After spending their childhood – a critical period of growth and development – working as indentured domestic servants, many of the former Kamlari girls struggle academically.
For these young women, especially in the context of Nepal’s alarming youth un- or underemployment rate, we’re so grateful to provide vocational education as a promising alternative path to independence.
NYF’s established Vocational Training and Career Counseling program (launched in 2007) and new Olgapuri Vocational School (OVS, launched in 2017) are creating access to the critical training and career counseling young Nepalis need to break the cycle of poverty.
This is achieved through three objectives: 1. Orientation and Aptitude Testing; 2. Vocational Training and Career Counseling; and 3. Employment Support.
In 2018, a total of 687 girls received orientation on the scope of vocational training and the opportunities available to them. 500 of those girls took aptitude tests and the selected trainees received career guidance to help them make informed decisions about their vocational training track.
Over the course of the year 319 freed Kamlari girls (of the total of 795 new students) enrolled in vocational training in trades such as medical lab support, hotel and hospitality, food stall management, caregiving, and more. Some of these high demand skills courses are offered at OVS which enrolled 460 students in its first full year of operations (both male and female).
In 2018, 469 freed Kamlaris graduated from the program (of the total of 818 graduates), including students continuing from the previous year. Of those graduates, 302 were already employed or running their own businesses by the end of the year. NYF staff continued to assist recent graduates seeking employment, and over 80% of graduates are employed with in three months of graduation.
Of the almost 13,000 Kamlari girls NYF has rescued since 2000, approximately 2,600 are currently in school or college and a total of 2,126 have completed vocational training programs suited to their interests and capabilities
Your donation helps desperately impoverished youth flourish into self-sufficient adults who support their families and give back to their communities.
Thank you. Dhanyabad!
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Now 21, Jyoti started working as a Kamlari (indentured child servant) when she was only nine years old.
In her own words:
"I worked as a Kamlari for 3 years until I was rescued by NYF. After rescue I studied through grade 10 with support from NYF. After grade 10 I could not do further studies. I was not sure what I would do for a living. I then heard about the vocational training opportunities by NYF through their staff and attended one of the orientation sessions. During the orientation I, along with so many girls like myself, found out about different trades that we could learn and do business in. This gave me immense hope. I chose tea and snacks business training. After the one month training and practice I opened my own food stall. I received a food stall and supplies to set up the business.
The business is doing very well now. With the income I have also been able to pay some debt that we had taken for building our house. In the future I wish to expand the business and open a restaurant.
I am immensely thankful for this support which has given me so much hope for life."
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With your generous support, NYF’s Vocational Education and Career Counseling program provided training to 340 youth like Jyoti in the last quarter.
The trades included Industrial Training, Electrics, Plumbing, Carpentry and Wood Turning, Welding and Steel Fabrication, Food Stall Management, and Care Giver Training.
107 trainees completed the training in this reporting period; and of them, 60 are already employed while the rest are seeking employment.
Thank you for helping capable Nepali youth train for a brighter future!
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In Nepal, the unemployment and underemployment rate hovers around 50%, yet 94% of Olgapuri Vocational School (OVS) graduates so far have been able to land jobs.
The consequence of the high unemployment rate is that Nepali men migrate for jobs, most to the Gulf countries. The social consequences of this migration are enormous – wives separated from their husbands for years, even decades, and children growing up without their fathers.
The shocking unemployment rate is due in substantial part to the fact that Nepalis do not have the skills to fill the available jobs. There are well-paid openings in the construction trades, but not enough carpenters, electricians, and welders to fill them.
Excellent vocational training is imperative in Nepal, and OVS was established to serve that need. Initially, NYF is providing first-rate training to 320 carpenters, welders, plumbers, and electricians a year. Because of the 2015 earthquake, which destroyed hundreds of thousands of structures, such skills are in high demand.
These well-paying jobs are traditionally held by men, but NYF is encouraging and training women to fill these positions as well. Of the first handful of women who have been trained at OVS as carpenters, electricians and plumbers, all of them have found employment.
It’s the generosity that you share that helps make it all possible! Dhanyabad!
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Coming from an impoverished family of eight who was struggling to survive, “Rani” was sold into indentured servitude at age 14.
She worked as a Kamlari for six years until she was finally rescued by NYF at age 20. Rani was recovering well, got married, and had two children.
While her young family was in good spirits, their financial situation was desperate, resulting in her husband’s migration to India to seek employment. Rani carried the overwhelming burden of raising her children alone without a reliable source of income.
Fortunately she learned about NYF’s vocational training program and applied for a 21-day Food Stall Management course. Now, Rani is the proud owner of two thriving businesses: a tea and snacks shop and an adjacent grocery shop. She is earning enough to support her entire family and saving for their future. Her husband returned from India and helps her with the businesses while their children attend a reputable local school. She says, “I am very grateful to Nepal Youth Foundation for helping me to stand on my own feet.”
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Thanks to your support, graduates of NYF’s vocational training programs like Rani are earning as much as $4,000-$5,000 annually, a life-transforming impact in a country where 1 in 4 people live on less than $1 a day.
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While academic education can transform lives, it’s not appropriate for everyone. NYF's focus on vocational training is an essential investment in a country where child labor is common and about one quarter of the population lives below the poverty line. Vocational Education and Career Counseling (VECC) provides occupational training and guidance for youth whose background of deprivation and hardship keeps them from succeeding academically. VECC provides unparalleled opportunities for girls rescued from Kamlari servitude and for NYF scholarship recipients.
In Nepal, the rate of youth unemployment and underemployment hovers around 50%, yet 94% of NYF’s vocational training graduates so far have been able to secure employment.
Excellent vocational training is imperative in Nepal, and NYF’s established VECC program and new Olgapuri Vocational School (OVS) help to meet that need. NYF sponsors students in vocational courses through VECC and helps them find jobs, providing career counseling and training to more than 6,500 youth since the program began.
Additionally, through OVS, NYF provides first-rate training to 320 carpenters, welders, plumbers, and electricians annually. Since the 2015 earthquakes, which destroyed hundreds of thousands of structures, such skills are in high demand.
These well-paying jobs are traditionally held by men, but NYF is encouraging and training women to fill these positions as well. Of the first handful of women who have been trained at OVS as carpenters, electricians and plumbers, all of them have found employment.
Thank you for being an important part of their life-transforming path to self-sufficiency. Together we are creating previously unimagined opportunity!
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