Nepal 2011

Since Lama Gangchen Help in Action started the long distance adoptions project in Nepal thousands of families have received help. At present the Association has 769 active adoptions in Nepal. Many of the children first accepted into the project are now finishing their education. In 2011, 79 children sat the School Leaving Certificate exam and of these 32 have gone on to further education thanks to the continued help of their sponsors. Against all the odds these children, from some of the poorest families of the Kathmandu area, are now studying to become the future engineers, nurses, social workers, hotel managers, journalists and teachers of Nepal. The Association is incredibly proud of their achievements.

In the present school year, a further 85 children are hoping to complete their studies by sitting for their School Leaving Certificate in March of 2012. We wish them all well!

Our aim is to help many more children to have an education that will allow them to create a better future for themselves and their families – please continue to help us make their dreams come true.

The photo gallery has some group photos of sponsored children, children writing letters to their sponsors, photos of some older children who finished their education this year and some of the new children who have recently entered the programme.

The Clinic, located in the outskirts of the Kathmandu Valley, continues to offer important basic medical support to the poor and needy of the area. In 2010 a total of 8903 people used the facilities of the Clinic, the majority of who were women (3829). The most used facilities of the Clinic continue to be the dental lab, the reproductive health clinic and general medicine. However, this year saw an increase in the number of people visiting the Tibetan medical clinic and using the DOTS (directly observed tuberculosis treatment) programme. The Clinic also continues as a base for important community health programmes such as the immunization of babies and young children. Thanks to donations received in 2010 by the Association, the Clinic was supplied with a generator (to ensure it could be fully functioning during the daily power cuts), new instruments and enough general materials to support its activities throughout the year.

As in previous years the school year – 2010/11 ending in April – was celebrated with the Losar cultural programme. All the students have the opportunity to contribute to the programme that includes dance, song and sports exhibitions. The parents of the children along with foreign guests attended the performance. The inter-house dance competition – an event eagerly awaited for by students and teachers alike – was won this year by the green house after a 2-hour competition that included both traditional and modern dance. School reports were distributed to the parents of the children before the school closed for the holiday.

The new school year (2011/12) has seen a slight drop in the number of children enrolled in the school due to the closure of many small factories in the area. Unfortunately many families have been forced to relocate out of the Kathmandu area in their search for work and cheaper living conditions. However, it is hoped with some publicity and the sponsorship programme that the school will be able to increase the number of students during the year. Some improvements to the building have been made before the opening of the school session: the courtyard has been paved, a small stage has been built into the assembly hall, window-frames and walls have been re-painted. The Association has helped the school this year to finance the appointment of new teachers.

In the first half of this year the school has once again hosted several volunteer teachers – from Italy and Spain – who have enriched the academic session with sports and arts activities. The school has also included after school basketball training for both boys and girls and hopes to create two teams of 9 to 10 year olds to compete in inter-school competitions.