Response to Nepal Earthquake

Saraswati holds the money she received from Mercy Corps. Saraswati plans to use the cash to purchase supplies to build a temporary shelter for her family.

It has been three months since the devastating Nepal earthquake. Because of your generous support Mercy Corps has been able to reach over 68,000 people with essential items like food, clean water, shelter supplies and cash.

While we continue to work to meet some of the most immediate needs such as safe water, food support and shelter items, in the next several months we will increasingly shift our focus to longer-term recovery efforts.  Our ultimate goal is to build the resilience of affected communities and to connect people to the resources they need to rebuild even stronger than before the earthquake.

In the past six weeks Mercy Corps has distributed cash to 6,700 households, benefiting close to 34,000 people. In the next month we will reach an additional 19,000 households with cash. This cash assistance allows families to purchase the items that are most important to them — seeds and agricultural tools, food, school fees, building materials — while giving local economies the boost they need for long-term recovery.

What you are making possible is also reflected in these stories and photos.  

Saraswati, pictured above, lives in the Nuwakot district of Nepal with her ten-year-old daughter, her eleven-year-old son, and her husband. On April 25th they were sitting in their home when suddenly they felt the floor and walls shake. They managed to quickly escape, but their home was destroyed.

Saraswati and her family are not alone. Nuwakot is one of the regions that was hit hardest by the quake. Damage in these areas is massive — homes destroyed, livelihoods lost, economies stalled and entire villages leveled. That is why Mercy Corps is working in this district, and other hard hit areas, to get cash and much needed supplies into the hands of families.

Last week Saraswati traveled to Sunkhani to participate in a cash distribution led by Mercy Corps. She received a kit that included a solar lantern, hygiene, shelter, and kitchen supplies as well as the equivalent of $75 in cash. She told Mercy Corps that she planned to use the money to invest in supplies and tools to build a temporary home for her family.  

The following captions relate to the photos below:

(Top) To date Mercy Corps has distributed cash to 6,700 households. This unconditional cash assistance allows families to purchase the items that are most important to them while giving local economies a boost. 

(Middle) In the next month Mercy Corps will reach an additional 19,000 households with cash. Some families plan to use the money to purchase food while others have plan to purchase shelter supplies and supplies for their small businesses. 

(Bottom) In Kritipur, Ram, 39, learns how to purify a large can of water using the water purification liquid from her emergency kit.  Mercy Corps has reached over 68,000 people to date with essential items like food, water purification supplies, shelter supplies and cash.