Child Protection Nepal Project #33665

Education+care+mentorship for 100 Nepali children

by Himalayan Children's Charities

Education+care+mentorship for 100 Nepali children

Project Report | Aug 26, 2019
Summer '19 Program Report

By Sadie Green | Director of Nepal Program Development

Maya, grade 3

Thanks to our generous donors, dedicated staff, and incredible students, we are currently supporting 89 children and youth enrolled in our Rural Education Scholarship Program. We are as motivated as ever to provide pathways out of poverty and into leadership for the deserving students in Nepal who have lost parents and houses, but not hope for the future.

As of the end of August 2019, HCC’s Rural Education Scholarship Program supports:

5 preschool students
53 Elementary students
25 High school students
6 University students

This summer, the national exam results were published for grade 10 and 12. The seven students who took exams this year all did well, scoring above the national average. One student who recently started grade 11, Bikash, even scored in the top 5% for the entire country! We had one student, a 12th grade female students from a remote and mountainous area, marry and drop out of school just before her grade 12 exams. While this is not uncommon, it is a great tragedy, and it shows the clear need for sustained efforts to help students to overcome their difficult circumstances.

Maya*, for example, is from a very impoverished, remote area of Nepal and a marginalized, indigenous community. She was in a desperate situation when we met her in 2015, after the deadly earthquake took the lives of her mother and baby brother. Things went from terrible to even worse for Maya when her father died the following year. During that critical time, we arranged for her to move into a boarding school in the headquarters of her district, nearby to her surviving relatives, where she has access to a high-quality education as well as proper shelter, nutritious food, access to medical care, adult supervision, and a peer support system.

Maya is now 9 years old and studies in grade three. She has adjusted well to life at the school and is happy at her school hostel. “I like living at the school hostel and I like my teachers and my school environment. I like my Nepali class the most because I love to read. And I enjoy playing with my friends here.” At the same time, she is really looking forward to visiting her grandparents and other family during her upcoming two week school break. “My aunt is coming to take me soon and I will go and visit my relatives and enjoy with them,” she told us. Maya dreams of becoming a teacher when she grows up. “My plan is to be a teacher and teach in my village. I want to give other kids an education like I’m getting.” She is growing up so fast, and we are glad to be able to be a part of her life.

Thank you for making this all possible for Maya and for many more children in Nepal.

*name has been changed

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May 29, 2019
Spring '19 Program Report

By Sadie Green | Director of Nepal Program Development

Thanks to your generous support, HCC’s Rural Education Scholarship Program (RESP) is running smoothly, and the 87 enrolled students are experiencing growth and academic success. HCC’s staff has been busy this Spring meeting with RESP students, and their families and teachers, in the districts of Dhading, Kathmandu, Nuwakot, Rasuwa, and Dolakha. With the new school session beginning in April, this is an important time of year for providing scholarship funds, social services, and other resources to ensure students have what they need to succeed. We believe that education and community are the keys to success for these children in overcoming their traumas and breaking cycles of poverty, and your generous support makes it all possible.

Ten-year-old Anjita and 11-year-old Ranjita* are sisters whose mother and father have both died, leaving them as complete orphans since their mother was killed in the 2015 earthquake. They come from an indigenous community in a remote part of Nepal. Their village is a four hour walk from the nearest road and there is no school in the area, making it difficult for them to get even a basic education. Their impoverished family was having trouble caring for their basic daily needs, despite the basic scholarships they received from RESP. At the beginning of the new school year in April, HCC placed the sisters into a boarding school in the District Headquarter, alongside other students from the program. In this way, they have access to a quality, English-medium education, proper shelter and nutritious food, and the opportunity to maintain close relationships with their relatives who they stay with during school vacations. Although their extended family is very poor, they are determined to help raise the girls. “Although we cannot provide for their daily needs,” says their maternal aunt, “we want them to know who they are and know their culture and language.” The girls are doing well adjusting to their new school and hostel living, and say they are most excited to learn how to use computers and being able to play sports. “Thank you for your help and for believing in us,” says 11-year-old Ranjita.

We are incredibly lucky to be able to offer this opportunity to these deserving children, and it is only possible with your generous support and donations.

*names have been changed

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Feb 27, 2019
Winter '18/19 Report

By Sadie Green | Director of Nepal Program Development

As of the end of February 2019, there are 88 students in HCC’s Rural Education Scholarship Program (previously known as the Earthquake Orphan Scholarship Program), including 8 students at local boarding schools, and 10 students in college and university.

This Winter, HCC visited to Dhading district, meeting with 49 students and their families, mostly in the Northern, more remote areas. The team distributed:

warm winter jackets (double sided fleece)
school supplies (notebooks, pens, pencils, erasers, pencil sharpeners)
storybooks (Nepali language comic book on menstrual health and hygiene)
personal hygiene materials (lotion, nail cutters, toothbrush and toothpaste, chapstick, hair oil, soap)

The team also:

paid school and hostel fees
played theater games
spent quality time with the children and their families
took in-depth interviews in order to better understand individual circumstances and needs.

This HCC project is managed by graduated and senior students of HCC, who as former beneficiaries help set policies and provide social services including advocacy and emotional support to the supported children.

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“I am thankful for this support and if I had not got this support my dream to study would stop and I will be working in field in the village. This support has changed my life because it has made it easier for my younger sister and I to pay our fees and has supplied us with stationary needs in this time when we are living alone have no other family support. Thank you for supporting me.” - Asmi*

Asmi is 16 years old and studies in grade 11. She and her younger sister, also supported through this program, have been living alone by themselves in their village since the earthquake and their mother's demise. Their father remarried and left, leaving his teenage daughters behind. The sisters farm vegetables, fetch firewood and water, look after their goats and cow, and complete all of the household chores and cooking. Life has been difficult for the two sisters, especially since the earthquake, yet they are determined to continue school and make something of their lives.

Thank you for helping to make a difference!

*Name changed to protect privacy

Links:

https://www.hccnepal.org/programs/#rural

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