The COVID-19 pandemic has affected more than 90 per cent of the global student population, causing one of the largest disruptions in the history of formal education. Even prior to the pandemic, one out of every five children, adolescents, and youth globally were out of school. Educational opportunities have long been unequally distributed across genders, income groups, geographies, and other demographics – inequalities that have been exacerbated by the pandemic.
Education in Nepal has been no exception to this trend. The unevenly developed South Asian nation of 28.6 million people has long dealt with structural challenges in delivering quality education to its population. Despite significant strides in education, almost half of the population still remains illiterate, a situation exacerbated by unequal socio-economic conditions and limited technological infrastructure. These pre-existing concerns have hampered the Nepali education sector’s response to the global pandemic.