A silent revolution is unfolding across Nepal. 568 women were elected as deputy mayors or vice chairs during the 2022 local government elections. They are now challenging long-entrenched gender norms, making executive decisions and ensuring women’s voices are heard where they were once ignored. Yet their work receives little recognition from national policymakers or international development partners and a glass ceiling persists, with only a much smaller percentage of women being elected to lead local governments.

A year ago, we met Helambu Rural Municipality Vice Chair Aspara Lamichhane in the mountainous district of Sindhupalchowk in central Nepal. At a local tea shop near the Melamchi River, she described how she championed community resilience, focusing on neglected women’s issues:

Read more at: https://devpolicy.org/breaking-barriers-nepali-female-leaders-driving-change-20250313/