Kathmandu, January 16

The Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens has issued a procedure to provide grant amount through provincial governments to operate model villages for senior citizens and disabled people in all provinces.

As per the procedure, the ministry shall distribute grant amount to establish and operate a village for senior citizens and disabled persons in seven provinces, in accordance with Section 32 of the Act Relating to Rights of Persons with Disabilities-2017.

The MoWCSC shall distribute the grant amount from its annual budget of the current fiscal 2019-20.

The government has allocated Rs 17.5 million to the MoWCSC to implement programs to enable senior citizens and persons with disabilities to live in the society independently and with dignity.

“Each province will be provided with grant amount of Rs 2.5 million through its Ministry of Social Development. The concerned province may contribute to the programme by allocating additional amount from its annual budget,” Section 4 of the procedure reads.

It requires provinces to spend the grant amount for land acquisition to establish villages for senior citizens and disabled persons; develop housing facilities having safety and health services; provide shelter for helpless children and disabled persons abandoned by family and provide medicines and other necessary assistive materials for senior citizens and disabled persons.

The procedure also allows provincial governments to establish and operate the villages in collaboration with social organisations.

“The MoWCSC shall provide grant amount through banking channel. The concerned Ministry of Social Development shall be responsible to carry out monitoring of the programme on regular basis to ensure that the grant amount is spent in accordance with the approved norms and existing laws,” it reads.

Concerned provincial ministries have to sent statement of expenditure and monitoring report to the Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizen.

Any person may file a complaint with the MoWCSC regarding the implementation of the programme. According to the 2011 census, about two per cent of the total population of the country is living with one or other kind of disability.

Around 80 per cent of the disabled people in the country are illiterate and 95 per cent are unemployed.

Nepal has been witnessing an increase in aging population.

A person aged 60 years or above is defined as a senior citizen in Nepal.