Strengthening local risk governance in Nepal

This paper aims to strengthen local risk governance in Nepal by assessing community and institutional resilience to floods and other hazards in Nepal through effective municipal laws and policies. Nepal is one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world. With a population of 28 million people it experiences frequent flooding, landslides, earthquakes and exposure to the impacts of a multitude of other hazards that occur annually, including cold spells and heatwaves.Nepal has more than 6,000 rivers and rivulets flowing from north to south, with almost 80 per cent of annual precipitation falling during the summer monsoon season (June-September). Flooding occurs annually with devastating impacts, with the 2017 floods affecting 35 of the 77 districts, more than 190,000 houses destroyed or partially damaged, displacing thousands of people.

The Zurich Flood Resilience Alliance (the Alliance) aims to scale up its work in climate action, to help make 2 million people more resilient to flooding by the end of 2024. This change will be achieved through encouraging effective public policy and increasing funding in support of flood resilience, developing sound practices and policy support for flood resilience, and measurably enhancing flood resilience in vulnerable communities across the world.