Nepal has witnessed phenomenal growth of overseas migration over the past decade. The remittance sent back home seems like a good achievement but it comes at a high cost to the Nepalese workers overseas, family values and social molarity in Nepal. Migration must be a choice, not a punishment but the forced migration we are witnessing today is in many ways are not a dignified economic system but just a modern form of slavery and a new way of human trafficking. Many of the problems arise for a number of reasons, especially workers themselves do not take precautions, fraudulent Nepalese employment agencies and the misconducts of agents for employer companies. Measures should be taken for safer and dignified migration. To its alternative, an option should be created within a country. JAGRITI has been acting on this; we do Knowledge Building, and Small Enterprise Development So far, • At least 2500 people are reached with crucial information on the issues of migration • Over 300 youth have mobilized for the awareness campaign on migration • At least 125 youth have received vocational training • At least 95 youth have given career counseling • At least 19 youth have started own small business or job • At least 20 families are supported for agro-based income generation.
The gender-based inequality, discrimination, and abuse are major obstacles to our vision for creating a just society. These obstacles start right from the home, neighborhoods and the school. We believe empowering women and sensitizing male counterparts from an early age would be an affirmative action towards ensuring gender equality. Our educators (girls) who are well trained on gender equality, physically and socially self-defense, not only replicates their knowledge to their peer groups through training, and interactions but also through dialogue with local stakeholders for promoting gender equality on the ground. Together they defend social malpractices and crime such as child marriage, child abuse, chaupadi system, domestic violence naming of a few. So far we have trained.
Over these years, we have learned how using media could be an effective tool to achieve our goals. Through the media, we have been sharing our vision, promoting our causes, and informing the general public about pros and cons, means and ends of the issues we have been raising. For example, Sakchhin Chhori is a 20 episodes TV-talk program being broadcasted through government own Nepal Television. The talk show is about girls’ empowerment that shares the struggle and success of women and girls in different capacities and has already reached thousands of audiences around the country.
We can’t stay ideal without responding disasters and emergencies. Nepal is prone to various types of disaster; more than 80 percent Nepali population is at risk of natural calamities. We believe this is one of the biggest hitches to our effort for protecting right to development. Aftermath of Gorkha earthquake in 2015, with the limited resources, we reached nearly about 25,000 people in 40 villages with food and non-food items. Similarly we were able to provide medicine that worth two million rupees to the ministry of health and population. In addition, wheel chairs, and big sized tents were made available in different hospitals; while we had organized health camp in various stations. Responding massive flood of 2019, we have supported 160 families with food, non-food and WASH and hygiene kits.
Education is the foundation of wellbeing of the children. To ensure quality of education, the learning environment should be friendly, especially the infrastructures such as classrooms, toilets and play ground. We started constructing such infrastructure aftermath of Nepal’s earthquake in 2015. Since our major focus is children, we have been also involving with reconstruction of the school buildings and facilities. We ensures these construction are better and safer. So far we have been able to construct five school building with facilities that has served at least 950 students in various districts of Nepal.
We have been contributing towards justice and peace through peace workshops, cross-cultural dialogues, and advocacy events for the long time. We are part of dozens of national and international network. One of the significant events we were able to do was formation of coalition of 75 Nepali NGOs and jointly reporting in to the Universal Periodic Review of Nepal at the UNITED NATIONS in 2015 on eight different thematic (human rights) issues.
