Mr. Ramesh Dhamala (Chairman of EPF-Nepal) and Dr. Roswitha Schroeter (Chairman of Caricimo e.v. Germany) jointly hosted a formal kick-off meeting at Shree Rana Devi Primary School to communicate with target group about project plan and goals on 27th August, 2007. We were honored to have three guests from Germany to join this meeting: Mrs. Ruth Geherenger, Mr. Dhan Schroeter, and Ms. Anuradha Schroeter. This is a 10-year educational support project and aim to enhance Tamang Group’s educational level by the means of providing equal educational opportunity and schooling material support.



On the same day, there are 75 registered children received school uniforms, bags, sandals, toothbrushes & pastes, washing & shower soap and stationary materials from our sponsors.





Who are Tamangs’ of Sangkosh-4, Tanechaur, Dhading?



Tamang people of Sangkosh are very backward in socio-economic status. They were migrated from Jharlang and other different remote villages of the Nuwkot District. They were fighting against natural force (flood, landslide and non-productive land), which created a tough environment to live in. Since 30 years ago, gradually they left their own villages and some of them settled in Sangkosh VDC. The village of Tanechaur locates north part of Dhading Beshi, which takes one and half hour by car.



Firstly, there were only three houses and after two years other two families built small houses here. Afterwards, they deforested and made non-irrigated land where they used to grow vegetables and some crops. The basic economic activities are: men work in other owners’ fields as tenants while women used to make local wine to sell in local market. Their life style remains the same until now, their work is physical labor-based, and they have more children to feed. They are unable to provide education for their children due to socio-economic weakness. Before this project is launched, according to our survey, there are 18 houses of Tamang and totally 45 students are enrolled into school. However, those students due to lack of teachers and other schooling resources in public school they have received poor quality of education. This reality also strike parents’ hearts to question about what can this kind of education bring any future to their children.







During our research and pre-discussion period with Tamang groups, those doubts and obstacles were raised among people. Spending months on awareness campaign along with our good reputation of several on-going projects, target people were convinced day by day. By the end of this June, we had administrated 71 students on our sponsorship list.



Our Goal for 10-Year Educational Project



• In short term, we aim to provide equal educational opportunity to those deprived groups through financial support on individual schooling expenses under our maximal capacity. In this stage, we will encourage student’s enrolling rate and monitor their dropout rate.



• In mid-term, our target is to provide good quality education by means of improving school facility, providing sufficient numbers of teachers and training to enhance good quality education. The number of students who can pass High school SLC (School Leaving Certification) and continue higher education will be an encouraging index to assess our project’s outcomes.



• In long term, our goal is to integrate this educational project into a community development project. To improve target groups living standard through education, and to sustain this project by more local social resource and participation. EPF-Nepal can transfer the implementation duty to local community, only acting as monitoring and consulting role.



Extend Project to Cover More Disadvantage Groups



The local participants including social workers, teachers, residences and other indigenous groups, they reveled their high interests towards this project. There were other indigenous and untouchable (Dalits) groups also requested to be covered by this project since they are equally poor and deprived of their rights to access social resource, including educational opportunities. Hearing from the voice of people’s needs, EPF-Nepal and Caricimo e.v. Germany committed to maximize our resource in order to include Dalits and Newari groups into the coverage of Tamang Project.