Nepal
Summary of Conclusions
1. Despite being a low-emission State, Nepal now faces dangerous impacts from climate change. Rising temperatures and climate disasters pose urgent threats to human rights in Nepal, with glacial loss endangering natural resource sovereignty, cultural heritage, and long-term habitability. These threats undermine the self-determination of Indigenous Peoples, Dalits, Tibetans, women, children, disabled people, and other marginalized groups. Nepal has the opportunity and obligation under international law to take proactive adaptation measures to protect human rights. Nepal should bridge the implementation gap in its National Adaptation Plan (NAP) and ensure awareness of complex climate processes for climate-vulnerable populations within its borders. Nepal should further hold high-emission states accountable for the harm they inflict with respect to their emissions conduct.
Climate Change
2. Nepal is a party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and has ratified the Paris Agreement and the Kyoto Protocol.[1] Nepal recognizes the “grave” impacts of climate change on human rights, and argues that states have an obligation to limit global temperatures within 1.5 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial level.[2]
3. Nepal is highly vulnerable to climate change harms. Despite contributing only 0.027% to global emissions, Nepal ranked 10th on the 2021 Global Climate Risk Index (2000–2019) due to extreme weather and high climate vulnerability.[3] Sagarmatha National Park’s glacier system has experienced 14.7% mass loss in its glaciers relative to 2000, ranking it 17th in glacier ice loss on UNESCO World Heritage sites.[4] A study by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development estimates that with warming levels between 1.5 degrees and 2 degrees Celsius, Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) glaciers will lose 30% to 50% of their volume by 2100.[5]
4. Nepal’s mountainous topography and high concentration of poverty are accelerating displacement and migration. Climate-related environmental shifts and disasters are exacerbating widespread poverty in Nepal, with 15% of Nepali people living in poverty as of 2023.[6] More than 80% of property loss in the region is attributable to climate hazards.[7] Millions are also at risk from reductions in agricultural production, food insecurity, forest degradation, damaged infrastructure, and reduced water supply.[8]
5. Nepal’s habitability is threatened by climate-induced glacial lakes formed from the fast retreat of valley glaciers. Despite being as pernicious and existential as sea-level rise, there is a staggering lack of research on glacial loss in international law.[9] While the actual number of glacial lakes is disputed, multiple studies suggest that the total area and number of glacial lakes in the Himalayan regions have increased significantly since the 1990s.[10] Such floods pose a hazard to mountain villages, roads, and hydropower dams.[11] Electricity generation in Nepal is especially threatened, as around 90% comes from hydropower.[12]
6. Ongoing glacial melt threatens Nepal’s freshwater sources and sovereignty. Water is one of Nepal’s most abundant natural resources, with freshwater accounting for an estimated 2.27% of the total world supply.[13]Glacier melt “could lead to severe water shortages for the 250 million people living in the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region, and affect another 1.6 billion people downstream who rely on the rivers fed by the ice pack.”[14]
7. Indigenous communities in the rural hills and mountains of Nepal are particularly vulnerable to climate change. Indigenous Peoples are among the first to face climate change consequences due to their close relationship with the environment.[15] Dependence on climate-sensitive natural resources, chronic poverty, limited livelihood options, and low adaptive capacity make Nepal’s Indigenous communities especially at risk. Marginalized Indigenous communities like the Majhi, Raute, Chepang, and Satar are more vulnerable to food insecurity and disasters.[16] Climate-induced glacial melt is also creating periods of flood and drought, giving rise to “ghost villages” like those in Dhye and Samzong, as well as acute shortages of drinking and irrigation water.[17]
8. Glacial melt threatens Nepal’s cultural heritage, constituting a form of non-economic loss and damage. The Himalayas are sacred for a variety of religious and spiritual traditions. The unique Himalayan landscape is now being destroyed through glacial melt.[18] Given the religious significance of Nepal and the surrounding Himalayan region, there is a need to recognize this monumental cultural loss.
Human Rights
9. Nepal recognizes the need to advance human rights. Nepal is party to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), and the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).[19] Nepal has also acceded to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR).[20]
10. Nepal has been actively working to address human rights issues since the last UPR cycle in 2021. Of the 233 recommendations received during the third UPR cycle, Nepal supported 196 of them (an increase of 28.95% from the previous cycle).[21] Nepal also served its term on the Human Rights Council from 2021-2023.[22]
11. Nepal’s human rights situation, however, remains fragile. While the passage of the transitional justice bill in 2024 (“A Bill to Amend the Disappeared Persons’ Enquiry, Truth, and Reconciliation Commission Act”) represents a positive step toward justice for human rights violations committed during the 1996-2006 conflict between the government and Maoist rebels, the bill adopts a limited definition of “serious violations of human rights” that only includes “rape or serious sexual violence”, “intentional or arbitrary killing”, enforced disappearance (but only if the victim’s whereabouts are still unknown), and “inhuman or cruel torture.”[23] The bill excludes other serious crimes consistent with international law.[24] A more encompassing definition of serious human rights violations may enable greater accountability.
12. Despite guarantees of equality and non-discrimination in Nepal’s 2015 Constitution, caste-based discrimination persists throughout the country.[25] Dalits constitute approximately 13.8% of Nepal’s total population of about 29 million people.[26] Despite constitutional prohibitions, the caste system confines Dalits to specific jobs, with many in forced labor, and 90% living below the poverty line.[27] Dalits are denied access to schools, drinking water taps, and other public spaces, and are often forgotten in disaster-preparedness plans.[28]Dalit women are particularly vulnerable to violence and disease.[29] This caste-based discrimination violates Nepal’s obligations under the International Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), intersecting with inequality of access to natural resources and susceptibility to ecological harms.[30] General Recommendation 29 of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination affirms that the term “descent” in Article 1 of the ICERD applies to inherited status such as caste, and that all forms of descent-based discrimination violate the ICERD.[31]
13. Nepal has recognized that States have obligations towards Indigenous communities regarding the adverse impacts of climate change. In its submission before the ICJ, Nepal argued that Indigenous Peoples have a right to the conservation and protection of the environment, as well as the productive capacity of their lands.[32] Nepal also declared that States must protect the environment of Indigenous Peoples and create assistance programs for such conservation and protection, along with just and fair redress for adverse impacts.[33]
14. Other than on paper, Nepal has yet to implement any meaningful change to ensure Nepali Indigenous Peoples are protected. Nepal’s constitution and domestic legislation, including the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act, do not provide for free, prior, and informed consent for Indigenous Peoples.[34] This gap undermines Nepal’s commitments under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in this regard and constitutes a material breach of the obligation to promote the self-determination of Indigenous Peoples.[35]
15. Nepal has taken initial steps to reflect its acknowledgement of the unequal burdens of climate change on women. Some domestic reforms include Nepal's Gender Mainstreaming Strategy to increase the participation of women in agricultural production-related institutions by 50%, and the Community Forestry Guidelines, which require half of its executive committee members to be women.[36] The Nepal Ministry of Forests and Environment drafted a “Gender and Social Inclusion (GESI) and Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan,” but has yet to implement it.[37]
16. However, Nepali women and girls continue to be particularly impacted by climate-induced poverty and resource insecurity. Women and girls face systemic discrimination, notably under a citizenship law that treats mothers unequally.[38] Nepali women from poor and marginalized households spend more time and energy on collecting household resources, and rising water scarcity increases the amount of time women need to travel to access water.[39] As a result, women are unable to pursue job opportunities, gain new knowledge and skills, and engage in community activities.[40] Children’s rights are also neglected, with only 4% of the child population benefiting from government social protection despite making up 40% of the population in 2020.[41]
17. Nepali people with disabilities have little to no voice in climate conversations and suffer from a lack of disaster preparedness. As a signatory to the Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Nepal is required to make information related to climate change, warning information during extreme weather events, and other facilities easily accessible for persons with disabilities.[42] Nepal has failed in its treaty obligations in this regard. As of 2024, 85% of persons with disabilities were unaware of early warning systems, 80% lacked fully accessible shelters, and extreme weather and disasters hindered the access of 56% to health care facilities.[43] Though Nepal passed the Act Relating to Persons with Disabilities to increase accommodations, discrimination against people with disabilities continues. This is particularly true for disabled Indigenous Peoples, the vast majority of whom report not having adequate access to public services.[44]
18. Still, Nepal has shown a laudable willingness to include disabled voices in the shaping of climate policy. Nepal has referenced people with disabilities in several important climate documents, including its Second Nationally Determined Contribution (2020), National Climate Change Policy (2019), and National Adaptation Plan (2021-2050).[45] In its advisory opinion request to the ICJ, Nepal argued that states must give particular consideration to the rights of persons with disabilities.[46]
Adaptation to Climate Change
19. Given its minimal contribution to global emissions, Nepal has shown commitment to hold high-emitting states accountable for their emission contributions. Nepal advocated before the ICJ for “differential obligations” on States to combat climate change, “...given the difference in contributions and capacity to mitigate.”[47]Developed States’ obligations include limiting the global average temperature to below 2 degrees Celsius, internationally cooperating to promote mitigation action, making adequate reparations to share the benefits of scientific advancements with developing States, and providing support to developing States under the “duty of assistance” recognized in the UN Charter and various international instruments considering mountainous countries.[48]
20. The international community has an obligation to support Nepal in its adaptation efforts and provide recommendations for improvements. Under the UNFCCC and its related mechanisms, including the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage, Nepal is entitled to technical and financial support. The UNFCCC obligates States Parties to “formulate and implement measures to facilitate adequate adaptation to climate change,” and that Annex II countries have a “general obligation” to aid developing countries in their adaptation efforts.[49]
21. Nepal’s National Adaptation Plan (NAP) provides climate change adaptation strategic goals, but domestic resources to implement the plan are limited. The NAP sets out 64 “priority programmes” that address identified climate risks and vulnerabilities, with an estimated total budget through 2050 at USD 47.4 billion.[50] The Government of Nepal has committed to contributing $1.5 billion to the NAP, but requires $2.1 billion per year to implement the priority actions identified.[51] Nepal has already suffered economic losses as a result of climate change, and argues that its mitigation measures are already detrimental to the government’s annual revenue collection.[52] Still, it is too soon to tell whether the NAP has been working as it should. The inception phase of the NAP will end in 2026, followed by the release of information and data on adaptation in Nepal by the climate change data management, monitoring, and reporting system (CCDMMRS).[53]
22. Other States have called on Nepal to include marginalized voices in climate change adaptation plans. In the third UPR cycle, Fiji, Indonesia, and the Maldives all recommended that Nepal incorporate the views of women and vulnerable groups in the implementation and development of adaptation plans.[54] Nepal supported these recommendations, but has yet to adopt any concrete mechanism to address the concerns.
23. Nepal has had difficulty following through on its climate-related promises. For example, Nepal has been called upon to address the concerns raised by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in its October 2020 report, which indicated that fewer than 14% of the NHRC’s recommendations during the previous two decades were fully implemented by the Government.[55]
Recommendations
24. Continue implementing the National Adaptation Plan (NAP), with international funding support. Nepal should take steps to ensure its first review of the NAP follows its expected completion date of 2026, and continue devoting funds to its gender, social inclusion, livelihood, and governance plans. In doing so, Nepal should heed former High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet’s call to establish a national mechanism for tracking human rights commitments and linking them to the Sustainable Development Goals.[56]
25. Protect and promote the self-determination of Indigenous communities. Nepal should take steps to affirm, protect, and promote the self-determination of its Indigenous Peoples, including harms on Indigenous Peoples caused by the emissions conduct of high-emitter States. Implementation could include seeking reparations for violations of Indigenous Peoples’ right to self-determination caused by high-emission States, with particular emphasis on glacial loss.
26. Consider ratifying further international treaties and protocols. These include the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, the International Labour Organization Domestic Workers Convention, and the 1951 Refugee Convention along with its 1967 Protocol.
27. Adopt national legislation to prioritize adaptation measures, including those that reduce and respond to the growing risks of climate related displacement and migration. Nepal’s adaptation responses to climate risks must take into account the increasing diversity and frequency of climate related disasters, which is resulting in increasing forced displacement. National legislation should align with international standards for the protection of displaced persons and refugees, including providing identity documents to all refugees residing in Nepal.[57][1]
28. Nepal should amend its constitution to protect groups particularly vulnerable to climate change. Amendments must prohibit discrimination against Indigenous Peoples, women, children, people with disabilities, and marginalized groups that lack representation and voice in climate change policymaking. The government should work closely with Indigenous groups to develop solutions that respect their traditional lands, territories, and resources in accordance with free, prior, and informed consent. Nepal should further ensure that such amendments are fully implemented, and enforce prohibitions against caste-based discrimination that are already promised in its constitution.[58] All actions should align with the United Nations Draft Principles and Guidelines for the Effective Elimination of Discrimination Based on Work and Descent to ensure inclusive and equitable climate protection.[59]
29. Update the definition of “serious violations of human rights” in the 2024 transitional justice bill to comply with international law. Nepal is obliged under Article 2(3)(a) of the ICCPR to provide an effective remedy for human rights violations. The climate crisis cannot be fully addressed in Nepal until there is trust in the current government and justice for victims of human rights violations. Building trust starts with amending the accountability gaps in the transitional justice bill, such as the lack of a more general torture prohibition.[60]
[1] United Nations Climate Change, ‘Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’ <https://unfccc.int/process/parties-non-party-stakeholders/parties-convention-and-observer-states>
[2] Government of Nepal, Written Statement of the Government of Nepal, Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change (Request for Advisory Opinion) 22 March 2024 <https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/187/187-20240327-wri-01-00-en.pdf> (hereinafter Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change) para 19.
[3] Eckstein D et. al., Global Climate Risk Index 2021 (16th edn Germanwatch e.V., Berlin 2021) 13.
[4] United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), World Heritage Glaciers: Sentinels of Climate Change(UNESCO 2022) 21 <https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000383551>
[5] International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Water, ice, society, and ecosystems in the Hindu Kush Himalaya: An Outlook (ICIMOD 2023) xiii <https://hkh.icimod.org/hi-wise/hi-wise-report/> a
[6] Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change (n 2) para 14.
[7] Government of Nepal, National Adaptation Plan 2021–2050 (NAP) (2021) <https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/NAP_Nepal_2021.pdf> accessed 11 July 2025 (hereinafter NAP) 12.
[8] ibid 1.
[9] Vaishnavi Chandrashekhar, As Himalayan Glaciers Melt, a Water Crisis Looms in South Asia, Yale Environment 360 (Oct. 3, 2022), https://e360.yale.edu/features/himalayas-glaciers-climate-change
[10] International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Water, ice, society, and ecosystems in the Hindu Kush Himalaya: An Outlook, Executive Summary, p. xiii (2023), https://hkh.icimod.org/hi-wise/hi-wise-report/
[11] Vaishnavi Chandrashekhar, As Himalayan Glaciers Melt, a Water Crisis Looms in South Asia, Yale Environment 360 (Oct. 3, 2022), https://e360.yale.edu/features/himalayas-glaciers-climate-change.
[12] Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change (n 2) para 15.
[13] World Bank Group (2011) https://climateknowledgeportal.worldbank.org/sites/default/files/2018-10/wb_gfdrr_climate_change_country_profile_for_NPL.pdf
[14] Tulsi Rauniyar, Glacial Melt Is Dispossessing Nepal’s Indigenous Communities, Earth Journalism Network (Aug. 12, 2023), https://earthjournalism.net/stories/glacial-melt-is-dispossessing-nepals-indigenous-communities.
[15] Tulsi Rauniyar, Glacial Melt is Dispossessing Nepal’s Indigenous Communities, Earth Journalism Network (Aug. 12, 2023), https://earthjournalism.net/stories/glacial-melt-is-dispossessing-nepals-indigenous-communities.
[16] NAP (n 7) 110.
[17] NAP (n 7) 17.
[18] David L. Haberman, “The gods are angry”: How climate change reshaping one of the world’s oldest religions from bliss to punishment,Fortune (Aug. 15, 2023), https://fortune.com/2023/08/15/climate-change-religion-hindu-gods-angry-central-himalayas-kedarnath.
[19] Government of Nepal, National Adaptation Plan (NAP) 2021–2050 26 (2021) https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/NAP_Nepal_2021.pdf
[20] UN Treaty Body Database, Ratification Status for Nepal, https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/TreatyBodyExternal/Treaty.aspx?CountryID=122&Lang=EN.
[21] OHCHR, “Universal Periodic Review – Nepal” https://www.ohchr.org/en/hr-bodies/upr/np-index
[22] OHCHR, “Membership of the Human Rights Council,” https://www.ohchr.org/en/hr-bodies/hrc/group2021
[23] Amnesty International, “Nepal: New Transitional Justice Law a Flawed Step Forward” (2024) https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/08/nepal-new-transitional-justice-law-a-flawed-step-forward/
[24] Tirana Hassan, Nepal: Events of 2023, Human Rights Watch (2023), https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2024/country-chapters/nepal.
[25] Amnesty International, “No-One Cares”: Descent-Based Discrimination Against Dalits in Nepal (2024) https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/asa31/7980/2024/en/
[26] Id. at 5.
[27] Brigitte Leduc, et al., Case Study: Gender and Climate Change in the Hindu Kush Himalayas of Nepal 6 (2008) https://wedo.org/wp-content/uploads/nepalcasestudy.pdf.
[28] Id. at 12.
[29] Id. at 6.
[30] Mukul Sharma, Caste, Environment Justice and Intersectionality of Dalit-Black Ecologies 13 Environment and Society (2022) https://www.berghahnjournals.com/view/journals/environment-and-society/13/1/ares130106.xml.
[31] Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, General Recommendation XXIX on article 1, paragraph 1 of the Convention (Descent) 1-3 (2002), https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=INT%2FCERD%2FGEC%2F7501&Lang=en.
[32] Obligations of States in Respect to Climate Change (n 2) para 35.
[33] ibid; United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, UNGA Res 61/295, UN GAOR, 61st sess, 107th plen mtg, Agenda Item 68, Supp No 49, UN Doc A/RES/61/295 (2 October 2007) art 29 (‘United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples’) (UNDRIP).
[34] Gurug et al., Intersectionality, Indigeneity, and Disability Climate Justice in Nepal, Petrie-Flom Center (2024), https://petrieflom.law.harvard.edu/2024/02/29/intersectionality-indigeneity-and-disability-climate-justice-in-nepal.
[35] UNDRIP Art. 19
[36] Sewa Bhattarai, Nepali women doubly burdened by climate change, Nepali Times, Dec. 18, 2020, https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepali-women-doubly-burdened-by-climate-change.
[37] Id.
[38] Ganguly M, Nepal President Blocks Citizenship Law, Human Rights Watch (Sept 26, 2022), https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/09/26/nepal-president-blocks-citizenship-law#:~:text=Politicians%20justify%20this%20discrimination%20on,now%20before%20the%20Supreme%20Court
[39] Sewa Bhattarai, Nepali women doubly burdened by climate change, Nepali Times (Dec. 18, 2020), https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepali-women-doubly-burdened-by-climate-change.
[40] Government of Nepal, National Adaptation Plan (NAP) 2021–2050 12 (2021), https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/NAP_Nepal_2021.pdf.
[41] Simet L and M Ganguly, The Nepal Government Should Expand Child Grants, Human Rights Watch (Oct 24, 2022), https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/10/24/nepal-government-should-expand-child-grants#:~:text=In%202019%2D20%2C%20the%20government,so%20would%20the%20whole%20country.
[42] Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities
[43] Gurug et al., Intersectionality, Indigeneity, and Disability Climate Justice in Nepal, Petrie-Flom Center (2024), https://petrieflom.law.harvard.edu/2024/02/29/intersectionality-indigeneity-and-disability-climate-justice-in-nepal.
[44] Id.
[45] Id.
[46] Gurug et al., Intersectionality, Indigeneity, and Disability Climate Justice in Nepal, Petrie-Flom Center (2024), https://petrieflom.law.harvard.edu/2024/02/29/intersectionality-indigeneity-and-disability-climate-justice-in-nepal; Obligations of States in Respect to Climate Change (n 2) para 34.
[47] Obligations of States in Respect to Climate Change (n 2) para 17.
[48] Id.; Instruments include the Convention on Biological Diversity and UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
[49] Obligations of States in Respect to Climate Change (n 2) para 29.
[50] Government of Nepal, National Adaptation Plan (NAP) 2021–2050 ix (2021) https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/NAP_Nepal_2021.pdf.
[51] Id.
[52] Obligations of States in Respect to Climate Change (n 2) para 14.
[53] Government of Nepal, National Adaptation Plan (NAP) 2021–2050 135 (2021) https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/NAP_Nepal_2021.pdf.
[54] UPR Matrice of Recommendations for Nepal 9.
[55] Letter from Michelle Bachelet, High Commissioner for Human Rights’ Letter to Nepal p. 1 (Oct. 8 2021) https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/2021-11/HC_letter_to_Nepal.pdf.
[56] Id. p. 2.
[57] Id. p. 7.
[58] Id.
[59] UN Draft Principles and Guidelines for the Effective Elimination of Discrimination Based on Work and Descent, https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/Documents/HRBodies/HRCouncil/RegularSession/Session11/A-HRC-11-CRP3.pdf.
[60] Human Rights Watch, “Nepal: New Transitional Justice Law a Flawed Step Forward” (2024), https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/08/20/nepal-new-transitional-justice-law-flawed-step-forward.
Link on the United Nations System
Universal Periodic Review Fourth Cycle - Nepal - Reference Documents on the United Nations System