To support the Government of Nepal with the 2021 Census, UNFPA collaborated with likeminded partners – the British Embassy Kathmandu and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation – with a common goal of improving the socioeconomic well-being of Nepal’s people in an inclusive and accountable federal state through support to the 2021 Census of Nepal. This knowledge brief outlines the components and benefits of the collaboration, challenges, lessons learned and achievements of this exercise - from start to finish.

The National Statistics Office of the Government of Nepal released the results report of the 12th National Population and Housing Census 2021 Report in March 2023. It has also launched a innovative data portal at https://censusnepal.cbs.gov.np/results

The Census was supported by UNFPA with contributions from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the Government of the United Kingdom and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation in Nepal.

The main census enumeration commenced on 11 November across Nepal. The Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) has worked tirelessly since 2018 to ensure that the census preparations were thorough. UNFPA commends the management of CBS for persevering despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic to organize the census in 2021, which will raise consistency with earlier censuses.

The Population Monograph of Nepal 2014, an analytical report of the census 2011 presented in three volumes contains in-depth analysis of different topics related to the population of the country prepared by the eminent professionals dealing with such issues in their professional work. The first volume contains 12 chapters related to the population dynamics of Nepal, such as size and structure of the population, nuptiality, fertility, mortality, migration and population projections.