Nepal: Emergency Response & Recovery

The School Leaving Certificate (SLC) Exam, held every April, is considered the iron gate for further education in Nepal. Just about half of Nepali students pass the exam on average, which is required for studying past class 10. Pass rates are much lower in disadvantaged rural and poorer areas, many of which are in areas badly affected by the earthquake where schools were destroyed and closed for weeks and school books and study supplies lost in the rubble. To help students from falling further behind, PIN implemented an emergency SLC preparation program in 41 schools in Sindhupalchowk and Gorkha districts, providing 1648 class 10 students with study supplies.

On August 12, 2017, heavy rainfall led to extraordinary flooding in India, Bangladesh, and southern Nepal. In Nepal, the flood affected 1.7 million people from 35 districts. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the flooding caused at least 143 deaths, the destruction of 65,000 homes, and the displacement of around 461,000 people. 
 
Within a week of the disaster, PIN worked with members of Alliance 2015, Concern Worldwide and Welthungerhilfe to distribute immediate relief to 11,600 households across three districts: Rautahat, Saptari, and Mahottari. These areas represent some of the hardest hit by the flooding, and have historically low human development indicators and high levels of malnutrition. In the immediate days after the emergency, food and sanitation were the most critical needs, so the Alliance distributed 15 days’ worth of food and basic emergency household and hygiene items such as mosquito nets, water purification materials, hygiene and menstrual hygiene management material.
 

The earthquake seriously hampered livelihoods in affected areas by destroying agricultural land and wiping out livestock, hugely important assets to rural families. PIN implemented its signature Real Gift program in one VDC in Sindupalchowk where many livestock had been killed and many families were already struggling to get by with subsistence farming. The most vulnerable families in Gunsakot VDC received a Real Gift of two young goats per household. A total of 179 families received these gifts, which will help revitalize livelihoods in the community and restock domestic animal populations. A few of the goats have already had kids.

After the massive earthquake struck Nepal in 2015, hundreds of thousands of people fled their homes fearing aftershocks and gathered in surrounding areas, forming temporary camps. Transport and communications were severely disrupted for days. In the first few days after the earthquake, our priorities were to ensure that survivors had access to adequate humanitarian assistance. PIN supplied thousands of families with tarpaulins, ropes, corrugated tin sheets, and toolkits to help people repair shelters. Thousands of people received blankets, mattresses and solar lamps, which were often the only source of electricity. The team in Nepal transported material in helicopters even to the most remote mountain areas, which were completely cut from traditional markets.

As winter loomed, the most pressing humanitarian concern was how families living at high altitudes would survive. Many families lost all their possessions, leaving them without warm clothes and supplies like bedding to withstand cold winter temperatures. PIN’s main priority in Nepal became helping people prepare for extreme winter conditions. PIN established Site Management and Safety Committees and based upon consultations with communities, introduced knitting training for women in five camp sites. These trainings helped women learn and improve knitting techniques, which they then could use to produce better and more diversified products and potentially expand their livelihoods.

As a camp management agency, PIN facilitated formation of Site Management Committees, youth committees, and women’s committees in the thirteen camp sites in the Gorkha district. PIN also helped establish Safety Committees in six camps in the Sindhupalchok district.

These committees facilitate a variety of site operations and activities. PIN equips the sites with basic fire safety measures, provides hygiene kits, and coordinates provisions of basic services with other agencies present on sites. PIN also provided non food items to camp populations to help them prepare for the previous winter.Read more

After consultations with camp communities, PIN introduced knitting training for women in five camp sites in Kerauja and Laprak. These trainings help women learn and improve knitting techniques, which they then can use to produce better and more diversified products and potentially expand their livelihoods. PIN is also providing livelihood assistance through agricultural and veterinary trainings in Kerauja, Laprak and Barpak camps.

PIN supports the reconstruction of community infrastructure too. We have implemented a cash-for-work program in camp sites in Kerauja that employs local people to repair vital trails blocked and damaged by the earthquake. This serves a dual purpose, not only fixing damaged infrastructure, but also recovering livelihoods and accelerating the local economy. As a part of camp operations, PIN is also assisting local users groups to bring electricity to a camp site in Laprak and provide temporary community centers to camp sites in Laprak and Barpak.