Stigma and Discrimination in Nepal

This 15-page Executive Summary aims to describe the causes, manifestations, and consequences of HIV/AIDS related stigma and subsequent discriminatory acts in Nepal. This study was commissioned by Family Health International (FHI)/Nepal Country Office which seeks to gain an understanding of factors that enforce stigma and how they create barriers to HIV prevention, care and support efforts. It will use the research findings to develop pilot interventions to minimise the influence of HIV related stigma and discrimination in Nepal.

In the first study, attitudes about HIV/AIDS were examined in relation to beliefs and fears about contact with a person living with HIV/AIDS, concerns over marital relations with them and their relatives, and beliefs HIV/AIDS results from immoral behavior. These cultural ideas were found to underlie stigma and discrimination towards people living with HIV/AIDS in Nepali society.