About Us

Nepal Leprosy Trust is a UK-based Christian agency that provides services to people affected by leprosy in the Country of Nepal.

Our Vision – Beating leprosy, breaking stigma and building lives.

NLT serves in areas of Nepal where leprosy is still prevalent. Our vision is to help eradicate leprosy; to overcome prejudice against those affected, and to improve people’s standard of living.

Mission Statement 

NLT is a family of Christian organisations based in Nepal, Ireland and the UK. Our goal is to eradicate leprosy in Nepal and to help people affected by leprosy, and their families and communities, to lift their lives out of poverty and disadvantage and enjoy health, well being and respect. We achieve this through medical treatment, social education and village development projects, targeting individuals, small groups and wider communities. The methods we use are well proven internationally, and our programme outcomes are statistically measurable. We have been working for over 45 years in Nepal, in partnership with other organizations working with leprosy, and in partnership with the Nepal Government.

We have built and now operate the only major leprosy services centre in southeast Nepal, the one of the areas of the country with the highest prevalence of leprosy. We have been given responsibility for supervising leprosy control activities in the eight districts around Lalgadh in Province 2, on behalf of the Nepal Government. Lalgadh Leprosy Hospital and Services Centre (LLHSC) is one of two leprosy hospitals in the world seeing more new cases of leprosy annually than any other centre in the world. In the districts surrounding LLHSC, we coordinate an extensive and busy community development programme that involves people affected by leprosy in the work of improving the quality of life in their communities and changing attitudes towards leprosy. This programme continues to be very successful and has changed the lives of thousands of people for the better.

In addition to the many works at Lalgadh, we also have a sheltered workshop at Kathmandu that produces high quality products in leather, cloth, felt and batik. This workshop provides employment for people marginalized by leprosy, disability, and other causes, and has been producing for over 35 years. Some of the items made are available from our Richmond office and from our online Ebay shop.

Another significant work at Kathmandu is the child sponsorship scheme which enables children from very poor situations to have a decent education. In some cases these children are orphans and would have no hope of an education without support from somewhere. Contributions by supporters to The Lydia Children’s  Fund enable around 70 children to have a decent education through the provision of a monthly allowance. Attendance and progress is monitored so that there is no doubt about how the allowance is used.

The Organisation

Background – The Stigma of Leprosy

Leprosy – The Disease

Biblical Leprosy