Covid19 Emergency Aid
Coronavirus Food Relief and Distribution
The Coronavirus pandemic continues to have a huge impact on resource-poor countries like Nepal.
People are struggling to find work and earn money to buy food for their families.
Last year we financed an emergency medications and food relief fund for the very poorest families in Arnakot. This was coordinated and delivered by Karma Flights, who sent us an update from Nepal, which you will find further down on this page.
This year we supported three communities in Makwanpur. Anil, our trusted advisor there worked with local government, the women’s cooperatives and others to ensure that the food aid reached the families that were in dire need.
Food relief distribution in Makwampur
Anil Deoja: “Visability of NEPAL-ease’s goodwill cascaded to the lowest level of villagers”
On the 14th and 15th February 2021 food relief was distributed to seventy-five families in Makwampur where women, children, indigenous communities, caste-based and ethnic minorities have been disproportionately affected by food scarcity as poverty level has increased due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The families were selected by their greatest need and after thorough consultation with the three women’s cooperatives in the areas and the local authorities, ensuring that those most at risk of starvation were identified and supported.
The project was funded by NEPAL-ease and overseen by Anil Deoja, our trusted adviser and project manager in Nepal.
All seventy-five families were given sufficient rice, lentils, salt, sugar, cooking oil, chickpeas, soya nuts and bars of soap to last them approximately one month and it was calculated that a total of 382 individuals benefited from the food relief.
Anil reported that the relief distribution’s success owed much to the partnership already established by the three women’s cooperative as well as good preparation and good local community support, enabling the food to reach the recipients whilst keeping the operating costs as low as possible.
The following photos and feedback shows how much it was needed and appreciated.
“Thank you Nepal-ease being with us in such a pandemic situation and supporting to the most needy families” Chair- Prabha Bartaula, Rakshadevi women cooperative, Namtar
“Thank You NEPAL-ease for providing relief as I was sick and unable to work from last 4 months. With relief materials I will have time to rest and get rid of sickness and start working again.”
” I am very much grateful to cooperative and NEPAL-ease to look after me as I don’t have anyone to take care of me and I am too old to work hard. Such relief will keep me in ease and allow to work slowly in the field.”
NEPAL-ease/Karma Flights COVID-19 response and Humanitarian Relief Program for Arnakot Community
Report written by Prem:
“A vast majority of the population’s income is based on the fact that the father of the family works in the Gulf region and proceeds to send money home. Due to the global health crisis and full lockdown caused by COVID-19, many children are at high risk. Since the lockdown, most of their fathers have lost their jobs, and cannot send money home for food and medication. Similarly, the situation of senior citizens, daily wage workers, single women, and physically challenged people have become worse. In this critical time, it is our moral duty to work in solidarity with the local government and partner organizations. Thanks to the support of the NEPAL-ease Charity, UK, we managed to provide relief to 90 such families in Arnakot Deurali.
We coordinated with Arnakot Basic School and Nisikhola RM, ward no. 2, for permission to distribute relief products. Initially, the Arnaot community selected 60 families to receive help. As more families contacted the school, the list increased to 90. The relief was distributed from the school premises. The CMA Chet Bahadur and teacher Deviram, as well as the PTA chair Gyan Bahadur, worked very hard to purchase, transport, stock, unpack and repack 90 relief packages. Mr. Gyan and his team also loaded, transported, and unloaded the supplies in three lots from Burtibang. The supplies were divided equally before distributing.
Some people walked quite a long distance (as far as 2 hours), to receive the relief. They all had to go home carrying a heavy load, which can enable them to eat to a full stomach, finally. Everyone received 30 Kg of good rice, one Kg salt, one liter of mustard oil, one kg dal, and a soap. Altogether the worth of food was around 164,000/ Nepalese Rupees.
Recently, 400 medical kits were also distributed to 25 health posts in remote regions of Nepal, with our associates, Karma Flights, heroically driving 10 hours over rough roads to deliver the equipment. Many of these remote villages rely on a system of subsistence farming and money sent home by family members working in the Gulf States.
