<img width="6016" height="4016" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114131128/637234649c7e80680e0c492ejpeg.jpg" alt=""/>Nepal’s first-ever Human Milk Bank has been established in Kathmandu, with President Bidya Devi Bhandari inaugurating it at the Paropakar Maternity and Women’s Hospital on Friday. The milk bank ensures a baby-friendly health system and gives premature, low birthweight and other at-risk infants access to the benefits of breastmilk and a healthy start to life.An estimated 81,000 babies are born pre-term in Nepal every year, and low birthweight babies face a higher risk of dying in the first month. Nepal’s neonatal mortality rate is 16 per 1,000 live births during first 28 days of life, and 25 out of 1,000 babies die before their first birthday. Although Nepal’s infant mortality rate has been reduced dramatically in the  past 20 years, neonatal mortality is still high.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/back-to-the-nipple-in-nepal/">Back to the nipple in Nepal</a>, Sonia Awale“Human breast milk contains the best source of nutrition and ensures survival and healthy growth of babies. It bolsters brain development and has lifelong benefits for the baby and the mother,” says Bibek Kumar Lal of the Family Welfare Division at the Ministry of Health and Population. “It contains antibodies which offer a powerful line of defence against infection and malnutrition and helps towards preventing deaths of infants and young children,” Lal adds.  Exclusive breastfeeding has the potential to prevent 13% of under-five deaths globally each year. In Nepal, only 42% of children under 2 years of age are breastfed within one hour of birth, and 62% of children under six months are exclusively breastfed, according to a 2019 survey.  <img width="750" height="401" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114131128/637234689c7e80680e0c492fjpeg.jpg" alt="">“Premature, low birthweight and small for gestational age babies usually have feeding problems and direct breastfeeding is often not possible. So, the next best alternative is breast milk, preferably from their biological mother,” says Amir Babu Shrestha of Paropakar Maternity and Women’s Hospital.Such newborns are usually given infant formula milk, which exposes them to risk of infection. Donor human milk is therefore preferred.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/we-are-what-we-eat/">We are what we eat</a>, Aruna UpretyThe new Human Milk Bank called Amrit Kosh at the Paropakar Maternity and Women’s Hospital has the facilities to collect, pasteurise, test and store safe donor human milk from lactating mothers and then provide it to infants in need. The centre has been established in partnership with the European Union and UNICEF.Says EU Ambassador to Nepal Nona Deprez: “We are proud that this tripartite partnership has led to the establishment of Amrit Kosh, we hope that more and more newborns unable to receive their mother’s milk can benefit from breastmilk in protecting their health and supporting their development.”Nepal’s Multi-Sector Nutrition Plan (MSNP) seeks to improve maternal, adolescent, and child nutrition throughout Nepal by promoting healthy, nutritious, and diversified diets for adolescents, pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, infants, and young children. Since 2013, UNICEF has been supporting the Government of Nepal in implementing MSNP, with funding support from the European Union.“The Human Milk Bank initiative is critical to advancing our joint efforts under Nepal’s Multi-Sector Nutrition Plan to improve child nutrition and particularly to address acute malnutrition of children in Nepal,” says Elke Wisch, UNICEF Representative to Nepal.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-air-ambulance-saves-mothers/">Nepal’s air ambulance saves mothers</a>, Nepali Times

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Nepal’s first Human Milk Bank

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410114/637204f29c7e80680e0b288djpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"/><figcaption>Photos: UNICEF NEPAL</figcaption></figure>Despite periods of political and economic instability, Nepal achieved dramatic progress in maternal and child health in the early 2000s becoming an international model.It took great strides in reducing childhood malnutrition, in particular, reducing stunting from 57% in 1996 to 33% in 2016. Maternal and Infant mortality rates also similarly declined, only for much of these successes <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nearly-half-of-nepali-children-still-malnourished/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">to stall in the recent years</a>. And this trend has been made worse by the Covid-19 pandemic, states a new UNICEF report.Titled “<a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/17408709/2022/18/S1" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/17408709/2022/18/S1&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1642768390008000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2Qo1HoClES2POc3Qyp2i-7">Nutrition in Nepal: Three decades of progress for children and women</a>”, the report brings together a set of nine original articles that examine the drivers of success and identify where greater policy and programmatic action is needed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) nutrition targets.“Optimal maternal and child nutrition is the basis for developing a resilient society,” says EU Ambassador to Nepal, H.E. Nona Deprez. “The decline in the number of malnourished children, improvements in health facilities and services, and the multisectoral approach used in Nepal over the past three decades are a testament to the Government of Nepal’s commitment to reducing all forms of malnutrition.”A <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/17408709/2022/18/S1" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/17408709/2022/18/S1&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1642768390008000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2Qo1HoClES2POc3Qyp2i-7">special supplement of the Maternal and Child Nutrition Journal</a> published on Thursday lists some of Nepal’s biggest nutritional achievements. Between 1996-2016, the early initiation of breastfeeding saw an increase from 18% to 56%, and complementary feeding increased from 54% to 77%.During the same period, women taking sufficient iron and folic acid supplements during their pregnancy rose from 6% to 71%. This was combined with earlier and more frequent antenatal care visits.Consistent administering of Vitamin A has saved the lives of an estimated 45,000 Nepali children under the age of five, between 2002 and 2015. Similarly, households using adequately iodised salt doubled from 35% to 77% from 1998 to 2016.Much of this progress can be credited to improvements in household wealth, parental education, and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/toilet-trained/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">sanitation</a>. But equally important was increased coverage of health and nutrition services undertaken by successive governments.Nepal Government utilised ground-breaking research to test interventions and overcome challenges, it is also committed to enforcing mandatory legislation such as salt iodisation, writes the journal supplement.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410114/637204f69c7e80680e0b288ejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1001"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>Mobilisation of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/enlisting-female-health-volunteers-to-fight-covid-19/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Female Community Health Volunteers</a> (FCHVs) across Nepal villages and towns have improved the health of mother and children, so has an investment in sectoral programs including education and sanitation.But there are now new challenges to achieving national and global targets on nutrition, which also threatens to undermine past gains.“The learning from the past 25 years that are incorporated in the supplement will inform and contribute to future improvements. However, we must act now, given the impact that the pandemic has had on the nutritional health of mothers and their children,” says Elke Wisch, UNICEF Representative to Nepal.During the pandemic, most households experienced job losses or reduced income. With the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/3rd-wave-in-2-years/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Omicron-led third wave</a> spreading across Nepal, the pandemic’s ensuing socioeconomic crisis is long from over.This means reduced dietary intake among children and mothers. School closures will deprive many children of getting one decent meal a day. All this will add to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepals-epidemic-of-hunger/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">childhood malnutrition</a> which continues to be a major cause of death and retarded mental and physical development among younger populationsAs such, UNICEF has recommended the government to improve the general public’s access to nutritious, safe, affordable, and sustainable diets. It also suggests integrating essential nutrition services into the existing service delivery platforms like family planning, antenatal, delivery and post-natal care and well-child and sick-child care and continuing to mobilise FCHVs to reach more women and children.To disseminate factual information, advice and counselling on infant and young child feeding, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/3rd-covid-wave-infects-nepals-frontliners/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">healthcare workers</a> can also use multiple communication channels such as radio, TV or social media.But perhaps equally if not more important is strengthening local levels so that they can plan, implement and monitor nutrition programs and services, and maintain Nepal's commitment to generating data, information, and evidence to assess progress and inform decisions.

Covid undermines Nepal's mother-child gains

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107121148/6368f1049c7e80680e035a06jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="800" height="1199"/><figcaption>Pics: NSI</figcaption></figure>Avinashi Poudel, 30, is a mother of two, including a 10-week baby boy. She only breastfeeds her baby, and has supportive in-laws and a mother friendly environment at her workplace. But seven years ago when she was a first time mother, she was not aware of the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding and her first baby did not get enough of her milk.Rama Thapa, 23, moved to Kathmandu from Tanahu after she got married. She now has a six-month baby boy, and feeds him food supplements because she says her own milk is not enough. Her family and friends told her the baby needs the formula to grow up strong and healthy.Nearly seven out of every ten Nepali mothers still exclusively breastfeed their babies, but some families are turning to supplements because of inroads by baby food manufacturers. Ironically, mothers in western countries where those baby food alternatives were first introduced, have returned to exclusive breastfeeding.Nepal is among the countries that are already above the World Health Organisation (WHO) target to increase the rate of exclusive breastfeeding in babies' first six months to at least 50%, by 2025. However, because of aggressive marketing by baby formula brands, Nepal has set its own national target to increase exclusive breastfeeding to 80%.“Nepal has set a good standard in breastfeeding but we need to sustain it and make further progress, this requires policy implementation and monitoring,” says Pradiumna Dahal, nutrition expert at UNICEF Nepal, who is worried that not all health workers are aware of the benefits of breastfeeding.The use of breast milk substitutes is so widespread that health professionals in the Far-West are prescribing bottled milk in hospitals. Baby food is a burgeoning industry, and salesmen often target hospitals, doctors and nurses with inducements to prescribe babies substitutes for breast milk.After a huge international outcry against Nestle and other baby food supplement manufacturers, the WHO adopted the <a href="http://www.who.int/nutrition/publications/code_english.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes</a> to promote breastfeeding. Nepal passed the <a href="http://www.nnfsp.gov.np/PublicationFiles/2574d2af-7992-469b-befa-ad939ac96497.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Substitute of Breast Milk Act</a> in 1992 to control the sale and distribution of breast milk substitutes. It penalises health professionals pushing and manufacturers promoting baby food formulas.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107121148/6368f1079c7e80680e035a07jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="500" height="234">But while the $70 billion global baby food industry has seen sales plummet in Western countries, as more mothers embrace breastfeeding, modern lifestyles and higher purchasing power has pushed families in developing countries to use infant formulas.Recently, the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/jul/08/trump-administration-opposes-breastfeeding-resolution-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Trump administration exerted pressure to dilute</a> the clause in a resolution to promote and support breastfeeding at the World Health Assembly in Geneva in order to promote the interests of infant formula manufacturers. The US delegation even threatened Ecuador that it would terminate military aid if it voted for the resolution. Washington could also cut funding for WHO, the UN Population Fund and other agencies involved in promoting breastfeeding, reproductive health, contraceptives, abortion and even vaccination programs in developing countries, including Nepal.Allowing infant formula manufacturers unrestricted access to the domestic market threatens to undo decades of effort in Nepal to reduce the infant mortality rate and promote <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/people-politics-placentas-child-delivery-complications,3922" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">maternal health</a>.“We have been working to promote breast milk and convinced a large proportion of mothers in Nepal to exclusively breastfeed. However, we have not been able to regulate the activities of the manufacturers of breast milk substitutes,” says Bikash Lamichhane at the Department of Health Services.Nutritionist Aruna Uprety says that despite the government’s claim that the rate of exclusive <a href="https://katherinerosman.com/extended-breastfeeding/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">breastfeeding</a> has increased, breast milk substitutes are used widely, even in government hospitals. Manufacturers are known to reward clinics and doctors promoting and prescribing their infant formulas.“Breastfeeding is engrained in our culture, we don’t need foreign experts to teach us its significance. We just need to create awareness and provide an enabling environment for women to be able to breastfeed,” Uprety told Nepali Times.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107121148/6368f1089c7e80680e035a08jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="800" height="1199">Indeed, health officials say any future cuts in American funding for maternal and child health should not make a big dent on efforts to promote exclusive breastfeeding in Nepal.In 2016, the government set up a system to monitor the use of breast milk substitutes in each district. But with new federal and provincial structures in place, and confusion about the role of district health offices, experts are worried that the monitoring system will not be effective.A <a href="http://www.nphss.org.np/archive_2012/52-54.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">survey in 2011 by the Institute of Medicine</a> showed that despite the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative, there had been no action to control and regulate breast milk substitutes and producers and the distributors were found to be violating the Breast Milk Substitute Act. The study also noted that the promotion of breastfeeding was not prioritised and awareness was limited to token functions during World Breastfeeding Week.Studies have shown that counselling, awareness and legislating paid maternity leave increased the rate of exclusive breastfeeding, and had an immediate impact on maternal and infant health as well as the overall economy.Says UNICEF’s Dahal: “We need to encourage more women to breastfeed. That means adding breastfeeding corners in our work places and providing maternal security in the form of sufficient leave.”The Department of Health Services is planning to inaugurate a breastfeeding corner at its own office in Teku to mark World Breastfeeding Week (1-7 August). UNICEF is supporting the government to set up 30 baby friendly hospitals, and train counsellors and other personnel. The Ministry of Health is also preparing to extend the duration of paid maternity leave from two months to six, to improve maternal and child health.<h4>The Trump tremor</h4><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107121148/6368f10b9c7e80680e035a09jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="354">Nepal has scored dramatic success in reducing maternal and infant mortality rates over the few decades, and USAID has been one of the biggest bilateral backers for family planning, reproductive health, maternal and child health projects.However, funding for these programs has often been affected by successive Republican administrations because of a strong conservative lobby for the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/globe-rallies-to-aid-nepals-women,3841" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Global Gag Rule</a>, which seeks to end American aid for contraceptive promotion and abortion.The <a href="https://pai.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Access-Denied-The-Impact-of-the-Global-Gag-Rule-in-Nepal.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">last time it was in effect, during the Bush Administration</a>, mobile clinics providing reproductive services to rural Nepal were discontinued. The Family Planning Association of Nepal (FPAN) lost $400,000 in USAID-funded contraceptives, which represented two-thirds of its total stock, and a further loss of $100,000 per year that supported reproductive health clinics.President Donald Trump has renamed the Gag Rule as ‘Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance’ after restoring it in March 2017. Despite its new name, it is actually stricter, even targeting breastfeeding and vaccines.“The Global Gag Rule is not new, what is new is that it has come back with added force under Trump and can have devastating consequences on Nepal,” explains public health expert Aruna Uprety. “By pulling money out of abortion, they are going to increase unsafe abortions and end up killing more women. It is against human rights.”<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107121148/6368f10d9c7e80680e035a0ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="558">Just a month before the 2015 earthquake, the Nepal Government made a commitment to increase the family planning budget allocation by 7% annually. It partnered with international and private organisations to meet the target, but most of these partners are likely to lose a chunk of their funding.“Our government already lacks resource to meet the commitment. With the US pulling out, the gap is only going to widen,” says an official working in family planning.A US Embassy spokesperson said the United States remained committed to helping the welfare of women and children in developing countries: “The Protecting Life in Global Assistance policy has not reduced funding for women and children’s health by one dollar. USAID works together with the Government of Nepal and other external development partners, including multilateral partners, to coordinate interventions, synergise, and reduce gaps. USAID has strong working relationships with both UNFPA and WHO in Nepal.”Although <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/migrating-males-and-population-decline/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">family planning</a> is a small component of the aid budget for maternal health, the cuts are biting. The EU and Nordic countries have stepped in, but their contribution does not meet the shortfall.At the recent World Health Assembly in Geneva, the United States wanted to dilute a routine agreement on breastfeeding, amidst a global outcry.The United States delegation wanted to water down the resolution by removing a call on governments to ‘protect, promote and support breast-feeding’ and another clause calling for restrictions on the promotion of baby foods.“What happened was tantamount to blackmail, with the US holding the world hostage and trying to overturn nearly 40 years of consensus on the best way to protect infant and young child health,” Patti Rundall of the British advocacy group Baby Milk Action was <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/08/health/world-health-breastfeeding-ecuador-trump.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">quoted by the New York Times </a>as saying.The uproar set off alarm bells in Nepal, where donor support has been critical in trying to meet the target of getting 80% of mothers to breastfeed by 2022.The US Embassy clarified that improving nutrition among mothers, infants, and young children was still an important public health priority for the United States, and it remained committed to working with WHO and other stakeholders to improve health and nutrition through “cost-effective and evidence-based” measures.But, the spokesperson added: “While the United States recognises that breastfeeding and provision of breast milk is best for all babies, we recognise not all women are able to breastfeed for a variety of reasons. These women should have access to full and accurate information about breastfeeding, the benefits of breastfeeding, and safe alternatives when breastfeeding is not possible.”Some experts contend that cuts in funding would not affect the breastfeeding campaign, and Nepal did not need to be dependent on donors anymore.“Even if the US cuts funding, Nepal is capable of going ahead on its own. Awareness here about breast milk far exceeds any opposition from outside, it’s just that the government has to own it,” says former WHO public health expert Rita Thapa.Aruna Uprety agrees, but adds that the Americans have played cleverly on a woman’s choice not to breastfeed: “This distracts from the fact that mother’s milk is the healthiest for babies.”The conclusion is that Nepal is perfectly capable of maintaining its momentum not just on breastfeeding, but also on protecting maternal and infant health with or without outside help.<h4>Breast is best</h4>Awareness and education can double exclusive breast-feeding rates in societies. Paid maternity leave can increase breastfeeding rates by 50%. This directly helps the national economy, and the health of mothers and babies. Breastfeeding:<ul><li>Prevents breast cancer deaths</li> <li>Reduces infant diarrhoea by half and respiratory infections by one-third</li> <li>Decreases hospital admissions by 57-72%</li> <li>Children's IQ increases by average of 3 points</li> <li>Investing $1 to promote breastfeeding yields $35 in economic returns</li></ul>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PSs2cPsciw

Sonia Awale

Back to the nipple in Nepal

Fenerbahçe Beko won the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague finals in Abu Dhabi, held 23-25 May, defeating Monaco 81-70 in the final. Olympiacos, who defeated Panathinaikos 97-93, finished the series in third place. The Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the final match, Nigel Hayes-Davis from Fenerbahçe Beko, received a prize of 1,000,000 Miles&amp;Smiles from Turkish Airlines’ Chief Commercial Officer Ahmet Olmuştur. The carrier has been the title sponsor of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, a top tier tournament, since 2010.

Turkish Basketball

Thousands of Nepali students dreaming of an American education have been forced to look elsewhere as the Trump administration’s visa restrictions make their future uncertain.
The US was long considered a top destination for higher studies, making Nepal the 10th biggest country of origin for international students in America.&nbsp;
However, that number has seen a significant decline with the total for Nepali students now at 16,482. Some 8,000 Nepali students obtained no-objection certificates to study in the US from the Ministry of Education in the past year.&nbsp;
India, Australia, Canada, South Korea, United Kingdom and Japan are the other popular destinations for Nepali students. There are no clear numbers for Nepalis going to India, but a slight decline was noted this year after the deaths of two female students.
The US State Department has issued a circular to its embassies not to issue new visas to applicants until further notice. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the directive stated that the department planned to expand the screening of applicants' social media.&nbsp;
While new applicants are barred including those applying for visitor visas, students with scheduled interviews are allowed to proceed.
“Many of our students are affected by the new restrictions, but those who had applied for student visas earlier have got interview dates,” one Kathmandu-based college counsellor told us.
Meanwhile, even foreign students with spotless records already in the US have not been spared, as visa scrutiny intensifies under the new policy. In a move that underscores the growing sense of insecurity, many US colleges advised international students to carry their passports and documents at all times, even when traveling locally.
“Me and my friends did not go home this summer because we were not sure we would be allowed back, so we just went to Niagara Falls,” said a Nepali undergrad in Ohio, who like many interviewed for this report did not want her name used for fear of repercussion.
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Nepali students have adopted a cautious stance, with many choosing not to return home during summer vacation due to fear of visa revocations as well as travel bans. Meanwhile, over 7,000 Nepalis with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) will have to come back to Nepal by 5 August or face deportation. Thirty-seven were flown back to Kathmandu on Omni Air last week.
“The US is one of the most sought-after destinations for higher education, and the ban will definitely impact bright students,” says Narottam Aryal of the King’s College in Kathmandu.
Indeed, Nepali undergraduates admitted into Ivy League colleges for the 2025 academic year have been asked to look for alternatives. The entire Fulbright Foreign Scholarships Board resigned on Wednesday citing interference from the Trump administration on the selection of this year’s cohort. Some Nepali students already on Fulbright scholarships have noted disruptions, delays and even cancellation of stipends.&nbsp;
The student visa restrictions were initially just for foreign students admitted to Harvard University, but it was later extended to all Chinese students and now to all students. Universities like Columbia which actively recruit foreign students, face sharp enrolment declines, threatening their financial stability and diversity.
An Indian female PhD candidate at Columbia University had her visa revoked by the US State Department, and said she was targeted on the basis of her social media posts on Israeli military attacks in Gaza. Social media vetting of political activism has raised concerns about privacy and freedom of expression in a country where such rights were a given.
Many students have been informed via email that their visas have been revoked for getting speeding or parking tickets, but even others with no criminal record have been affected. The fear of deportation looms large amongst international students, including those from Nepal.&nbsp;
For most Nepalis who migrate to the US for education, the journey is a high-stakes investment. They come largely from middle-class families, often rely on a patchwork of scholarships, work-study programs, loans, or even the sale of family assets to afford fees.
Most Nepali students pursue STEM subjects which offer extended Optional Practical Training (OPT) periods that help fund their education. But with the US backsliding on education and humanitarian matters, countries like the UK and Canada are becoming more attractive despite their own recent stricter controls on student visas.&nbsp;
The UK universities saw a 63% rise in Nepali students’ admissions in 2024. Japan is another popular destination with 64,816 Nepali students enrolled as of 2024.
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Already, China, Hong Kong and Malaysia are poised to benefit from the increased scrutiny of US student visas. Several Hong Kong universities are offering unconditional admission to affected students, while Malaysian institutions are targeting previously US-bound Asian students. China and India have 330,000 and 280,000 students respectively in America, but the numbers for China have seen a sharp drop in the past year.
Elsewhere, branch campuses of American institutions such as NYU in Abu Dhabi, Georgetown in Dubai and Northwestern in Doha are getting more admission applications, and universities in the Gulf region are expanding infrastructure to accommodate those who would otherwise have gone to the US.&nbsp;
Even educational institutions in Nepal are hopeful that the US visa restrictions can be an opportunity to at least keep Nepali undergrads in Nepal, and also attract foreign students from the region.&nbsp;
“Many students might choose to complete their undergraduate degree here in Nepal and then move abroad for their Master’s degree later,” says Aryal of King’s College. “There was a need for quality higher education in Nepal anyway in terms of innovation and opportunities, so this could be the time to reduce our dependence on other countries.”
Nepal’s strategic position between India and China makes it sensitive to US policy shifts. India, a key ally, is also under US scrutiny for potential student travel restrictions. Chinese universities are already offering more scholarships to Nepali talent to capitalise on the US retreat.
American universities have challenged student visa restrictions in the courts. A federal court in Boston revoked the blanket ban on Harvard, and the State Department has ordered the resumption of processing student and exchange visitor visas.&nbsp;
Some are still hoping that President Trump will backtrack on the student visa restrictions, just like he has done with many of his more drastic executive orders.
Even so, the visa see-saw and longer-term uncertainties about living in the United States and its education system means students across the world are making alternative plans.
Says Aryal: “Policies of foreign countries change according to their needs, so excessive dependence was never a good idea. We should work to create different opportunities and choices of higher education within Nepal, so students are retained.” &nbsp;

America no longer prime destination for Nepali students

While Nepal was hosting the Sagarmatha Sambaad international climate conference in Kathmandu this month, on Mt Everest it was pretty much business as usual.&nbsp; The signs of climate breakdown are all there: a river now runs through Base Camp in summer, the Khumbu Icefall is more unstable, and there are more &nbsp;frequent avalanches. When expeditions arrived in March, the mountains were bare: it had not snowed since September, but then blizzards dumped unseasonal snow in May. And despite climate worries, such is the pull of Himalayan mountaineering that the Everest Industry showed no signs of slowdown. More than 600 international climbers and their Nepali guides had made it to the summit of the world’s highest mountain. At one point there were an estimated 2,000 people in the tent city on the Khumbu Glacier. All the ropes and ladders on the Icefall came down on Thursday, marking the official end of the spring climbing season, and just in time to avoid a monsoon cyclone approaching from the Bay of Bengal. It has been an action-packed season. One factor could be that Everest fees will go up from September: each foreign climber needs to pay a $15,000 royalty, up from the present $11,000. The cost for a Nepali climber on the South Col route will also go up: from Rs75,000 to Rs150,000.&nbsp; The fee to climb Everest in autumn is $7,500 (up from $5,500), but most climbers still prefer spring. Winter permit fee (December-February) is only $3,750 per person and the mountain is now also open for monsoon (June-August) climbs, when the fee is ever lower at $2,750. The revised rule also makes it mandatory for every two climbers on an 8,000m peak to hire one Nepali mountain guide.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025053004050_67f856fe52714e4bdcf21ae7d45c6f18c82117b9d0a5f73ed1efa04c96de1046.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2025053004050_67f856fe52714e4bdcf21ae7d45c6f18c82117b9d0a5f73ed1efa04c96de1046" data-rendition-name="original" width="931" height="732" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry graph 1"> </figure>  In addition, climbers also have to pay for porters and guides, equipment, Base Camp costs, Ice Fall and fixed rope team fees, so climbing Everest does not come cheap. But such is the draw of climbing the world’s highest peak that some say the increased fees will not diminish the crowds next year. The government has tried to spread expeditions out to other seasons and other 8,000ers, but with not much success. Earlier this year, Nepal unilaterally increased the number of 8,000m peaks to 14 by adding six more sub-summits to broaden the choice for climbers. Added were: Yalung Kang (8,505m), Yalung Kang West (8,077m) &nbsp;Kangchenjunga Central (8,473m), Kangchenjunga South (8,476m), Lhotse Middle (8,410m) and Lhotse Shar (8,400m).&nbsp; The announcement could go against the accepted topographic criteria that a stand alone peak has to be at least 300m higher than an adjoining prominence, and at more than 3km isolation from it. The UIAA (Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme) still recognises only 14 mountains as eight-thousanders, and only eight of those are in Nepal, or on the border with China. Nepal’s revised mountaineering regulations also increased the insurance coverage of high-altitude workers to protect porters and high altitude guides who usually take more risks on the mountains. Rescue teams and clean-up campaigners to collect trash and remove bodies of dead climbers up to Camp IV of Mt Everest do not need permits.&nbsp; The Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee is now using drones to fly down trash in 20kg sacks. Each climber is also required to bring down at least 6kg of waste and not just their own, but this rule is erratically enforced. With five fatalities on Everest and Lhotse, Spring 2025 had a historically low death toll. Another five climbers died on Annapurna, Kangchenjunga and Makalu.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025053004050_38681de22f0fefb6faa12b01755566d09c5064d0ff84e12ccc7b5d68ea9ba38a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2025053004050_38681de22f0fefb6faa12b01755566d09c5064d0ff84e12ccc7b5d68ea9ba38a" data-rendition-name="original" width="665" height="740" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest industry graph 2"> </figure>  Journalist Ben Ayers who ran the Everest Live social media channel from Everest Base Camp with daily updates credited the low death rate to dramatic rescues of climbers from the ‘Death Zone’ by their Nepali guides and longline helievacs — the visuals all uploaded on YouTube.&nbsp; “Ironically, this perception of safety is bringing more and more inexperienced climbers to the mountain, and they need more rescues,” Ayers said in one of his dispatches.&nbsp; American expedition chronicler and summiteer Alan Arnette suspects there is a lot of under-reporting given that the jet stream and storms were lashing Everest even till late in the season. He told us: “I heard a lot about frostbite and rescues that were not made public. It’s become practically impossible to cover the details on Everest. All the teams report nice news, and they don’t talk about bad stuff to avoid hurting businesses.” Although trash on Nepal’s mountains makes headlines, what does not receive as much attention is the climate impact of so many expeditions. The Sagarmatha Sambaad conference sidestepped this issue, which is ironic given that the impact of climate breakdown is most evident on Himalayan peaks and their glaciers.&nbsp; <h2>Need for Speed</h2> The big stories this year have been about speed-running from their home cities to the top of Everest. Ukrainian entrepreneur Andrew Ushakov flew out of JFK on 15 May at 10:15AM Nepal time, and was on the summit 3 days, 23 hours, and 7 minutes later on 19 May at 9:22AM.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250601080640_1c5cc6fc991307861768f07037ed9d30930fb20f35dbb57dc31c9a92a9e1a885.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20250601080640_1c5cc6fc991307861768f07037ed9d30930fb20f35dbb57dc31c9a92a9e1a885" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="1800" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry"> <figcaption>Andrew Ushakov at the summt. Photo: ELITE EXPED</figcaption> </figure>  “I could never find the time for the traditional 40-50 days of acclimatisation,” Ushakov explained matter-of-factly. His ‘Everest Sea-to-Summit’ climb was possible because he spent 400 hours in hypoxic sleep tents over the past four years in New York. However, Ushakov did use ropes already fixed, hired four Nepali guides, helicoptered to Base Camp, and used much more oxygen than an average climber. And after the climb, Ushakov was arrested at Kathmandu airport for being in possession of $20,000 of undeclared cash and spent a night in jail and fined $60,000.&nbsp; The other speedsters were Garth Miller, Alastair Cairns, Anthony Stazicker, and Kev Godlington, all former British Army commandos. They left London and summited five days later on 21 May, and flew right back. They also used hypoxic tents to simulate the thin air high on Everest.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250601080644_90c8dd5cc07b4b43f2989b1dc0c0650ab80f10ebb06680c25a6909c519957bd8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250601080644_90c8dd5cc07b4b43f2989b1dc0c0650ab80f10ebb06680c25a6909c519957bd8" data-rendition-name="original" width="810" height="668" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry "> <figcaption>All four members of the Furtenbach team at the summit. Photo: Sandro Gromen-Hayes</figcaption> </figure>  But more controversial was their use of xenon gas therapy in a German hospital to ramp up the production of oxygen-carrying haemoglobins in their blood. Xenon is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency for being performance enhancing in sports. Expedition leader Lukas Furtenbach said this rule does not apply to mountaineering, as it is not a regulated sport like swimming. Nepal has no rules about xenon, but the Department of Tourism said it was launching an ‘investigation’ to decide on future policy since it is difficult to ban xenon, but allow oxygen. The controversy has also divided the mountaineering community, with some climbers saying they just want to maximise their chances of survival. Spending less time on the mountain could make climbing safer by reducing avalanche risk. It would also mean less trash on the mountains, but it would reduce the income of Nepal’s expedition industry. It is also unclear how much of the success was due to xenon therapy and whether the ex-special forces were already in good physical shape.&nbsp; The need for speed hides the fact that climbing in the Himalaya is dangerous business, and climbers cannot sprint to the top just by huffing xenon. But ultra-fast climbs could be charged more, and the revenue generated can be used to establish state-of-the-art rescue operations, and increase pay and insurance for guides. Two other speed chasers this season were Swiss-Ecuadorian Karl Egloff and American Tyler Andrews, both on Everest without oxygen. Andrews choppered to Base Camp to catch a weather window, but turned back from 8,500m due to high winds. Heavy snow and wind also forced Egloff to descend from 7,000m. Slow and steady climbers like Anja Blacha from Germany did make it to the summit without oxygen, while Kami Rita Sherpa broke his own record with his 31st Everest summit as he led a 26-strong Indian Army group. There were 468 permits issued for foreign climbers from 48 expeditions to Everest this spring. Nepal’s other eight-thousanders together had only 17 expeditions. Nepal has more than 1,000 peaks above 6,000m, and has opened only 476 of them for climbing.&nbsp;

The Everest Industry

While Nepal marked <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/mt-everest-pvt-ltd">Mt Everest</a> Day on 29 May, on the other side of the planet in the US state of Colorado dozens of Nepalis who have climbed the world’s highest peak multiple times were busy working as chefs and Uber drivers. Among them is Nima Doma Sherpa, who climbed Mt Everest in 2019 after her husband Tshering Wangchu was among 16 crushed by an avalanche on <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/on-thin-ice-in-the-khumbu">the Khumbu Icefall</a> five years earlier. A large serac broke off the West Shoulder of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-everest-industry">Mt Everest </a>and fell directly on a group of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/more-porters-sick-on-everest-trail">porters and guides</a> making their way up the Icefall at 5,800m. Their bodies were flown by helicopter to Khumjung where Tshering Wangchu was born. He was excited about climbing Mt Everest for the first time.&nbsp; In Khumjung, Nima Doma felt like her own life had also ended. This was the kind of news Sherpa wives, mothers and sisters dreaded every <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/peak-climbing-season-2025-s4abrxny">mountaineering season</a>. She stayed home for more than two years grieving, but ultimately gathered up all her emotional strength to take care of her 6-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter. Nima had grown up in Khumjung hearing <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/stories-of-nepal-s-summiteers">tales of adventure on the mountains </a>from their father, Ang Chubi Sherpa who had climbed Everest in 1993. He used to bring her and her sisters and brother European chocolates after every expedition, and used to tell them that the chocolate bars grew on the mountains. “It was only after we got older did we realise that he told us that chocolates grew in the mountains so we would not worry about him putting himself in harm's way,” Nima Doma recalled with a faraway look at her home in Boulder this week. Nima went to the school that <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/commemorating-edmund-hillary-in-nepal,4145">Edmund Hillary</a> opened in Khumjung till Grade 8, and then dropped out to help in the kitchen and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/when-yaks-go-so-does-culture">tend yaks</a>. She was married off to Tshering Wangchu, who was also a high altitude guide. When Tshering went on expeditions, Nima also started working as a porter from Namche to Base Camp. It was perhaps her father’s tales of mountains of chocolates that had always attracted her to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/knowing-our-mountains-43v4iyvo">the peaks</a>. After her husband was killed ten years ago this month, being a widow with children was not easy for Nima Doma. But she was not alone: there were at least 200 single mothers in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/khumbu-since-1950-jaww4qn0">the Khumbu</a>, and 20 of them just in Khumjung whose husbands had been killed in <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/tragic-start-to-himalayan-spring-nepal,3695">mountaineering accidents</a>. Some were not even 20 years old, and had children growing up without fathers. But there were also women in the 50s whose husbands had been killed in the 1980s. Nima found sponsors for her children’s education, and moved to Kathmandu. In the capital, Sherpa widows used to meet to help each other. Some of them had joined the Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA) training for rock and ice climbing. “I decided that it was no use sitting home and crying anymore, after meeting other single mothers I felt less alone,” remembers Nima, who joined the Juniper Foundation and enrolled in an NMA training camp in Manang. There she climbed Chulu East (6,584m) and met Furadiki Sherpa, whose rope-fixing husband had also been <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/on-mt-everest-s-70th-records-and-fatalities">killed on Everest</a> in 2013. They set themselves the goal of climbing Everest one day, and started a fund-raising drive.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530090544_621be0724b9182c8e3594b2c562a71ec32ac01d985a71d0cf31646de9d51e15a.png" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20250530090544_621be0724b9182c8e3594b2c562a71ec32ac01d985a71d0cf31646de9d51e15a" data-rendition-name="original" width="2678" height="1274" loading="lazy" alt="Everest summiteers find new life in the US"> </figure>  “We decided we had to overcome society’s stigma of <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/widows-personal-happiness-comes-last-in-face-of-social-financial-hardships,1855">widowhood</a> and prove that <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/remembering-junko-tabei">women could also climb mountains</a>,” Nima said, adding that she was inspired by Nepal’s first woman Everest summiteer Pasang Lhamu Sherpa, who died during her descent in 1993. Nima Doma and Furdiki climbed the technically-difficult Ama Dablam (6,812m) and then arrived at Everest Base Camp in April 2019 as part of their Two Widows Expedition with the motto, ‘So Can We’. While climbing up the Icefall Nima passed the spot where her husband had been killed. It was a jumble of constantly-shifting ice blocks bigger than houses. She closed her eyes and said a prayer. “I remember thinking, this is so difficult and dangerous. This is what my husband had to do to support our family,” Nima Doma said. “I was determined to fulfil my husband’s dream of climbing Chomolungma, and to prove to ourselves that we two women could do it.” It was 23 May 2019 when <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/world/two-sherpa-widows-scale-everest-and-smash-stigma-idUSKCN1SU0MV/" target="_blank">Nima and Furdiki stepped on the summit</a> and looked over into Tibet, and down at Tengboche Monastery to the south.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530090544_6b822582b5d88ba5e972db084f184690b40653c6efd9901b2dd082ffba2a263b.png" data-media-id="editor_16" data-image-id="20250530090544_6b822582b5d88ba5e972db084f184690b40653c6efd9901b2dd082ffba2a263b" data-rendition-name="original" width="2700" height="1522" loading="lazy" alt="Everest summiteers find new life in the US"> </figure>  Nima Doma hugged Furdiki, took off her mask and wept. But for the first time in five years, it was not from grief but relief — relief for being free of all the sadness and sacrifices and for fulfilling her husband’s dream. They had found <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/life-after-death">life after death</a>. “I felt this immense joy to be on top of the world, it was indescribable,” Nima Doma said, “I have wept only twice in my life. Once when my husband died, and once there on top of Everest.” The tears had frozen on Nima Doma’s cheeks, as she and Furdiki headed back down the mountain.