Nepal to conduct National Micronutrient Survey after a decade

Kathmandu / Nov 2: Nepal is set to conduct the Nepal Micronutrient Survey 2026 to assess the nutritional status of children, adolescents, women and other age groups, as well as the availability of essential micronutrients in their bodies.

Led by the Family Welfare Division under the Ministry of Health and Food Safety, the survey aims to provide updated national- and provincial-level data on the country’s nutritional status.

The study comes nearly a decade after the National Micronutrient Status Survey conducted in 2016. It is expected to help identify progress made, persistent nutritional challenges and priorities for future interventions.

According to the ministry, the survey will assess levels of essential micronutrients, including vitamins A and B12, iron, iodine, zinc and folate.

It will also examine indicators related to anaemia and infections, physical growth and nutritional status, as well as the reach of major nutrition programmes and beneficiaries’ compliance with recommended services.

The survey will run from April 2026 to March 2027 across all seven provinces and the three geographical regions of the country: the mountains, hills and Tarai. A total of 280 clusters will be selected, covering 8,400 households and approximately 12,236 individuals.

The study will assess the nutritional status of household heads, women aged 15 to 49, adolescents aged 10 to 19, children aged 6 to 9 and children aged 6 to 59 months. Pregnant women will also be included.

The ministry said 205 personnel, including quality controllers, data collectors, supervisors, interviewers, blood sample collectors, laboratory technicians and sample transportation staff, will be mobilised for the survey. Training for the personnel is scheduled for November 17 to 28.

The previous survey, conducted in 2016, identified micronutrient deficiencies and anaemia among people in various age groups.

Since then, the government has implemented several programmes to improve nutrition. The findings of the new survey are expected to help evaluate the effectiveness of those initiatives and make future nutrition policies, plans and programmes more effective.