Gender and sexual minority integration programs to be launched

Kathmandu, May 29: The government is going to launch empowerment, awareness and social integration programs for gender and sexual minorities to help them lead a life with dignity.

Presenting the budget for the upcoming fiscal year 2082/083, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Poudel today announced the government’s plan to continue the national campaign to rescue and rehabilitate street children. Provisions will be made for the protection, family reunification, social rehabilitation and alternative care of abandoned and orphan children.

The capacity of child reform homes will be expanded with psychosocial and career counseling, and the child helpline service will be linked to the Nagarik app,” the budget statement said. The national identity card distribution system will be systematised by updating the criteria for identifying and classifying people with disabilities.

The government plans to make public services disability-friendly and expand community-based rehabilitation services for the destitute, disabled and completely disabled.

A zero-tolerance policy will be adopted towards all forms of violence and harassment against women, including acid attacks. The government also plans to complete the construction of Women, Children and Senior Citizen Service Centers and establish rehabilitation centers for women survivors of violence in Madhes, Sudurpaschim and the Kathmandu Valley.

Similarly, the government has put forward a plan to restructure the Social Welfare Council and the National Child Rights Council, mobilize non-governmental organizations according to national priorities and local needs, and make the documentation, monitoring and evaluation system of programs run by national and international non-governmental organizations effective.