Karmalaya Foundation Nepal was created to improve life standard of Nepalese of rural villages and to pursue extensive charitbale purpose and generally not profit oriented programs. support educational and charitable initiatives through a wide range of programs and project.
The hostel for visually impaired children located at Swaragaon village, Gorkha district is a major project running under the foundation. The hostel was established in 2015 to provide a home for special children with special facilities, support and sufficient necessary basic needs including food, health service, education and so on. The concept of hostel for visually impaired children came when Mr Bhagwan Karki and Tina Eckert directly observed the poor situation of visually impaired children in village. There was no no special education system for them which is true to almost all part of rural Nepal, low awareness about visually impaired children in the society which negatively impacted the personal development and mental health of children. The idea of hostel was to provide safe, sound and friendly environment for children to grow with better education, mental health support and access to basic human needs. The hostel is a space where the children could interact with other children like them making them feel acceptable and not peculiar as any other children with good eye sight.
The foundation build the hostel house from scratch with the support of generous and kind volunteers coming from various European countries including but not limited to Germany, Austria, Switzerland and so on. . The foundation takes care of all expenses of running an entire hostel to support the children as primary guardian.All the livelihood expenses of 12 children living in the hostel is the responsibility of the foundation.
The financial resources of the hostel is the responsbility of the hostel which includes salaries for hostel helpers, hostel incharge and in house teachers living at hostel to help visually impaired children with academic studies.
Karmalaya Foundation Nepal (KFN) warmly welcomes you to join hostel as a volunteer, donor or sponsor. You can also contact us if you would like to directly speak to a child.
The child care center of Bhokteni village of Gorkha district was established in 2016 as a day care cum child care center. The practice of child care center is a new concept and practice in rural Nepal. So, Bhokteni Child Care Center is one of the first in Gorkha district or any other mountainous regions of Nepal.
The children of Bhokteni rural municipality used to go near by village's school which was 3 to 4 hours walk everyday. Most parents of children below 10 years of age were reluctant send children such long distance school, which caused low admission at school and late schooling for children.
With the help of our kind volunteers and supporters from all around the globe, KF build the school which functions as child care center and school for children below 10 years . This school wasn't just a concrete building, it was the ray of hope for the villagers. The volunteers were physically participating, hardworking to make the building stand so as the hope bright future for villagers and their children. Currently, 40 children of this village can easily access to quality education at free of cost. Karmalaya Foundatiom has recruited well trained qualified 2 teachers and 1 assistant teached. The child care center is running in collaboration of Karmlaya foundation Nepal (KFN) and Bhokteni rural municipality educates around 35 children in the day care center. All the infranstructure of school is constructed by KF. The english medium teaching and care center in the rural village provides quality education to rural deprived children. And currently around 40 children get free education and care. KF has appointed teachers and helpers for the center whose remuneration is KF's responsibility.
Karmalaya Foundation Nepal has been largely involved for rapid response to emergency and crisis disasters taking place in Nepal. KFN provided emergency aid and relief funds to victims of 2015 earthquake of 7.8 magnitude. Not only that, Karmalaya Foundation Nepal also took volunteers from around the world to help in reconstruction and rebuilding of damanged houses of victims in rural Nepal with direct physical engagement in manual works.
Another major relief program was the distribution of covid-19 relief aid. The foundation provided monetary support, food distribution, operated food bank, immediate medical support to covid-infected patients at doorstep. Poverty-stricken family, daily wage earner who were harshly affected by complete lockdown were supported. Staffs of Karmalaya Private Culture who initially were engaged in tourism but currently unemployed got support from KF. Beside that, KF distributed virus precautionary materials like masks, sanitizers, gloves, soaps, building handwash station at number of organizations, schools of Nepal including our own child care center. KFN provided essential food materials to needy and poor family with food shortage from the food bank at KF home daily. Further, KFN also operated emergency medical counselling to covid patients for free. The foundation provided cash and foods to families living in Kathmandu for 2 to 3 months during the complete country lockdown. The migrated families from out of Kathmandu valley were not able to go to their respective district, got stuck in the capital without earning sources. The family going through critical financial hardship was relieved receiving help for rent, food and necessities.
Other aid and relief distribution program includes:
Emergency Aid to Flood Victims and Continuous Supply of Food Essentials
Floods triggered by incessant rain during monsoon causes massive damage to life and property in various mountains and plane land, Terai of Nepal. Karmalaya Foundation Nepal helps flood victims by providing flood victims with essential food materials and bedding clothes including mattress, quilt, blanket, pillows, bedsheet, and so on. In the recent event, KFN supplied emergency food and clothes to the flood victim of Melamchi Bazaar of Sindhupalchok district.
The primary focus area of KFN includes women's health and empowerment, and public health awareness and campaign programs. KFN has been conducting public health and women's health related programs in rural areas and plans to organize more in future. Awareness program, guidance and support for medical cases are two methods internalized in the program. The major topic includes women's reproductive health, menstruation, sanitation, cleanlines, dental health, nutrition, and so on.
In a developing country like Nepal, menstruation is still taken as a taboo. Especially in rural areas, many girls are isolated and put to social and cultural restrictions. Women and girls are not allowed to touch the male members of the family, be in the sunlight, enter the kitchen and eat together, and are often regarded as “untouchables" . Moreover, women do not use healthy sanitary pad during their menstruation. The result of unhygienic sanitary pad is extremely risky to reproductive health of women. The common practice seen in rural Nepal is the use of mere dirty clothes to prevent blood flow.
This is a long term project which focuses on helping women, empowering them and making environmentally sustainable reusable sanitary pad conducted in collaboration with Karmalaya Handicraft (KH). The project aims to educate and aware early teenage school girls regarding menstruation, what it is, how it happens, why it happens, and about menstrual hygiene. Not only that, the project aims to provide reusable sanitary pad making workshop to rural schooling students and women which is affordable and accessible. This awareness and workshop is not a onetime thing, as we will continue this project in different rural areas of Nepal once every three months. The practical workshop of making reusable sanitary pad to woman and school students with easily accessible materials makes them strong, affordable, and healthy.
Not only this, participants will be provided with reusable sanitary pad prepared by Karmalary Foundation.We empower girls and women in ways by giving them an open platform to share their issues about menstruation and teaching them practical ways of coping with menstruation better. It also focuses at introducing menstruation as a healthy, normal function enabling reproduction and innovative affordable sanitary homemade pads for health, economic and environment benefits.
Why reusable sanitary pad in Nepal?
Menstruation is normal biological phenomena for girls and women. Nepali women have different experiences and practices in terms of menstrual hygiene materials they use during mesntruation. Reusable menstrual pads are cloth pads that can be used several times. They absorb the menstrual blood and the pad should stay for about 4-5 hours depending on your menstrual flow. After use, you need to wash the cloth really well and remove every stain of blood and then you can reuse the same pad. These cloth pads are usually made in several layers that have cotton or hemp, but not plastic. In the first few tries it may seem daunting, however once you get used to it; you will start using reusable pads. You do not have to dispose this pad and buy new ones so it also saves a lot of your money. Few points to summarize the importance of reusable sanitary pad in Nepal:
Karmalaya Foundation Nepal works on menstruation hygiene and women's health related awareness campaign among elderly women in rural villages of Nepal. The KFN team visits rural places on foot to conduct programs focusing on targetted area and population through Focus Group Discussion (FGD). An all female KF team has indepth discuss with participamts regarding their problems, possible issues and their solutions and treatments. KFN specially provides menstruation hygiene information flex to aama samuha (mothers' group) of vilage which is an active social group. Women were introduced about the resusable sanitary pads which could be prepared at home. This campaign includes a follow up program where the team will teach women to make reusable sanitary pad at home with minimum of materials.
The Karmalaya Foundation Nepal (KFN) conducts various public health awareness campaign led by Public Health graduate officer. The public health awareness programs are extensive in topic and exclusively designed to make rural villagers easy to understand and comprehend the core of awareness campaign.
Some of the regular public health awareness campaign are
Sanitation and Distribution of necessity materials at Child Care Center
Karmalaya Foundation Nepal conducted personal hygiene awareness event and measured height and weight of children at day care center of Bhokteni, Gorkha. In addition, KF distributed whiteboards, dusters and markers to child care center along with winter warm jackets to children of the center. A public health team of all women from Kathmandu organized the awareness program where all children and parents participated.
KF distributed toothbrush and masks to children of daycare center. Children actively participated in toothbrush and handwashing activities. The systematic correct way of handwash, brushing teeth and use of medical masks were described by the public health graduates. The measured height and weight of children were shared with parents letting them the normal growth and nutrition of their children.
Public health Awareness Program at Chitwan Orphan Children and Women Protection Center.
Karmalaya Foundation Nepal conducted personal hygiene, dental hygiene and proper handwashing awareness program at Chitwan Orphan Children and Women Protection Center of Chitwan district. Chitwan Orphan Children and Women protection Center is a center raising orphan children and gives living space and livelihood trainings and employement opportunities to vulneral, single women.
The public health team of two ladies from KF conducted the program focusing on easy learning and teaching for children. The team distributed toothbrush and masks to children of center. The systematic correct way of handwash, brushing teeth and use of medical masks were described by the public health graduates. In addition, public health team went detail with the food intake at center and looked at nutritional status in menu which are necessary for children's physical and mental growth.
One of the Major Programs of KFN is financial support to needy children and educational sponsorship. Karmalaya Foundation has been involved in social work since its inception in 2010. We work in the field of education, health, women and children. As a major project of KF, we provide sponsorship to needy children from rural indigent family. Currently, 12 children who from all geographical regions of mountain, hills and terai are completely sponsored by generous supporters via KF. The sponsorship program includes academic (tuition fee, hostel, school materials) and overall day-to-day necessities and expenses.
Our aim of sponsorship goes beyond conventional education support that ends after grade 12. KF has done child education insurance to each child so that they do not have to worry and be foundationless after finishing higher secondary schooling. Children are given sponsor based on the need without any social subjects of race, religion, and class being a concern. In addition, KF also provide life skill training like sewing, painting, language courses or driving, trainings.
Deserving children are individually supported in their journey of education by providing long term academic sponsorship to short term assistanship. In short term and contigency form, KF distributes school materials like uniform, smart phone and stationeries like books, copy, pencils, school bag, and so on.
KFN financial supports Chitwan Orphan and Women Protection center for more than 10 years. Currently, total of 10 children reside in the center. Karmalya Foundation Nepal supports the center by supplying daily needed basic foods, clothes to emergency financial help. The academic fees of children are also looked after by KFN with the help of our generous supporters.
Story of Sponsorship; Manisha Gurung
Big congratulations to Manisha Gurung for graduating high school with well-deserved grades. Manisha Gurung is visually impaired since birth but her impairedness is not hindrance to education. Karmalaya supporterd her education and living accomodation since 2013 to guide her towards her goal to become teacher and make contribution towards educated society. The sponsorship to Manisha is a doorway to emabark her journey of indepency, freedom and empowered woman.
We wish good luck to Manisha as she joins her undergraduate this year and for all her future endeavours.
Karmalaya Foundation works on broader social issues but is very conscious about nature and environment. KF along with Swaragaun Youth People have been working since years for the proper waste magement of Swaragaun village.
The use and access of plastics and unbiodegradable materials have increased with modernization and road connection in village areas . But, villagers are unaware about the harms of such waste if not properly managed. Most of the rural municipalities of Nepal do not have system of collecting and managing trashes coming out from households and shops like Swaragaun .
KF and youth people of swaragaun collectively working for the collection, transportation and environment friendly disposal of waste away from village. Not only that, the dustbins have been kept in different parts of village with separate bins for degradable and unbiodegradable wastes. This has kept village clean, avoided soil pollution to water pollution, which directly leads to clean surrounding and healthy environment.
KF sincerely thanks to all our regular supporters for continous help. Your good Karma and deed will be counted by the superior lord. And please keep supporting our purpose.
KF participated in an annual tree plantation programme organized by Lions Club Sweet Home Bhaktapur in Kundalinee school, Sundarijal. The tree plantation programme is specially targetted to make school area more greener, and in macroscopic view to increase carbon absoprtion ability to build healthy environment.
At this era of online learning and teaching, there is a gap and risk that poor children unable to afford smart phone and interet access maybe deprived of broader global standard eduction. KFN has been working to support children and their education at best through every technical and financial angles.
As such KF provided a smart phone to Sushan Tamang from Gaujini, Nuwakot to attend online class. School is one of the harshly affected sectors because of pandemic. Sushan, studying in grade 8 ranks first in class but was unable to attend online class unable to afford smart phone. He was excited to join virtual classes again and continue his education again.
Like a story of Sushan there are number of children from poor background who are unable to attend online class as they can't afford internet and smart phones as a result they are deprived of their fundamental right to education.
We would like to continue providing smart phones to children incapable to buy smart phone by asking you all to donate us any second hand working smart phones, tabs or ipad lying in your house. An unusable gadgets at your home could be greatest boon for children of rural Nepal.
Kathmandu Animal Treatment Center( KAT), a biggest and oldest animal welfare organization in Nepal was founded in 2004 by Jan Salter, a British woman living in Nepal in order to begin systematic management and protection of the street animals of Kathmandu.
KF has supported KAT financially and provided volunters in all ups and downs since 2011. KF's international volunters have adopted number of dogs from KAT to their home Germany and Austria.
With rapid increment in the number of street dogs, and absence of policy and responsible government authority, it comes to the responsibility comes to animal welfare organization to provide food, health checkups, vaccination and works related to street dogs. Karmalaya Foundation in worked with KAT during the crisis of Pandemic where the absence of people in roads and isolation at home created huge problems and starvation among dogs.
