HEALTH INEQUALITY AND EQUITY IN RURAL AND URBAN SETTING IN NEPAL

Abstract

This paper investigates the relationship between health policy, equity, and inequality in Nepal. It argues that current inequities in health facilities and outcomes are largely attributable to persistent inequities and biases in the health policy framework. We begin by surveying the complex, multifaceted reality of health facilities disparity in contemporary Nepal and trace these inequalities to exclusionary practices in the policy environment that have persisted in various forms since the inception of an federal state. We then show how these inequities contributed to the civil conflict that engulfed Nepal. Analysis and critique of the most recent policy trends, decentralisation and privatisation, provide insight into the future nexus of health policy and equity in Nepal. We conclude that it is imperative for policymakers to reconceptualise the relationship between health policy, inequality and equity at this critical juncture.