(Winter-)Schools in the remote mountains of Nepal

Preliminary Remark: The villages and the schools in Upper Dolpo are located in one of the remotest mountainous areas in the world at around 4,000 meters altitude and there is no or hardly any phone contact and Internet is not available. To get to Kathmandu from Upper Dolpo, you need to walk 7-8 days and additional 48 hours by bus. This said, we only can deliver detailed reports of the school sessions with 9-12 months delay after the school period ended. We need to give the school coordinator time to write and provide their reports once they come to Kathmandu. Thank you for your understanding.

The Tripitak Basic School was established by the Nepalese government in 1975 but was only in operation for a few years because the government did not take the local needs of the population into account. The number of students decreased, and the school was closed. Dawa Phuntsok, a former villager, reopened the school in 2019 as co-coordinator and was looking for a sponsor. In spring 2021 we decided to finance two teachers. In January 2022, we as the HUMAN Foundation pledged to build a new school and finance the school operations.

The main goal of the school is to provide free and high-quality education to the underprivileged society in Upper Dolpo in order to develop the potential skills of the children so that they can stand on their own two feet after their education.

Our vision is to offer primary education in their home village so that they do not forget their mother tongue, Nepali language, religion, and traditions and keep in touch with their parents. After primary school education we want to send them to Kathmandu to give them further education.

The 2021 school year began on May 1st and ended on the last day of October. The lessons went smoothly, and the students achieved very successful results. It is very difficult to direct the school lessons because there is currently no real classroom, school furniture, too few teachers and a lack of good facilities. However, we managed to do it by teaching on the floor of an old building and accommodating the teachers in a house without any facilities. There are currently three well qualified and enthusiastic teachers who are willing to improvise and adapt to new challenges and demands in order to achieve the best for the children.

The school management committee (SMC) meeting was held several times over the past year. All members are very supportive and helpful towards the school. They help us for free and are also very loving and caring when dealing with our students. There were three meetings on school planning, school administration and activities to improve school operations.

For the 2022 school year, all the goods and equipment needed for the school have already been purchased and transported from Kathmandu to Lhuri. And at the same time, the planning for the school building is in full swing. If we get enough wood, there is hope that we will have eight rooms available in autumn 2022.

Thank you very much for your outstanding support.

With this report we can deliver great news. In January this year, we finally decided to build a new school in the village of Lhuri in Upper Dolpo. We have been supporting the "Shree Tripitak Basic School" school in Lhuri since 2021.

The village of Lhuri in the Upper Dolpo, between Saldang and Nyisal, consists of the three-village parts Ke, Lhuri and Sungjer, all at an altitude of around 13,000 ft. The school in Lhuri was closed during the civil war in Nepal (1999-2006) and did not reopen afterwards. The government built a small school building a long time ago, but it is now in a very dilapidated condition and is not a safe environment for children's education.

Dawa, a youth from Lhuri village who attended the school in Kathmandu, recently reopened the school with our support. Last year, 23 students attended the school. Three teachers were available for teaching and supervision. Since the children have not had any regular lessons up to now, there has not been any class assignment. Of the 23 children, 14 children were in the care (nursery) and 9 children in kindergarten/preschool. The plan for 2022 is that 11 children are in care (nursery), 5 children in kindergarten and 7 children in the 1st grade. With each additional school year, the next higher class will be started, so that class 5 can be put into operation in 2026. One additional teacher will be hired each year, making a total of 6-7 teachers.

In the long run, an increasing number of students is to be expected, since the children from Sungjer and Ke are also attending the classes. In particular, the children from Sungjer will sleep at school because it is too far to go home.

We want to start construction of the new school complex in the local architectural style this year and by the end of the year we will have built eight rooms:

• A kitchen
• Two dormitory rooms
• 4 classrooms for Nursery, Kindergarten, first and second grade
• An office room for the teachers

The crucial question is whether we can get enough wood approved for construction. Wood is a very scarce commodity and is regulated by the government.

If everything goes according to plan, we will construct the remaining buildings in the coming year, including the sanitary facilities and a school wall. Then we hope to have enough wood for the interior design, such as the school desks. We may also have to postpone some construction activities until 2024. For this year it is important that we lay the foundation for the new school.

We also fund ongoing operations and have made a commitment for at least 20 years, barring any extraordinary event. The funding of the school building is largely secured, but the annual operation expenses must also be ensured for the teachers, teaching equipment and game materials, food, school clothes and the high transport costs from Kathmandu to Lhuri.

We are very pleased that we can tackle this project, especially because a local and former student from neighboring Saldang, where we finance the winter school, took the initiative.

We would be very pleased if you continue to support us with our new undertaking. Thank you for your generosity and your trust in our work.