[{"bbox": [97, 153, 1075, 207], "category": "Text", "text": "As they are part of the values and principles of the EU strategies, it is necessary to briefly contextualise the situation in Nepal regarding gender equality and the inclusion of people with disabilities."}, {"bbox": [97, 218, 1134, 459], "category": "Text", "text": "Therefore, despite a progressive framework in Nepal (its 2015 Constitution promotes equality and inclusiveness), Nepal ranks 106th out of 156 countries in the 2021 Global Gender Gap index, and 118th out of 160 countries in the Gender Inequality index 2017³. The governance systems, guaranteed by the Constitution, provide opportunities for societal transformation, by reducing gender inequalities and social exclusion, aligning Nepal's national and international commitments. These include the Agenda 2030, for Sustainable Development, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against women (CEDAW), the Beijing Platform for Action (BPFA) or the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)⁴. Efforts involve incorporating gender equality into national development policies and programmes, creating a gender-responsive budget system and promoting basic rights to equality and justice through planned or ongoing social and infrastructure programmes⁵."}, {"bbox": [97, 468, 1134, 736], "category": "Text", "text": "Regarding the situation of persons with disabilities, the data from Nepal census 2021, reveal that 2.2% of the Nepali Population have some form of disability. Among the male population, 2.5% and the entire female population, 2.0%, have some disability⁶. Furthermore, Nepal ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in 2008, ad passe the Disability Rights Act in 2017, establishing constitutional directives to support persons with disabilities and marking it illegal to discriminate based on disability. Yet, perception of persons with disability in Nepal remains generally negative, due to persistent and deep-rooted Hindu religious beliefs associating disability with sinning in a previous life. Women and girls with disability face greater marginalisation and discrimination and tend to be hidden away by families. Thus, widespread stigma compounded by the intersectionality of certain factors, combined with structural inaccessibility, create significant barriers to have equal access to resources and participate in decision-making⁷."}, {"bbox": [97, 747, 1134, 828], "category": "Text", "text": "This action will build on the extensive preparatory work on strategic communication that the delegation has done in the previous years. The delegation currently has developed the tools to implement campaigning and ensuring strategic outreach to target audiences, in particular youth."}, {"bbox": [85, 853, 341, 884], "category": "Section-header", "text": "## 2.2 Problem Analysis"}, {"bbox": [97, 900, 1130, 1087], "category": "Text", "text": "Strategic communication plays a key role in strengthening the EU's role in the world. Fragmented, project-specific partner-implemented communication and visibility activities have largely failed to demonstrate the EU's added value as a partner for Nepal and its people. By consolidating strategic communication resources in the Support Measures, the EU Delegation will be able to plan and execute multiannual strategic communication campaigns with the scale and focus necessary to be effective on a national scale. This will ensure more impactful communication on the EU's international partnerships objectives and external policy priorities. The action will therefore contribute to raising awareness, understanding and perception of the EU and its role in the country."}, {"bbox": [97, 1112, 1124, 1404], "category": "Text", "text": "As the action aims to integrate the gender perspective and the inclusion of persons with disabilities, it is important that the communication strategy not only uses inclusive language but also informs about the projects and programs developed by the Delegation that have included integrated these aspects. Additionally, it is crucial that from the initial phase, individuals from these groups are included. In this regard, inclusive visuals could be reinforced with inclusive language. Societal perceptions and media portrayal can feed into gender stereotypes, not only through imagery and narratives, but also language. Gendered language is so common that it can be difficult for many to even notice it. Language powerfully reflects and influences attitudes, behaviour and perceptions, thus using language that integrates a gender perspective can help to reduce gender stereotyping, promote social change and contribute to achieving gender equality. Therefore, it is essential to adopt an intersectional approach and make communication more inclusive by mainstreaming disability inclusion and gender equality in all areas."}, {"bbox": [85, 1476, 989, 1502], "category": "Footnote", "text": "³ Gender Action Plan III- 2021-2025, Country Level Implementation Plan- CLIP Nepal, EUD to Nepal, 2021"}, {"bbox": [85, 1501, 1144, 1549], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁴ Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) Strategy 2021-2023, Government of Nepal, Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration Provincial and Local Governance Support Programme (PLGSP), November 2021"}, {"bbox": [85, 1549, 763, 1573], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁵ Country Gender Equality Profile Nepal, SUOMI Finland and UN Women, 2023"}, {"bbox": [85, 1573, 986, 1598], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁶ Disability Data from Nepal Census 2021, National Federation of the Disabled- Nepal (NFDN), April 2023"}, {"bbox": [85, 1598, 1144, 1645], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁷ Persons with disabilities and climate change in Nepal: Humanitarian impacts and pathways for inclusive climate action, OCHA, July 2023"}, {"bbox": [1027, 1653, 1144, 1680], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 4 of 10"}]