Madhesh Province - SUPPORT FOR 4 SCHOOLS

Madhesh Province is located in the very south of Nepal, in the so-called Terai, right on the border with India. It is Nepal’s most densely populated region, with the country’s lowest literacy rates (63.5 % overall – and among women, only 54.7 % can read and write!). Local schools struggle with serious infrastructure deficiencies: Overcrowded classrooms and makeshift buildings make teaching difficult and deprive children of the learning environment they need for their development.

Together with the Carnevali Foundation and four local municipalities, we’re focusing our efforts exactly where support is most urgently needed: Existing school buildings are being completed, unusable structures are being made serviceable, and additional classrooms are being created. This allows investments already underway to be meaningfully completed and sustainable learning spaces to be created for future generations.

Four schools are being supported through this project, each with its own challenges:

• Shree Secondary School in Mahottari District is attended by about 700 students but has only ten classrooms, most of which are in poor structural condition. A new building with two open-plan rooms, whose construction has already begun, is now set to be completed to provide urgently needed additional space.
• At the Shree Rastriya Prathmik School in Dhanusha District, 137 children – most of whom belong to the Dalit community – are enrolled. Since classes will finally be organized by grade level in the future, each age group needs its own classroom. Two classrooms already built on the first floor will be made usable once the walls are completed.
• The Shree Janta Basic School in Bara District educates 290 children aged four to fourteen. Of the five existing classrooms, two are unfinished and do not even have a roof. As part of the project, these will be completed and two additional classrooms will be built so that all children can learn in safe and dignified conditions.
• At the Shree Ram Kumari Rastriya Basic School in Mahottari District, 267 students are taught primarily in makeshift classrooms made of corrugated iron. A reinforced concrete structure that is already under construction will be completed with the addition of the missing walls, thereby creating permanent, weatherproof learning spaces.

The municipalities are contributing 15 % of the construction costs and will cover all subsequent expenses.