Nearly 160,000 women and girls have been affected by devastating flash floods that swept through Nepal’s Rasuwa and Nuwakot districts on August 26, according to UN Women.
The UN agency said an estimated 157,050 women and girls were among those affected by the disaster, which has killed more than 500 people and left nearly 1,000 others unaccounted for.
About 10,000 homes have reportedly been washed away, while critical infrastructure has also been destroyed as search and rescue operations continue.
“Some 10,000 homes have been washed away, while critical infrastructure has been destroyed,” UN Women said in a statement on Friday, warning that the full scale of the disaster was still emerging.
Survivors are now facing severe shortages of food and water, disrupted health and protection services, as well as increased risks of violence and exploitation, with women and girls particularly vulnerable.
UN Women Representative to Nepal, Patricia Fernandez-Pacheco, said disasters often worsen existing inequalities and expose women and girls to greater risks.
“What we do know is that existing risks for women and girls skyrocket when disasters hit,” she said, warning that more women and girls could face hunger, lack of medicine, exploitation and abuse when resources become scarce.
She also noted that evidence from previous disasters suggests women are more likely to die than men during major disasters.
UN Women said illiteracy was another major challenge, with approximately one in three women unable to read or write across Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading, Gorkha and Chitwan districts.
The agency said this was making it more difficult for affected women to access information about relief efforts, complete registration processes and independently claim assistance.
UN Women said it was working with the Nepal government, UN agencies, women’s rights groups and humanitarian partners to ensure women and girls receive essential services and protection tailored to their specific needs.
The agency is also working to help women access response and recovery assistance independently, while removing barriers linked to documentation, property ownership, language and mobility.
As part of the emergency response, UN Women said it was mobilising resources for its Community Kitchen initiative, a women-led mechanism providing immediate food assistance while creating opportunities for women’s leadership, livelihoods and longer-term recovery.
The agency has appealed for $2 million to ensure women and girls affected by the floods, particularly those displaced or at heightened risk of violence, trafficking and exploitation, receive the assistance and protection they need.
“We urgently need resources to reach women and girls who are cut off, at risk and struggling to meet their most basic needs,” UN Women said.
It stressed that a response centred on the needs of women and girls could help prevent further harm and enable survivors to rebuild their lives with safety, dignity and greater control over their recovery.
