingnepal.org.np/news/12519|title=Community-based School Management The Role Politics Plays|website=The Rising Nepal|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204150818/http://therisingnepal.org.np/news/12519|url-status=dead}}</ref> and partisan unionisation among both students and teachers,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/minister-pokhrel-urges-teachers-to-be-loyal-to-their-schools/|title=Minister Pokhrel urges teachers to be loyal to their schools|date=15 September 2019|website=The Himalayan Times|language=en-US|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=14 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230814184800/https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/minister-pokhrel-urges-teachers-to-be-loyal-to-their-schools|url-status=live}}</ref> present a hurdle to progress. Free basic education is guaranteed in the constitution but the programme lacks funding for effective implementation.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://kathmandupost.com/valley/2018/05/08/free-education-to-cost-threefold|title=Free education to cost threefold|website=Kathmandu Post|language=en|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=2 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002141929/https://kathmandupost.com/valley/2018/05/08/free-education-to-cost-threefold|url-status=live}}</ref> Government has scholarship programmes for girls and disabled students as well as the children of martyrs, marginalised communities and the poor.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://edusanjal.com/scholarship/types-of-scholarships-provided-to-nepalese-students-by-government-of-nepal/|title=Types of scholarships provided to Nepalese students by government of Nepal|website=Edusanjal|language=en|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=13 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230813212249/https://edusanjal.com/scholarship/types-of-scholarships-provided-to-nepalese-students-by-government-of-nepal/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/medical-colleges-charging-extra-fees-even-from-govt-scholarship-holders/|title=Medical colleges charging extra fees even from govt scholarship holders|date=7 April 2019|website=The Himalayan Times|language=en-US|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=14 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230814193954/https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/medical-colleges-charging-extra-fees-even-from-govt-scholarship-holders|url-status=live}}</ref> Tens of thousands of Nepali students leave the country every year in search of better education and work, with half of them never returning.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://admin.myrepublica.com/society/story/23904/more-students-seeking-no-objection-to-study-abroad.html|title=More students seeking 'no objection' to study abroad|last=Sharma|first=Nirjana|date=3 July 2015|work=[[República (Nepalese newspaper)|Republica]]|access-date=20 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161020173146/https://admin.myrepublica.com/society/story/23904/more-students-seeking-no-objection-to-study-abroad.html|archive-date=20 October 2016|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/Between-the-lines/More-Nepali-students-settle-overseas,528|title=Losing our young|last=Tsering|first=Dolker|date=17 July 2015|work=[[Nepali Times]]|access-date=20 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161020173506/https://nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/Between-the-lines/More-Nepali-students-settle-overseas,528|archive-date=20 October 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Health ===
{{Main|Health in Nepal}}
[[File:Life expectancy in Nepal.svg|thumb|Historical development of life expectancy in Nepal]]

Health care services in Nepal are provided by both the public and private sectors. Life expectancy at birth is estimated at 71 years as of 2017, 153rd highest in the world,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2102rank.html|title=The World Factbook|publisher=Central Intelligence Agency|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=29 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181229134543/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2102rank.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> up from 54 years in the 1990s and 35 years in 1950.<ref name=ththeal>{{cite web|url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/kathmandu/nepal-ranks-second-in-lung-ailment-deaths/|title=Nepal ranks second in lung ailment deaths|date=12 August 2019|website=The Himalayan Times|language=en-US|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204183135/https://thehimalayantimes.com/kathmandu/nepal-ranks-second-in-lung-ailment-deaths/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Life expectancy|url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/life-expectancy|access-date=18 February 2022|website=Our World in Data|archive-date=13 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200813180308/https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/life-expectancy|url-status=live}}</ref> Two-thirds of all deaths are due to non-communicable diseases; heart disease is the leading cause of death.<ref name=nhrc19>{{cite report|title=Nepal Burden of Disease 2017: A Country Report based on the Global Burden of Disease 2017 Study|author=Nepal Health Research Council (NHRC), Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) and Monitoring Evaluation and Operational Research (MEOR)|publisher=NHRC, MoHP, and MEOR|year=2019|location=Kathmandu, Nepal|url=https://nhrc.gov.np/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/NBoD-2017_NHRC-MoHP.pdf|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=26 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231126175351/https://nhrc.gov.np/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/NBoD-2017_NHRC-MoHP.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> While sedentary lifestyle, imbalanced diet and consumption of tobacco and alcohol has contributed in the rise of non-communicable diseases, many lose their life to communicable and treatable diseases caused by poor sanitation and malnutrition due to a lack of education, awareness and access to healthcare services.<ref name=nhrc19/><ref name=tkpheal19>{{cite web|url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/study-reveals-high-prevalence-of-non-communicable-diseases-in-nepal/|title=Study reveals high prevalence of non-communicable diseases in Nepal|date=5 August 2019|website=The Himalayan Times|language=en-US|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204183200/https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/study-reveals-high-prevalence-of-non-communicable-diseases-in-nepal/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Nepal has made great progress in maternal and child health. 95% of children have access to iodised salt, and 86% of children aged 6 – 59 months receive Vitamin A prophylaxis.<ref name=unicefhealth/> Stunting, underweight and wasting has been reduced significantly;<ref name=unicefhealth>{{cite web|url=https://www.unicef.org/nepal/nutrition|title=Nutrition|website=UNICEF|language=en|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204183143/https://www.unicef.org/nepal/nutrition|url-status=live}}</ref> malnutrition, at 43% among children under five, is extremely high.<ref name=ntimes19>{{cite web|url=https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nearly-half-of-nepali-children-still-malnourished/|title=Nearly half of Nepali children still malnourished|last=Awale|first=Sonia|date=6 November 2019|language=en-US|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204183200/https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nearly-half-of-nepali-children-still-malnourished/|url-status=live}}</ref> Anemia in women and children increased between 2011 and 2016, reaching 41% and 53% respectively.<ref name=ntimes19/> Low birth weight is at 27% while breastfeeding is at 65%.<ref name=ntimes19/> Nepal has reduced maternal mortality rate to 229,<ref name=kpmm>{{cite web|url=https://kathmandupost.com/national/2019/02/10/maternal-mortality-reduction-target-hard-to-meet-for-nepal-officials|title=Maternal mortality reduction target hard to meet for Nepal: Officials|website=Kathmandu Post|language=en|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204183214/https://kathmandupost.com/national/2019/02/10/maternal-mortality-reduction-target-hard-to-meet-for-nepal-officials|url-status=live}}</ref> from 901 in 1990;<ref name=whomm>{{cite web|url=https://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/94/5/16-030516/en/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160719033028/https://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/94/5/16-030516/en/|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 July 2016|title=WHO {{!}} Reaching Nepal's mothers in time|publisher=WHO|access-date=4 December 2019}}</ref><ref name=kpmm/> infant mortality is down to 32.2 per thousand live births compared to 139.8 in 1990.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.DYN.MORT?locations=NP&view=chart|title=Mortality rate, under-5 (per 1,000 live births) – Nepal {{!}} Data|publisher=World Bank|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204183138/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.DYN.MORT%3Flocations%3DNP%26view%3Dchart|url-status=live}}</ref> Contraceptive prevalence rate is 53% but the disparity rate between rural and urban areas is high due to a lack of awareness and easy access.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-far-from-hitting-contraceptive-target/|title=Nepal far from hitting contraceptive target|last=Bhattarai|first=Sewa|date=27 September 2019|language=en-US|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=11 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191211200238/https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-far-from-hitting-contraceptive-target/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Progress in health is driven by strong government initiative in cooperation with NGOs and INGOs. Public health centres provide 72 essential medicines free of cost. In addition, the public health insurance plan initiated in 2016 which covers health treatments of up to Rs 50,000 for five members of a family, for a premium of Rs 2500 per year, has seen limited success, and is expected to expand.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://kathmandupost.com/national/2018/06/07/health-insurance-plan-yet-to-cover-38-districts-in-nepal|title=Health insurance plan yet to cover 38 districts in Nepal|website=Kathmandu Post|language=en|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204183148/https://kathmandupost.com/national/2018/06/07/health-insurance-plan-yet-to-cover-38-districts-in-nepal|url-status=live}}</ref> By paying stipends for four antenatal visits to health centres and hospitalised delivery, Nepal decreased home-births from 81% in 2006<ref name="whomm"/> to 41% in 2016.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mhtf.org/2017/12/29/the-current-state-of-maternal-health-in-nepal/|title=The Current State of Maternal Health in Nepal|date=29 December 2017|publisher=Maternal Health Task Force|language=en-us|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204183155/https://www.mhtf.org/2017/12/29/the-current-state-of-maternal-health-in-nepal/|url-status=live}}</ref> School meal programmes have improved education as well as nutrition metrics among children.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/business/usda-wfp-provide-school-meals/|title=USDA, WFP to provide school meals|date=4 February 2018|website=The Himalayan Times|language=en-US|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204183222/https://thehimalayantimes.com/business/usda-wfp-provide-school-meals/|url-status=live}}</ref> Toilet building subsidies under the ambitious "one household-one toilet" programme has seen toilet prevalence rate reach 99% in 2019, from just 6% in 1990.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://kathmandupost.com/national/2019/08/01/government-has-been-trying-to-eliminate-open-defecation-for-over-a-decade-here-s-why-it-hasn-t-worked|title=Government has been trying to eliminate open defecation for over a decade. Here's why it hasn't worked.|website=Kathmandu Post|language=en|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204183232/https://kathmandupost.com/national/2019/08/01/government-has-been-trying-to-eliminate-open-defecation-for-over-a-decade-here-s-why-it-hasn-t-worked|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Immigrants and refugees===
{{Main|Demographics of Nepal#Foreign population in Nepal}}
Nepal has a long tradition of accepting immigrants and refugees.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.unhcr.org/nepal.html|title=Nepal|last=Refugees|first=United Nations High Commissioner for|publisher=United Nations High Commission for Refugees|language=en|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 October 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191004125601/https://www.unhcr.org/nepal.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In modern times, Tibetans and Bhutanese have constituted a majority of refugees in Nepal. Tibetan refugees began arriving in 1959,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://thediplomat.com/2016/07/a-state-within-a-state-tibetans-in-nepal/|title=A State Within a State: Tibetans in Nepal|website=The Diplomat|language=en-US|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204131554/https://thediplomat.com/2016/07/a-state-within-a-state-tibetans-in-nepal/|url-status=live}}</ref> and many more cross into Nepal every year.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/world/asia/la-fg-tibet-nepal-20150806-story.html|title=Tibet's Road Ahead: Tibetans lose a haven in Nepal under Chinese pressure|date=6 August 2015|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=23 October 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191023225427/https://www.latimes.com/world/asia/la-fg-tibet-nepal-20150806-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The Bhutanese [[Lhotshampa|Lhotsampa]] refugees began arriving in the 1980s and numbered more than 110,000 by the 2000s. Most of them have been resettled in third countries.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.unhcr.org/refworld/publisher,IRIN,,BTN,491946b81e,0.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121008021239/https://www.unhcr.org/refworld/publisher,IRIN,,BTN,491946b81e,0.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=8 October 2012|title=UNHCR {{!}} Refworld {{!}} Nepal: Bhutanese refugees find new life beyond the camps|date=8 October 2012|access-date=4 December 2019}}</ref> In late 2018, Nepal had a total of 20,800 confirmed refugees, 64% of them Tibetan and 31% Bhutanese.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://reporting.unhcr.org/node/10316#_ga=2.192568106.1679015461.1575456467-1408828592.1575456467|title=Nepal {{!}} Global Focus|publisher=United Nations High Commission for Refugees |access-date=4 December 2019}}</ref> Economic immigrants, and refugees fleeing persecution or war, from neighbouring countries, Africa and the Middle East, termed "urban refugees" because they live in apartments in the cities instead of refugee camps,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/700-illegals-set-for-3rd-country-resettlement/|title=700 illegals set for 3rd-country resettlement|date=6 March 2019|website=The Himalayan Times|language=en-US|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204131554/https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/700-illegals-set-for-3rd-country-resettlement/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/11/bleak-outlook-nepal-urban-refugees-151123110438884.html|title=Bleak outlook for Nepal's urban refugees|publisher=Al Jazeera|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204131548/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/11/bleak-outlook-nepal-urban-refugees-151123110438884.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://archive.nepalitimes.com/page/state-of-statelessness-for-refugees-in-nepal|title=State of statelessness {{!}} Nepali Times|last=Hansen|first=Jan Møller|website=Nepali Times |access-date=4 December 2019}}</ref> lack official recognition; the government facilitates their resettlement in third countries.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://kathmandupost.com/national/2019/06/21/nepals-governments-have-been-quietly-facilitating-urban-refugee-resettlement-for-years|title=Nepal's government has been quietly facilitating urban refugee resettlement for years|website=Kathmandu Post|language=en|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204131638/https://kathmandupost.com/national/2019/06/21/nepals-governments-have-been-quietly-facilitating-urban-refugee-resettlement-for-years|url-status=live}}</ref>

Around 2,000 immigrants, half of them Chinese, applied for a work permit in 2018/19. The government lacks data on Indian immigrants as they do not require permits to live and work in Nepal;<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.onlinekhabar.com/2019/10/803843|title=नेपालमा अमेरिकादेखि उत्तरकोरियासम्मका कामदार|website=Online Khabar|language=en-US|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204131546/https://www.onlinekhabar.com/2019/10/803843|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Government of India]] puts the number of [[Non-Resident Indians]] in the country at 600,000.<ref name="mea.gov.in">{{cite web |url = https://mea.gov.in/images/attach/NRIs-and-PIOs_1.pdf |title = Population of Overseas Indians |publisher = [[Ministry of External Affairs (India)]] |date = 31 December 2018 |access-date = 4 December 2019 |archive-date = 20 July 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200720104038/http://mea.gov.in/images/attach/NRIs-and-PIOs_1.pdf |url-status = live }}</ref>