Education is essential to give disadvantaged children in rural Nepal a brighter future. Your support can help improve access to a better quality education in Rukum East, one of Nepal’s least developed districts.

The low learning achievements of students in this area limit their opportunities to study and work in the future, leaving them trapped in a cycle of poverty.

Your support for the Light their Way appeal will help almost 2,000 children through a new five-year project delivered through our partnership with the United Mission to Nepal (UMN).

This project will focus on children from some of the most disadvantaged sections of Nepali society who are most at risk of not completing their education: girls, children with disabilities, ethnic minorities, and lower caste groups.

Fulmaya is aged 13 and responsible for her two younger sisters, as her mother passed away and her father works overseas. She also narrowly avoided a forced marriage to a man more than double her age. She feels trapped and unable to go ot school because of her family responsibilities. She asks: “Who else will manage the things at home… if I continue my studies?”

Stigma and discrimination mean that Ganu’s speech impairment has become a barrier to her dreams. If her school became a disability-friendly learning environment, Ganu could complete her education and train as a tailor so she can live independently.

In total, this project will impact 55 schools over five years, improving the quality of education in Bhume and Putha Rural Municipalities in Rukum East. There are four main aims:

Overcome disadvantage

Develop more inclusive, child-friendly schools. This includes improving the learning environment for 1,910 children, training teachers, and increasing the inclusion of children excluded because of discrimination or disadvantage.

Improve access

Increase opportunities for children’s overall development, including learning outcomes. Includes improving children’s engagement and attendance at school, improving the opportunities for children with disabilities to access school, and overcoming harmful social practices like child marriage.

Engage communities

Increase the contribution of parents and families to assure a quality education and socially healthy practices. This includes developing the awareness about the importance of education, as well as the harm that can be caused by child marriage and other long-established social practices.

Develop support

Strengthen local authority systems and practices for quality education. This includes growing the understanding of how to deliver inclusive and child-friendly education, as well as how to develop policies, guidelines and plans to sustain a better standard of schooling.