KATHMANDU, MAY 16

Norwegian International Development Minister, Anne Beate Tvinnerreim; the Norwegian Ambassador to Nepal, Torum Dramdal; senior staff and diplomats from the Norwegian Embassy, and delegates from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs visited MSI Nepal on May 11.

During the visit to the MSI centre in Putalisadak, Kathmandu, MSI highlighted the transformative impact of the Norwegian government's long-standing support for sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and the

importance of continued funding to sustain the achievements made.

Since 2014, the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, or Norad, has funded MSI to provide contraception and medical abortion to women in some of the most difficult to reach, remote areas of Nepal. Community-based midwives, known as MSI Ladies sometimes walk for six to eight hours to reach women who would otherwise have no other access. The visit was also an opportunity for the delegation to meet with team members and adolescent clients, who described how access to reproductive health and choice has supported them to change their life for the better.

Commenting on the impact of Norway's generous support, Tushar Niroula, MSI Nepal's Sunaulo Parivar Nepal Executive Director said: 'Reproductive choice is fundamental to the ability to realise a host of other rights, including the right to an education, the right to bodily autonomy, and the right to choose their own pathways in life. We were delighted to share first-hand the transformative impact that Norwegian aid is having on the health, lives and futures of women and girls in Nepal.'

The Minister of International Development, Anne Beate Tvinnerreim said: 'MSI Nepal has and continues to make impressive and important contributions to delivering safe sexual and reproductive health services in Nepal. I would like to express sincere appreciation for their work in this field and their ability to serve marginalized communities in remote areas in innovative ways.'

MSI is a global organisation providing contraception and safe abortion services to women and girls in 37 countries. We believe that every woman and girl should have the right to determine her own future, and the high-quality services we provide give a woman the power to pursue her dreams for herself and her family.