Earthquake - one year on in Dhading

 We write this our last post, before returning to UK in June, to mark the anniversary of the earthquake of April 25^th.  Firstly, please watch this moving brief video of the situation people like Ram Maya faced in Northern Dhading and the way that UMN with their local partner HIMS was able to respond initially.

http://www.umn.org.np/videos/586   'Ram Maya's story'

Kanchi Maya lost her home and two of her family - Ree, Northern Dhading

“How many houses have you built?” – the question that understandably people most ask as they enquire about UMN’s Disaster Response Program (DDRP) in Dhading.  My heart is heavy to report that, even one year on, at the first anniversary of the earthquake, still UMN, like other INGOs, is still waiting to obtain the necessary government permissions, and grants to each affected household, to support the house rebuilding (for us this means the 1,100 poorest households). The continuing disarray and delay at central government level means, according to them, that the house rebuilding programme, in all affected districts, is now planned to take up to 5 years. It is distressing for those of us working directly with local people that they will be having to manage in temporary shelters for more winters to come.

In spite of these unacceptable delays, a number of desperate people, especially in the high Himal, have started rebuilding houses themselves believing that the promised government grants will never reach them. Though these people are known for their community spirit and the help they give each other, it is worrying that most will have to take out loans with very high interest to rebuild their houses, putting them in a precarious situation for the future.

Family rebuilding their own house - Ree

DDRP is pressing ahead as much as possible  and we have now trained 500 masons in earthquake resistant building techniques. They are already supporting those who have started building houses even without the government grants. The masons are also assisting  with building schools, bridges and micro hydro repairs.

 Since I arrived in July 2015 we have had to write and rewrite programme plans to reflect ever changing government policies and systems for managing and authorizing building design and finance for houses and schools, hire 35 new staff, sign partner agreements, negotiate with government and donors and build up what is now a strong, committed DDRP team. Each week has presented numerous hurdles and challenges but incredibly the project team, constantly negotiating at every level, has been able to press forward with much of the ‘build back’ work despite the difficulties, including the building of 59 schools.

Damaged school and temporary learning centre at the back, built by DDRP

http://www.umn.org.np/videos/608 'Back to School'

Work is also progressing well for 18 km of trail repairs, 45 community drinking water systems (where water sources have been damaged) and many agricultural inputs (animals, livestock sheds, tools, seeds).  So far 7,400 people have benefitted from distribution of goats/poultry, seeds, mini tillers, hulling machines, blacksmith tools, etc and many trainings for new skills. Local farmers are being helped to strengthen linkages between themselves, the growers, and dealers which will help them to obtain better prices when marketing their products such as vegetables and goats. 

 

Trail repairs- before and after                                                         

Distribution of goats in Lapa and Ree, North Dhading

485 people have received trauma healing counseling and school teachers have been trained in helping students cope with mental health issues related to the effects of the earthquake on their lives.

Phul Maya, Ree

It has been a humbling experience working to assist families who have lost everything, even family members. In spite of their devastation and loss, they show such a positive attitude and resilience in starting to rebuild their lives.

As we come to the end of ‘our year in Nepal’ I (Finlay) want to say that what an honour and privilege it has been to work in DDRP with Shiva, (the DDRP Team Leader), Jaap (previous manager) and the whole staff team in assisting the poorest people of Dhading to start to rebuild their communities and their livelihoods. Thank you to the Methodist Church in Britain for immediately responding to UMN’s request and supporting us to contribute to the vital work in Nepal this year.

For further information and updates: www.umn.org.np

Rachel:  Thank you so much to Asha Nepal, Rescue Network Nepal and Nepal Indigenous Disabled Association for your warm welcome and for allowing me to make a small contribution in support of your excellent work. I have so much respect and admiration for the different ways in which you advocate and work for the safety, well-being and voice of the most marginalized people in Nepal.

www.asha-nepal.org

rescuenetworknepal.com

nidanepal.org.np

       

Stories from Dhading

We recently held our first retreat for the 30 new Disaster Response Project staff. We are pleased that they have quickly settled to be an excellent, committed and well bonded team despite the geographical and logistical challenges of working in this spread out, steep remote area. It was inspiring to hear each one share about the highs and challenges of their work and realise what has been achieved despite trying conditions. Our staff have written some short accounts, based on their conversations with local people, which show some of the positive changes that are happening as they begin to rebuild their lives.

  " I can now safely reach my land" 

Baman (45 year old) lives in Lapa in the far North of Dhading. There are 7 in his family including 4 children. Because of earthquake damage causing landslides, he faces difficulties in accessing his land to cultivate the crops. 'Macho Somniu' is the main foot trail which almost all of the Lapa Thulogaun residents use to reach their agriculture land.  Villagers were panicking after the road was completely destroyed by the earthquake of 25^th April 2015. Baman, along with other residents of Lapa Thulogaun had no option but to use an alternative very steep, slippery road which put them at risk - Rita Ghale, a local resident had already fractured her leg.

Baman could not survive without cultivating his land because agriculture is his only option for survival. Fortunately, Dhading Disaster Response Program had a 'Cash for Work' programme for repair and maintenance of foot-trails in Lapa . Namaste Rural Development Society (NRDS), a local partner of UMN carried out an assessment of destroyed pathways and the Somniu foot trail was given high priority for reconstruction. Local workers received direct benefit through the 'cash for work'  and the residents gained easier and improved access to their land. Biman said, “I am really very thankful to NRDS which has solved our big problem and we will never ever forget this great help. I tell you most honestly there is no limit of happiness between us from Lapa residents of ward 1, 3 and 5. 

 "My traditional building skills have been transformed"

Nar Bahadur Gurung, 52 year old, lives in Lapa-8, Khading and has been wholeheartedly committed to construction work for more than 20 years. He has been involved in the construction of many houses in Lapa VDC and said “I am always anxious and eager to build good quality houses in Lapa-  the correct shape and size etc”.   From the beginning he used to follow traditional designs, tools, techniques and methods. He never had the opportunity to study or receive training in improved construction skills.  He added, “The dreadful and disastrous earthquake of 2015, 25^th April has proved that the houses we built were not secure.  We were really devastated by the situation made by the earthquake. I heard that there is going to be an earthquake resistance mason training but was not sure that the date and my chance to be nominated as a trainee would actually happen.   But happily, due to my previous skills in construction, I was selected to participate and felt really lucky to be among the trainees”.

“From the mason training I learnt the different ways to tie bands such as corner band, seal band, lintel band, roof band etc. I learnt the ways of using a plumb bob line which was completely new to me. I learnt bands can be tied with timber, bamboo and reinforced concrete. Likewise, I also learnt the way of observing a pipe level to maintain proper level. In addition to that I learnt the ratio of cement, sand and aggregate required for different construction purposes. Furthermore, I learnt the length, breadth and height of window and door compared to the length and breadth of wall”.

The training provided by NRDP and Dhading Disaster Response Program was very successful and I know the learnings will help to revive our lost hope and dreams of providing shelter to our families.  I am hoping that similar trainings can be given to other masons of Lapa VDC so that they can also construct earthquake resilient homes in future. The training was very useful and meaningful to me from which I got the opportunity to learn more new things than I have ever learnt in my life. I learnt that earthquake resilient houses can be constructed even just using locally available materials - that is how my traditional skills have really been transformed. I gained a certificate as a skilled mason worker. This will enable me to find opportunities in building earthquake resilient houses in our community and there is good chance of improved earnings for me in future. 

" At last I can go back to school"

I am Yomaya Tamang. I am 10 years old and Jharlang ward number 8 Kandrang is my home village. I am a student of Nekomo primary school and I study in class four. The earthquake disaster was so frightening for me. Our whole house was shaking and walls falling down but our family managed to get outside. My school was badly damaged…. I think me and my friends would have been killed there if the earthquake had not happened on a Saturday. After the earthquake I couldn’t go to the school because of the damage and because the foot trail which we used to walk along had been totally destroyed. We couldn’t go to school for almost four months after the disaster until we got a temporary school shelter. Our village people found another foot trail but it was a very long route to the school...it took almost 2 hours to reach there. It was so hard to study as we were tired from the long and difficult walk.

All our village people were facing problems with lack of safe walking paths. HIMS-Nepal (UMN local partner) started to repair some of the foot trails in different places around our village. I saw my villagers working with HIMS-Nepal to repair foot trails from Kyung to Thali, Kandrang and Gorgang.  I am really happy they have repaired the foot trail to my school so now I am having more time and more  energy and I feel safer and I can now get to school on time. Not only we students but many of our villagers are also so happy. They can travel to many places like Okthali, Dundure and towards Dhading Besi [district centre].

 "Making pickles, candles and soap!"

'Namaste', my name is Cheja Tamang and I am 60 years old. Jharlang VDC ward no 8 kyung is my home location.  Since my birth I have been doing just farming.  We cultivate maize, wheat, potato and different kinds of vegetables in our village which is for our own consumption. I had no other business, that’s why I was always struggling to survive. HIMS-Nepal [UMN partner] gave me the opportunity to join a new training. We learnt many new things like making different types of pickles, candles and liquid soap using local materials. This training has given me new hope and ideas for different ways to earn money for my family to survive. My heart is so thankful - I did not think to expect this kind of help - thank you to HIMS.

"I now have a kitchen garden"

"Namaste", I am Bishnu Maya Tamang and I am 24 years old from Jharlang VDC, ward no. 8, Thali. I am a housewife and I do farm work on our own land. Thali is one of the remote areas of Jharlang VDC. We villagers here depend on farming to survive. But the food we produce is enough for only half the year... for the remaining months we have to buy food. This year the earthquake disaster gave us more trouble and more shortage of food since we lost all our stored grains. We didn’t even have cereal and vegetable seeds for planting in the coming season. We were really worried about if we could feed our families enough to stay healthy..especially the children and the older people.

 We always used our own local seeds for farming but we have been harvesting less  and less and getting poor grains and vegetables. Soon after the earthquake one of the organizations of our village replaced our lost farming tools. They also gave us some better and different kinds of vegetable and cereal crop seeds such as cauliflower, bean, wheat etc. and training on how to cultivate these. I have used what I learned through the training on our own land. Now I already have different types of vegetables in my kitchen garden ready to eat. I have also earned some money by selling the vegetables to local households and shops.

Ongoing challenges

In spite of all this encouraging activity we  face delays because we still await the needed government permission related to the house building. An article in this week's Nepali Times sums up the frustration we feel:

Last week, the [Government] National Reconstruction Authority (NRA) announced a temporary ban on all reconstruction related activities conducted by NGOs/INGOs. The NRA said this was to bring all organisations involved in reconstruction under its jurisdiction, and asked them to temporarily halt the distribution of aid money and rebuilding of houses until the procedural guideline to involve non-governmental sectors in reconstruction process was published.

Spokesperson for NRA Suresh Adhikari told Nepali Times the ban was to ensure uniformity in the design of houses and distribution of relief and ensure all reconstruction work met government standards.

http://www.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/03/04/temporary-ban-on-reconstruction/

Despite this frustrating delay, in DDRP we are all ready to go, with masons trained, so we are starting by building 'demo' houses as the second phase of their training. This is a way of making some progress until the main building programme can begin.

First group of masons trained. Shiva, DDRP Team Leader on far right. Can you spot Finlay?!

Back in Dhading

Back in Dhading

We had a wonderful time in UK over Dec/Jan with family celebrations leading up to Peter and Nikki’s wonderful wedding, then Christmas and New Year, having special times with Lizzie, Matt and the girls from Cambodia with a happy house full!

View of  Himlayas flying in above Kathmandu and the smog line

 Approaching Kathmandu minutes later  below the smog line

We felt surprisingly disorientated on returning to Nepal. It has been uncomfortably cold, (but this week warming up), in Kathmandu with no heating in the houses. Due to the continuing Indian blockade there is still a serious fuel and gas shortage as well as very poor electricity supply – down to around 3 hours in the daytime. In Nepal electricity is produced by hydro and as the rivers dry up the electric produced is less. Yubaraj, one of the taxi drivers we know, queued for 14 days for 20 litres of petrol. Not surprisingly he, like many others, has now resorted to the black market which is thriving but means fares are doubled.

Yubaraj - still smiling…..

Fuel shortage…fewer buses….overloading

I am spending more time in Dhading now that strategic planning and staff recruitment is complete. We all miss Jaap who left recently but I am enjoying working with Shiva, the new manager. He comes from Dhading and lives there with his young family. He has good negotiating skills and knows key people in the District, which will be very beneficial to DDRP going forward and working with local partners.

Last week most of our construction staff were out selecting potential people to take part in village level mason training, which will start in February, with 25 from each VDC (borough) in the first round. In total 500 local masons will be trained in earthquake resistant technology. We are building some demo houses during the training which will be utilized by the community after completion. We have become aware that there is the risk of losing these masons to  better paid projects in the  Middle East once they are trained,  so we have decided to issue their certificates only when they have built some houses, as the second phase of their training.

We are working under very difficult conditions at present but there are some signs of progress to keep us going. We managed to obtain 3000 litres of Diesel fuel for DDRP from the Nepal Oil Corporation after a lot of negotiating, running here and there to different offices to get yet another chit signed! The blockade is affecting material prices such as cement, steel, etc. and also availability locally. For example, a bag of cement has increased in price by 40% and it is very difficult to obtain steel especially.

The long wait for Government clearance and permissions for house reconstruction has been very stressful but now appears to be imminent. We had a successful meeting with the Director of the central government office responsible for house building programmes. After months of insisting that INGOs could not proceed until government funds were released, they have now requested INGOs to provide financial support for house reconstruction after all as they say that they will not have sufficient funds for all the houses to be built. 

We are already supporting 8,000 households through livelihoods as well as community infrastructure such as re-building bridges, schools, toilets and drinking water systems – work which is already underway. For the housing project we will provide support to 1100 houses in total. We will be seeking more donors to complete our plans for housing, having increased the number of Learning Centres, roads, bridges and hydro projects, on the understanding that the government was mainly funding the housing support, which, as explained, is now not the case!

Apart from these political challenges, there are also social consequences to people’s long wait for the house building grants. People are suffering greatly and children are dying from cold especially in the high Himal areas. Ironically these people seem to be the most resilient, proactive and cooperative – necessarily, in order to survive. One of our Hindu staff remarked that the Christian Tamangs in the North appear to be the most resilient in rebuilding their communities and overcoming trauma – she thinks this may be due to their regular meeting together for singing, prayer and mutual support.

Further south there appears to be more feeling of disillusionment with the long wait for government support which has led to feelings of hopelessness and apathy and a general loss of traditional community spirit. It has sometimes even been difficult for our staff to find food, lodging and cooperation for activities – something that previously was never a problem. There is reported increase in drinking and gambling probably to ‘block out’ the harsh realities. Women and girls, especially those who are displaced and in camps as a result of the earthquake, are more vulnerable to prostitution and trafficking.

Rachel – I continue to work with the three local NGOs I am connected with. The disability organization has received a small grant to support disabled people in earthquake affected areas. We are working on their plans to distribute equipment such as crutches and commodes (there are no inside toilets) and raise awareness in those areas on the needs and rights of indigenous disabled people (minority tribal groups). At ASHA, we are preparing presentations for various institutions, – schools, police and nurses training, to raise awareness and promote responsibility at every level in society regarding violence against women and sex trafficking.  It is estimated that 10,000 to 15,000 Nepali women and girls are trafficked annually to many Middle East and Asian countries.  At least 200,000 Nepali women and girls are held in the sex industry in India but the actual magnitude is unknown. 

Many girls are trafficked by relatives, friends and partners, often out of sheer desperation. 

Smriti Khadka the director of ASHA says:

"Trust is the key issue. Many trafficked people are victims of their own relatives, friends and partners. The agents spend time persuading young women and girls with promises of marriage, a good life, work and money. Sometimes they actually marry the girls and take them to their destinations."

Although it is the highly disadvantaged who are most at risk, just this week Finlay was told by a Nepali female colleague of a well educated young women from Dhading studying for her MA. Over a long period, she had built up a relationship with a man from another district on Facebook and they planned to marry. When they finally met, despite his efforts to convince her, she soon realized that she had be duped all along and his real intention was to traffic her to the Middle East. With most teenagers having mobiles, this opens up new threats of exposure to porn and the dangers of trafficking behind the backs of parents. ASHA Nepal does a great job of supporting women and girls who have experienced sexual violence and those who have been trafficked, helping them to reintegrate into society.

Lastly here are a few photos of our walk last week up to Kirtipur, an ancient former Kingdom high up on the edge of Kathmandu:

 

Meanwhile, on another part of this planet Joss Stone live in Kathmandu on Thursday.

Tempting….!