Chlorpyrifos, Country Situation Report, Nepal

The Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal is a landlocked sovereign state located in Asia. Nepal has a surface area of 147,181.48 km², and is located in south Asia. This Himalayan country borders China in the north and India in the south, east, and west. Nepal is among the least developed countries and one of 47 landlocked countries in the world. Nepal’s population as of 1^st July 2022 is 30,225,582 people, with a net increase of one person every minute. Agriculture is the leading sector of the Nepalese economy. It provides employment opportunities to around 65% of the total population and contributes about 27% to the GDP.

Chlorpyrifos, among the top 10 most used insecticides in Nepal, is a widely used organophosphate insecticide applied to control many different kinds of pests, including termites, mosquitoes, and roundworms. It is a developmental neurotoxin pesticide, which kills insects (insecticide) by blocking an enzyme in their nervous system that is also present in the nerve cells of humans and other animals. Chlorpyrifos is strongly linked to brain damage in children. This means the neurotoxicity of chlorpyrifos is not limited to insects. Farmers and their families are the first groups experiencing the negative health impacts of its use. 

This project relates to the Sustainable Development Goals 2,3,6, 8, 14 and 15.

Special thanks to IPEN's South Asia Regional Coordinator Tripti Arora and the Regional Hub, and the lead organization developing this report, CEPHED, for their important contributions to the development and finalization of the project.