According to Nepal Adolescents and Youth survey 2010/11 conducted by Population Division under the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP), the mean age for first sexual intercourse is 18 for both Nepali boys and girls, and pregnancy before marriage stood at 14 percent.[break]
The survey, which was conducted among 14,754 youths throughout the country, also reckoned that seven percent of males above 15 or less were found engaged in sexual intercourse. Mean age of the partner at the first-time intercourse of the group of males was 20 years, said the report. Interestingly, 15 percent of the males and 8 percent of the females were in favor of living together before marriage.
Likewise, 40 percent of youths living in Kathmandu Valley were found engaged in sexual intercourse with their male or female partners. Moreover, the survey found that the 41 percent of the youths in urban areas experienced their first sex with their boyfriend girlfriend and this figure was double in rural areas.
The survey also shed light on the sexual behaviors of men and women and came out with a conclusion that a young man in his lifetime maintains two sexual partners on average while such trend in women is almost one. "The practice of having multiple sex partners is high among highly educated urban dwellers," said the report of the survey.
The study also showed that 17 percent of unmarried young people were found falling in felling love and this proportion is higher among boys. "The average age of first love is 16 years for both boys and girls," says the report.
Maximum numbers of youth were found of having knowledge about different sexual behaviors, such as masturbation, kissing, hugging, touching of sensitive parts, sexual intercourse with same or opposite sex partner and even paid sex. Among the respondents of age between 15 and 24, 80 percent boys said they engage in masturbation while this ratio was just 28 percent among girls.
Similarly, eight percent of the respondents of the age group of both boys and girls said they have experience of oral sex while five percent said they engage in anal intercourse.
According to the survey, 35 pc youths in Kathmandu Valley drink alcohol
It also found that 20 percent of the youths of age 15-24 consume alcohol but such ratio for youths living in Kathmandu Valley is 35 percent. Similarly, the use of tobacco among the group is 13 percent, while it is almost double in Katmandu Valley. The proportion of boys, who consume alcohol, is three times higher than of the girls of the same age group. Six percent of youths were also found using drugs. The study also showed the level of alcohol consumption increases with the increase in the level of education.
Related story
Sexploration Season 2 Episode 4: Decriminalization of sex work
