Nepal 2023 IFRC network country plan (MAANP001)

Excerpt

NATIONAL SOCIETY PROFILE

The Nepal Red Cross Society is one of the largest humanitarian organizations providing disaster response in the country. It was established in 1963 and admitted to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) in 1964. Students and youth volunteers comprise a large proportion of the organization. They regularly engage with the National Society through the Nepal Junior and Youth Red Cross Circles, active in schools, campuses and communities throughout the country.

As an auxiliary to the public authorities in the humanitarian field, the National Society in Nepal provides emergency and non-emergency services, such as response to the COVID-19 pandemic, earthquakes, floods, landslides and other disasters. Its 2021–2025 strategic development plan is articulated across four strategic directions:

• Governance and organizational development

• Disaster and crisis management

• Health and community care

• Humanitarian principles, values, international laws and diplomacy

The National Society’s priority areas include disaster risk reduction, health and care, water, sanitation and hygiene, first aid, protection, gender and social inclusion. The National Society is also engaged in essential service provision, delivering first aid and blood transfusion services and operating an ambulance service with more than 240 active vehicles. The National Society provides logistical support and coordination in emergencies through its 12 in-country warehouses. In 2020, the Nepal Red Cross reached nearly 54,000 people through disaster response and early recovery services and 2.5 million people with long-term services and development programmes.

In recent years, the National Society has transformed its processes in response to the new federal administration in Nepal. A comprehensive planning process was undertaken in 2019–2020 to sustainably transform the organization, ensuring that it can continue to be relevant, efficient and accountable in serving vulnerable populations