Facts about Nepal

Nepal is a landlocked country located in South Asia. With a population of approximately 27 million (and 2 million workers living abroad), Nepal is the world's 41st most populous country. It's located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by China, and to the south, east, and west by India.

The rate of unemployment and underemployment approaches half of the working-age population. For this reason, many Nepali citizens move overseas in search of work.

Besides having landlocked, rugged geography, few tangible natural resources and poor infrastructure, the ineffective post-1950 government and the long-running civil war has also factored in delaying the economic growth and development.

Nepal remains isolated from the world's major land, air and sea transport routes although, within the country, aviation is in a better state, with 47 airports, 11 of them with paved runways; flights are frequent and support a sizable traffic. The hilly and mountainous terrain in the northern two-thirds of the country has made the building of roads and other infrastructure difficult and expensive.

About two thirds of female adults and one third of male adults are illiterate. Net primary enrollment rate was 74% in 2005. It is currently at about 90%.

Health care services in Nepal are provided by both the public and private sector and fares poorly by international standards. Based on World Health Organization (WHO) data, Nepal ranked 139 in life expectancy in 2010 with the average Nepalese living to 65.8 years. Disease prevalence is higher in Nepal than it is in other South Asian countries, especially in rural areas. Leading diseases and illnesses include diarrhea, gastrointestinal disorders, goiter, intestinal parasites, leprosy, visceral leishmaniasis and tuberculosis.

From: Wikipedia.

Despite the migration of a significant section of the population to the southern plains or Terai in recent years, the majority of the population still lives in the central highlands. The northern mountains are sparsely populated. Kathmandu, with a population of over 2.6 million (metropolitan area: 5 million), is the largest city in the country.

 

 

 

 

View More Photos