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Nepal is a small mountainous, landlocked country, located between India
and China with a population of 27 million. It is one of the poorest
countries in the world and life expectancy is below 60 years. Over the
past decade there has been civil conflict in Nepal between the Maoists
and the former government forces resulting in thousands of deaths.
An estimated 260,000 children have been displaced from their homes, due
mainly to this conflict, and also because of the horrific poverty here.
The
orphanage and its founders:
In 2002, a group of seven Nepali women founded the Nepali Women and
Children Service Society (N.W.C.S.S.), a co-operative aiming to rescue
and support deprived women and children.
They
opened an orphanage in Jorpati district of Kathmandu, the capital of
Nepal. The house has two storeys, and is comprised of 4 small bedrooms,
a kitchen, a dining room, one office room, and a study room on the roof
built with corrugated iron by volunteers a year ago. There are two 'out
houses' used as toilets. Thanks to donations, two shower rooms were
recently built.
Although the N.W.C.S.S. are working hard to fund it, this orphanage is
in dire need of external donations to offer the children the security,
quality of life and opportunities for the future they deserve.
The
children:
The orphanage is now home to 25 displaced children (14 girls and 11
boys), aged from 8 moths to 14 years. Many of the children are orphans,
some have been sent here by parents too poor to look after them, and
some have been abandoned by their mother (when the father dies and the
mother remarries, it is part of the culture to abandon her children to
start a new family).
Although
the children come from different regions of Nepal, they have formed a
very strong bond, which makes them one big family. They have a "mummy",
who cooks for them everyday, and a "DiDi" who keeps the house clean and
looks after the baby. The children eat 3 meals a day. Breakfast and
dinner consist of the traditional Nepali staple, "Dal Bhat" (lentil soup
and boiled rice) with vegetables and potatoes when possible. They eat
"Tiffin" (snacks) after school, which is usually beaten rice and nuts.
All the
children go to school and are taught lessons in English and Nepali.
Photos of the children >> |
