Nepal Education Fund

The GlobalGiving network is generously supporting Room to Read’s Nepal Education Fund, a special effort to support Nepal after the devastating earthquakes in April and May 2015. Through the Education Fund, Room to Read is pledging to reconstruct 700 classrooms across 62 schools in Nepal’s Nuwakot region – one of the areas hit the hardest in the earthquake. Room to Read is collaborating with key partners from the public and private sector in order to reconnect children and communities with their educational spaces and environments. Below is an update on the current situation in Nepal and Room to Read’s progress toward achieving the goals outlined through our Nepal Education Fund.

Following the adoption of Nepal’s new constitution in September 2015, protests erupted from a number of minority groups and have created a slow-down of crucial imports across Nepal's borders, most importantly food, fuel and construction materials. Room to Read staff in Nepal is following this conflict closely and reports that the government is working toward a resolution. The estimated timeline for our construction work in earthquake-impacted regions is unclear at this point. Depending on the severity and length of the crisis, we may need to adjust the timing of our school reconstruction projects and will update GlobalGiving as we receive more information. We are putting all processes in place to launch reconstruction as quickly as possible once the embargo has been lifted.

With this in mind, we have been able to complete the following activities during the past few months:

• October 2015: Kick-off meeting with Nuwakot district stakeholders. In this meeting our team reviewed our project plan and discussed key milestones and responsibilities with regards to this work. It also provided an opportunity for relationship building and allowed all stakeholders to feel engaged and informed in the scope of this work and the direction of the construction activities
• November 2015: Family and community engagement meetings at 10 schools in Nuwakot. On November 18, 2015 our team held family and community engagement meetings in 10 project schools throughout Nuwakot. These meetings provided parents and community members with the opportunity to interact with our team and to gain insight into the scope of our work in the district and our model of reconstruction. We are planning further engagement events throughout 2016.
• December 2015: Retrofitting expert to complete building assessments and submit final report. Retrofit designs for six schools are complete. The Department of Education will be sharing these designs with their committee and we expect approval in the next few weeks.

With these activities completed, the following activities are set for completion in upcoming months:

• Securing government approval for Room to Read’s construction design.
• Procurement of all supplies for Nuwakot project sites.
• Delivery of construction materials.
• Start of construction materials.

Room to Read is honored to partner with GlobalGiving donors in reconstructing Nepal’s education sector post-earthquake. While recent sociopolitical events have delayed the launch of construction, our team remains focused on preparing these schools for construction so that activities can start immediately after access to transportation and materials becomes available. As we continue to work with key stakeholders in Dhading and Nuwakot to complete this work, we look forward to updating you on our progress and thank you again for your generous support.