"Support-A-Child" Help Child Go To School & Study

Due to COVID-19 pandemic, Government of Nepal announced various restrictions (including nation-wide lockdown) from beginning of March 2020, most of which were lifted from mid June 2020 considering the need to revitalize the economy. However, the COVID-19 infections are increasing. The schools are one of the most affected sectors.

Using the Swiss WATA technology, ECCA is locally producing active chlorine solution of 6 gm/liter concentration (sodium hypochlorite, branded as WATASOL), which is a highly efficient disinfectant against COVID-19.  

WATASOL was provided to the schools in jerry can, for sanitizing the school premises / classrooms. Spray bottle was also provided, in which diluted WATASOL is filled and sprayed (to clean desk, bench, chair, table, staircase hand railing, etc.) making it easy to wipe. This has helped the schools to open, making it possible for students to come and study.

We thank you for your support.

ECCA improvised the common game materials of Nepalese children with the messages on Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), specifically for the purpose of educating children on WASH and motivating self-learning through entertainment.

A set game materials (dice and snake & ladder) was distributed to Gogandanda Primary School and Jagriti Primary School located in Tamakoshi Rural Municipality (around 150 km north of Kathmandu in Dolakha district in central Nepal). The teachers and students were also oriented on how to play these game materials. They played these game materials during orientation to understand the concept of WASH and they found the games interesting and knowledgeable.

The students thanked for the support and shared “We never had any game material in our school earlier. Now, we can play these games during our leisure time”. Because of the availability of the game materials, the students love to go to school.

We thank you for your support.

The Covid-19 outbreak has left many people more alone than they’ve been in a long time, or ever. Some are responding by involving in cozy domesticity; steaming momos, reading books, sketching, writing and what not? Besides all the coziness, the satisfaction provided by social media is an extravaganza! And why not? Influence goes both ways - isolation drives social media use and vice versa. And I couldn't be any further!

While doing some official works, I steal enough time to scroll the screen of my phone flooded with information related to preventing the pandemic spreading even more. Among all the information, hand washing and sanitation related things grab my attention with WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) being one of my working sectors. Just to mention a few, famous national-international portals, FM radios, celebrities and their kids, tiktok dance challenge, they all are doing their part for teaching a proper hand washing technique. To level up, we can also go through the videos of animals washing their paws!

I feel so connected with all of these that eventually I start looking back to my working sites – the villages very far away from Kathmandu - and the people over there. Those would be hard places to get rid of the coronavirus once it hits there. I wish I could work with them to assess their exposure more during this emergency. But somewhere in my heart, I feel that like always, they are doing their best in their individual level for personal hygiene as they have come a long way till date.

Being a part of numerous Children Camps, WASH Trainings/Orientations and Interaction Programs organized by ECCA from early days, the child club and women group members committed themselves wholeheartedly in their personal improvement since then. As a result, these days they themselves are a good practitioner of all seven steps of hand washing. It's so admirable to go back on how they helped others practice good handwashing habits in their school, home and community. I believe those big hoarding boards with WASH messages placed by ECCA in the communities are alarming the community people to wash their hands more frequently. I hope the chlorine solution (branded as WATASOL) made by the child clubs are working out as a good disinfectant in their home and community. 

While counting on every lockdown day, I look forward to seeing the students return back to normal school days soon and continuing dancing on hand washing song in their assembly! May the challenges posed by this time of fear and uncertainty in our lives and futures of our families, communities, countries, and the wider world go away soon.

ECCA recently distributed warm clothes consisting of T-shirt, jacket and trousers to the students of Gogandanda Primary School and Jagriti Primary School. Both schools are located in Tamakoshi Rural Municipality (around 150 km north of Kathmandu in Dolakha district in central Nepal). The provided warm clothes helped the children to keep warm during winter and attend their class regularly.

The principal of the school thanked for the support and remarked “The warm clothes prevented the students from getting sick, otherwise they usually catch cold and cough. When the children get sick, their education is also hampered.”  

We thank you for your continued support.

Tamakoshi Rural Municipality is located around 150 km north of Kathmandu in Dolakha district in central Nepal. Due to its proximity to the Himalayan range, this region is cold. The people residing in the locality are poor and cannot afford additional warm clothes for their children. Because of lack of warm clothes, many children do not attend class regularly and also get sick. Since the winter season has started, ECCA arranged warm clothes for the school students studying from Early Childhood Development Center to Class 10. The dress consists of T-shirt, jacket and trousers all made from thick cloth (which keeps the body warm). The dress has just been stitched, packed and is ready for transport to the schools.

We thank you for your continued support.