One Child Sponsorship Program

One Chepang Child Sponsorship Program: INVESTING $150 A YEAR FOR EDUCATING CHEPANG CHILDREN

        

Background Information

Chepangs are one of the most marginalized indigenous groups among 59 officially identified indigenous ethnic communities of Nepal. They are inhabitants of steep sloppy land of Dhading, Chitwan, Makwanpur and Gorkha districts of Nepal. Chepangs are ancient tribal people  who developed their own socio-economic and cultural characteristics and are classified in mongoloid group. They are one of the deprived and underprivileged group in Nepal, who are still in semi nomadic stage and are struggling for survival and the basic human rights .

Abstract:

Immediate cause of vulnerability for Chepangs is their lack of education and basic needs. The Nepal Chepang Association (NCA) reported that more than three quarters of all Chepangs are illiterate and that only 1% of Chepang women know how to read and write, compared to the national average of around 50%.

The remoteness of Chepang settlements is regarded as one of the main reasons behind these low literacy rates. Most Chepang villages have only a primary school and students need to travel four to five hours every day, usually over sloped and difficult terrain, to attend secondary level schools. Due to a lack of financial means, few Chepang students can afford to stay in hostels closer to educational facilities. Even though secondary education is officially free in government schools, some School Management Committees are said to collect fees, making education unaffordable to most Chepang students.

A general lack of awareness of the importance of education among Chepang parents and the high prevalence of illiteracy also constitute a big obstacle for the education of their children. Faced with serious challenges in maintaining their livelihoods, many Chepang parents take their children out of school to help with household, agricultural and wage work. As a result, the dropout rate is very high among Chepang school children.

One Chepang Child Sponsorship Program will help our Chepang Children to continue their education after grade 5 in nearby villages. This will help them to get educated and aware about the social, political and general rights that every citizens should get being Nepali in Nepal.

Let us be a part of Self Sustaining Campaign to support Chepang Community and make them self reliant as the education is the greatest thing in life. Sponsoring one child from your side will be the biggest contribution to the Chepang community. it will change the whole dimension of that Chepang Family. If a child is educated it will obviously help them to get aware about their basic fundamental rights and educate the entire family. Same child can be a backbone for the family to earn and support the whole livelihood of that family.

Problem Statement:

The major reason behind Chepang children going off the school is due to their incapability in attending grade 6 after their primary level education. so if we could support these  childrens from grade 6 to SLC ( School Leaving Certificate Level) it will help in one way  or the other. If we could support these childrens and make our own group of wise people we can mobilize them in community upliftment in near future.

Mission: Educating at least one chepang child from 25 household of Korak VDC Jimling ward no 3

About the Project: INVESTING $150 A YEAR FOR EDUCATING CHEPANG CHILDREN

The major reason behind Chepangs lagging behind is due to education. If we could enlighten some member of the chepang community they will obviously be a role model in the community and help in the community upliftment. so the main focus of this project is to educate chepang children. The simple process to educate the Chepang child is to sponsor a child annually in Government school.

Above All, INVESTING $150 A YEAR FOR EDUCATING CHEPANG CHILDREN: Enlightens the whole Chepang family

HOW ARE THE STUDENTS SELECTED?

The sponsorship will be based on merit that children’s achieve in their results. Top 5 students from grade 4 based on their final examination will be selected and write their case studies, through home visits, consulting neighbors. We assign women's groups to select students from their midst, whom they think are particularly needy or deserving of being sponsored. So only one of the meritorious as well as needy student will be selected from that community school so as to make the Chepang child sponsorship worth spending in Chepang Community.  We accept both boys and girls.

CAN I SPONSOR A GIRL, PLEASE?

Yes, girls are at a particular disadvantage in Nepali society, but we cannot promise you a girl. Members of our women’s groups fully understand the need to educate be girls, and choose girls and boys in equal numbers, because everyone has the right to an education. We have decided to respect the women’s choices and we seem to get an equal number of boys and girls to be sponsored.

HOW LONG IS MY COMMITMENT?

The sponsor promises to support the child for five years beginning from grade 5 - until the child has passed the SLC- the national school leaving exam given after 10th grade.

WHAT IS MY COST?

As a sponsor you will be asked to contribute $150, on March 1st as the new sessions of Nepalese students begins on month of April.  To sign up for this year, $30 is payable now to cover the cost for this year for administrative costs like going for field visits, collecting data, case studies, printing, printing photos etc.

HOW IS MY CONTRIBUTION SPENT?

The child's family will use the sum to pay for school uniform, supplies, and if applicable tuition, and good nutrition and clothing. The rest of your contribution is a stipend to the family as encouragement to send the child to school instead of work. 15% of your sponsorship fee is kept aside for administration.

HOW CAN I FOLLOW MY CHILD?

You will receive an update on your child twice a year as well as photos, and if at all possible letters. Our staff in Kathmandu visits your child four times a year, when the family receives one quarter of the annual stipend. Our staff member meets with the child the family and the school to assess your child’s progress and the family situation. If there are problems our staff member tries to help solving them and acts as a resource. She or he also takes pictures and assists with letter writing. A short report is prepared after each visit.

HOW CAN I ESTABLISH A PERSONAL CONNECTION TO MY CHILD?

You are encouraged to write letters telling her/him about yourself, your family and your world, monetary assistance is also welcome. You will also be taken to their home visits during your preferred vacations and experience rural setting and marginalized indigenous Chepang cultures. You will be assisted by our members for trekking, sightseeing, and given information’s about indigenous knowledge’s information’s practiced in Chepang Community.

HOW DO I GET STARTED ON MY SPONSORSHIP?

Upon sending in your contribution, you will receive photos and a profile of the child and the family. The amount of detailed information we have on each family and child at this point varies a great deal.