Rethinking Nepal’s work culture for gender equality and inclusion

About a month ago, Union Women and Child Development Minister of India , Smriti Irani’s opinion about menstruation not being a ‘handicap’ to be granted a paid leave caused a stir among Indian women workforce, activists and policymakers. Irani’s take on how menstrual leave exacerbates discrimination against women in the workplace rather reflected the impact of social stigmas on national policies, which echoes true in the socio-cultural context of Nepal as well.

In Nepal, menstruation-based discrimination leads to an annual loss of women’s lives and causes a lack of dignified and hygienic solutions for women. In such a scenario, provisions such as paid menstruation leave could sound like a far-fetched idea to be incorporated into workplace policies in Nepal. However, this is just an example of how socio-cultural beliefs and practices shape policies and work structures that are inequitable and unresponsive to the needs of its diverse population.