Dear All,
Here is an update of the situation regarding Covid-19 in Nepal and our latest project.
After almost three months in lock-down, the rules are slowly being relaxed. It is doubtful whether this is a good strategy. The lock-down has taken a heavy toll on the population; tourism shut down completely, many workers from Kathmandu and countries such as India and the Middle East returned to their families in the hills, day workers are in serious trouble and many families, whose business has shut down, are struggling. In contrast, the number of new infections increases DAILY by 400 to 600 and is now more than 9000. With an extremely poor health care system across the country, this is a extremely worrying situation and leaves the country with a difficult choice between two evils.
Food / hygiene packages for 109 families in the Nuwakot district:
Laxmi Support distributed food & hygiene packages to 109 families in the Nuwakot district on Friday 12 June. 91 Families live in the village of Old Budhasing, where 60% of the inhabitants are Dalits, the lowest caste of society. As many relatives have returned to their villages, there are more mouths to feed. Food reserves are running low. With this extra support, families have food on the table for three to four weeks without any worries.
We’ve also included the families of the 10 students, who we supported in March earlier this year. All 10 children come from poor families in the area. Unfortunately, our school uniform, stationary and book project for the 10 students was only partly executed due to the outbreak of Covid-19.
We’ve also supported 8 elderly people; they live alone in the same area and receive minimal support of the family and community. Our support was hugely appreciated and will bring relief for all.
The food / hygiene package includes the following: 25kg bag of rice, 3kg lentils, 1 litre of oil, salt, toothbrushes, toothpaste and 5 bars of soap per family. All the things were bought in Dhading and transported to the village by truck. People were already waiting for the truck to arrive. To execute the project as safely as possible, Ram of Laxmi Support, provided facial masks and hand sanitizers.
It is nice to mention that our project was broadcasted on the local Gerkhu televison. A link from the YouTube video is here. Articles have also appeared in two local newspapers, see one of the articles here: Bidur Kabhar.
We would like to thank all our sponsors for their financial support, we cannot carry out this project without your generous donations.
Laxmi Support on YouTube:
To bring our projects to life, we have put a number of short clips on YouTube. In this video, for example, you see residents of Old Budhasing walking back to their village with the bag of rice on their back: https://youtu.be/ls_01X7ynDI.
Donation Request:
Unfortunately, due to the pandemic Laxmi Support hasn’t been able to attend any markets to raise money for our projects. For the first time in 14 years, our savings are running low and it is now that we kindly ask for a small donation towards our projects. Donations are very welcome via Paypal (with debit / credit card or via your Paypal account), or transferred directly into our Laxmi Support ING bank account (IBAN: NL 62 INGB 000 253 1574 / BIC: INGBNL2A/ The Netherlands). The Paypal Donate button can be found on our homepage.
Samantha has also crocheted Keychain Hearts and Jellyfish, which we now sell online via Facebook (see photos attached). The Keyring Hearts with Metal Clip cost £ 3.50 / Euro 4 and the Keyring Jellyfish for £ 4 / Euro 5 (excluding shipping costs). These colourful keyrings are great gifts for children and all proceeds will go directly towards our projects. If you’re interested, contact us via e-mail (different colours available).
That’s it for now. Follow us on Facebook to stay informed about the situation in Nepal regarding Covid-19 and for more news and photos of our projects. Or check out our website (translation option available) and our new YouTube channel with short clips of our projects.
Namaste,
Samantha/ Laxmi Support Foundation