Statistics can be highly deceiving, as is the case with the drop in malnutrition over the decades. Nepal is thrilled by the success recorded in reducing malnutrition over the last 25 years, but this drop seems to be uneven across population groups by economic status.

Child stunting, that is when a child is too short for his or her age as a result of chronic malnutrition, has reduced from 56.6 per cent in 1996 to 24.8 per cent in 2022, according to an analysis by Family Health Survey and National Health and Demographic Survey 1996-2022. However, the percentage of child stunting got reduced by around 20 per cent in the poorest wealth quintile compared to 67 per cent in the richest wealth quintile. Thus, in order to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals on nutrition, the poorest wealth quintile would need to see a reduction in malnutrition by 10.6 per cent annually – a tall task. The survey has also revealed that a quarter of children below the age of five were stunted, 8 per cent were wasted, that is they were too thin for their height, and 19 per cent were underweight.

Wasting is the most visible and life-threatening form of malnutrition, with children suffering from a weak immune system, putting them at increased risk of disease and even death. Wasting and other forms of acute malnutrition are the result of, among others, maternal malnutrition, poor feeding and care practices.The survey shows that 43 per cent of children aged 6-59 months and 34 per cent of women aged 15-49 years are anaemic.A UNICEF report in 2019 had estimated that 850,000 children under five were underweight and over 300,000 were wasted and 1.8 million adolescent girls and boys were stunted. One could thus assume that prevention and treatment of malnutrition and wasting is not a priority and out of reach for the most disadvantaged families and communities in Nepal.

While children in the poorest wealth quintile suffer from wasting, stunting and micronutrient deficiency, children in the richest wealth quintile suffer from obesity and overweight. This is contributing to the dual burden of malnutrition in the country. There is an understanding that inability to have adequate food alone is responsible for malnutrition among children and women. People fail to understand that a rich diet may not have enough nutrients or has too much of them such that it causes health problems.Dietary practices are said to cause as many as 19,000 deaths in Nepal annually. On one hand, there is a low intake of whole grains, legumes, fruits and vegetables, fibre-rich foods and milk products, on the other hand, people in the high income bracket are taking diets that are rich in sodium, fat, red and processed meat and sugar sweetened beverages – both of which are contributing to the dual burden of malnutrition.It is easy to say what a balanced diet to reduce malnutrition should consist of. But for the poor who have difficulty arranging two square meals a day, malnutrition cannot be wished away. Thus, poverty reduction is a must to reduce severe forms of malnutrition among children. As for obesity, nutritional education and physical exercise are the needed interventions.

Promote EVs

The Nepali market has witnessed a surge in electric vehicles (EVs) in recent times thanks to the government policies and vehicle manufacturing industries, which are switching towards electric vehicles to reduce carbon emission. The country has also been able to generate clean energy enough to meet the domestic demand and also to export surplus energy to India during the wet season. This is a great opportunity for Nepal to benefit from its vast water resources to drive its economy forward. Maximum use of domestically-generated electricity in household use, industries and transportation will not only help reduce carbon emission but also help save hardearned foreign currency that is mostly spent on importing fossil fuel.

In order to promote EVs, the government has a plan to construct 500 charging stations all over the country along the major highways. Fifty charging stations built by Nepal Electricity Authority have already come into operation. Besides switching to electric vehicles, the government must provide regular power supply to the industrial areas by upgrading the existing transmission lines. The country's industrialisation process can reach a desired level only if the industries use maximum amounts of electricity.

A version of this article appears in the print on September 04, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.