The Karnali Mental Health Program (KMHP) III is implemented by CMC-Nepal with financial and technical support from CBM Global, for the period from May 2026 to October 2029. The program is being implemented across 13 rural municipalities and municipalities in the districts of Dailekh, Rukum West, and Jumla.
KMHP III builds on the key learnings and achievements of the Inclusive Community Mental Health Program (ICMHP) and KMHP Phase II. It incorporates valuable insights related to effective engagement with local governments, strengthening municipal health facilities, promoting and sustaining Self-Help Groups (SHGs), expanding school mental health programs, and enhancing community awareness on mental health.
While continuing the core objectives of previous phases; such as developing mental health strategies, strengthening health systems, empowering SHGs, and promoting mental health in schools, KMHP III introduces new and strategic approaches. It emphasizes the meaningful engagement of Organizations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs) to strengthen community awareness campaigns and advocacy efforts, thereby fostering inclusion and social support for persons with psychosocial disabilities.
Overall Objective
Persons with or at risk of mental health conditions and psychosocial disabilities enjoy independent, dignified lives and are fully included in their communities on an equal basis with others.
Specific Objective
Improve equitable access to quality and rights-based MHPSS, government entitlements, and community participation for women, men, girls and boys with or at risk of mental health conditions and psychosocial disabilities facing gender, disability, caste, ethnicity and socioeconomic barriers in the project areas by 2029.
Results Areas
Result 1:
Municipal and Provincial MH systems use inclusive, rights based, evidence-informed planning, budgeting and monitoring processes for MHPSS services
Result 2:
Health facilities deliver higher quality, rights-based, better-coordinated MHPSS services through trained staff and functional referral pathways.
Result 3:
Persons with psychosocial disabilities, especially women and marginalized groups, demonstrate improved confidence, leadership, and participation in community and economic life, supported by OPDs and local partners with strengthened capacity for rights-based MHPSS programming
Result 4:
School systems deliver MHPSS programs and support to children and adolescents, providing an accessible entry point for early identification and referral to community based MHPSS services
Result 5:
CMC-Nepal generates and disseminate quality evidences on MHPSS access barriers to inform local government planning and budgeting
Result 6:
CMC-Nepal and local partners have strengthened capacity, systems, and evidence use to deliver scalable, rights-oriented, and evidence-based MHPSS programming