In 1951, the U.S. was the first country to sign a Technical Cooperation Agreement with Nepal. Since then, the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Government of Nepal have partnered to achieve remarkable development outcomes.

Health

• USAID supports 50,000 Female Community Health Volunteers working in all districts of Nepal providing life-saving health services to rural Nepalis.
• A 33% decline in under-five mortality over the past five years and a 52% reduction since 1996. Nepal is among only 16 countries in the world (and one of six in Asia) that are on track to achieve the MDG goal of reducing under-five mortality by two-thirds. Further, maternal mortality ratio in Nepal declined by 50% in just 10 years.
• A 25% increase in the prevalence rate for modern contraceptive methods, from 35.4% to 44.2% since 2001.
• A reduction in the total fertility rate from 4.1 children per woman in 2001 to 3.1 children per woman in 2006, and an almost 40% reduction in total fertility since 1991.
• In FY 2007 USAID supported the government in providing health services to 1.3 million households in Nepal, improving government service delivery in rural areas -- a root cause of conflict.
• 90% of all children are reached by the USAID-supported national Vitamin A campaign.

Advancing Peace & Democracy

• USAID donated two high-capacity printers to print 50 million tamper-resistant ballots –making possible the historic April 2008 Constituent Assembly elections that inaugurated Nepal's transition to a democratic republic.
• USAID promoted voter awareness and timely news and information to citizens through 40 radio stations covering all 75 districts of Nepal with programming focused on voter education and election reporting.
• USAID assistance to the Peace Secretariat since 1993 played a key role in preparing it for its elevation in FY 2007 to the cabinet-level Ministry of Peace and Reconstruction, charged with managing the peace process.
• USAID provided research and resource material for all seminal documents and structures in the peace process, including the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, and Local Peace Committees.
• USAID launched the first national call-in, toll-free radio show in Nepal, providing some listeners with their first-ever opportunity to question national-level elected representatives, government officials, and civil society leaders.
• Altogether, USAID reaches 6 million people with radio programs on democracy, elections, health and peace building – almost a quarter of the population.
• Counseling was provided to over 13,400 affected persons to help address the psychological trauma of the conflict.

Reducing Poverty

• 275,000 rural farmers have increased their incomes by at least 50% as a result of USAID programs
• 735,000 Nepalis now benefit from access to rural roads as a result of USAID programs
• Since 2004, USAID provided water access and market development assistance in over 10 districts, helping more than 50,000 households adopt the improved technology of micro-irrigation and sell vegetables that increased their incomes by 50 percent per year.
• USAID will also provide literacy, life skills, vocational education, agricultural training, and targeted scholarships for 70,000 disadvantaged and conflict-affected youth in mid-western Nepal as a part of an education for income generation program over a five year period.
• USAID’s income generation projects have helped over 754,000 Nepalese to weather the impact of the conflict and to increase their standards of living.

Global Development Alliance

• USAID facilitated US $1.5 million in investment through a hydropower GDA, extending electrification in remote rural areas, benefiting 27,500 people.
• Through the Tea and Coffee GDA, over $1.7 million of tea has been exported from Nepal, and new coffee buyers include the Holland Group which supplies Starbucks.