Empower Asia has been working in Nepal since 2000. We care for 19 boys and 19 girls spread over three homes. Two homes are for boys. They are called Asha Kendra, which means The Hope Centre, and are based in Kathmandu. Our girls’ home is in Pokhara city.
Back in 2000 when we first surveyed Nepal, senior community leaders told us that they were having increased contact with rural peasants throughout the nation but that these folk would clearly never be able to take their place amongst the nation’s leaders or be in positions of influence. They felt that there was a pressing need to develop intelligent and capable professional people who would protect, care for and empower Nepal’s huge rural underclass.
Hence with their blessing we decided to focus our work on mentoring teenage boys and girls who would one day become teachers, social workers, engineers, accountants and lawyers. We are endeavouring to raise up young people so that they will have a heart for the poor and who in time will one day be willing to live and lead within rural village areas, provincial towns and cities.
Our heart to work with girls was particularly touched when we discovered the number of Nepali girls, who through no fault of their own, are ending up in prostitution. Many girls each year are sent as sex slaves over the border to fill brothels in Mumbai and Calcutta. Many girls contract the HIV virus within 6 months. And there ends a future. Our Pokhara girls’ home has been operating since 2001 and proactively aims to prevent our daughters from ending up in slave or bonded labour situations or as victims of human trafficking.
See http://empowerasia.org/nepal/mayas-story/
In our three homes we have a very strong emphasis on both academic achievement and development of character. Our boys and girls study unbelievably hard by western standards. For example, for a month prior to exams all the girls commence study about 5 am and finish at 10 am at which time they go to school. On returning home they commence study again finally going to bed about 11 pm. Apart from a regular evening meeting and meals there are few breaks in the day for them. Peggy and Pramod love the girls deeply. Without doubt this family knows the value of a quality education!
Peggy clearly has got what it takes to direct this program. She is already an established women’s leader within the city and an elegant and well educated woman. She displays wise and charismatic leadership. Before Peggy commenced this home she was a school principal having already set up and run a girls’ hostel connected to her school.
The children at all three of our homes attend fairly good quality private schools. Our Pokhara girls receive extra tuition via a live-in school teacher as well.
We anticipate that a high number of our kids will move on into tertiary education. These Nepali homes are long-term projects since most of our kids are only aged around 12 or 13 years old when we first receive them. Currently we have about a dozen young people studying at university. To this end we have developed the NEAT Fund see http://empower.asia/nepal/tertiary-education-fund/ If necessary our young people will have the opportunity to apply for a scholarship as long as they meet certain criteria.
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