In 2001 in the city of Pokhara (Nepal) a Nepali couple established a children’s home under the name “CHILDREN WELFARE ASSOCIATION” (CWA in short)in order to take care off -at that time- 11 children.
The Home is officially registered as an NGO (Non-Government Organization) at the Social Welfare Council in Kathmandu, under number 12125.
The aim of the CWA is to take in children who have either lost both parents, who have lost one parent or who have been neglected. These children are usually from the lowest social casts and the most impoverished circumstances.
Like most social institutions in Nepal, CWA’s Children’s Home does not receive any state support and has no regular income. Financial support comes exclusively from foreign private donations.
Like a big family, currently, 31 children aged between 4 and 18 years of age, live together under one roof and enjoy necessary attention and personal care in a relaxed family atmosphere.
The CWA children in June 2017
The moment in 2002 that Barbara Rentsch, a primary school teacher from Riehen (Switzerland), visited the CWA Children’s Home in Pokhara. She realized that this would be a valuable home to support, but that survival for the children taken care of could only be secured with dependable foreign support. To ensure continued support and care for the children she, since then, has been raising funds for this CWA Children’s Home. Since 2005, Barbara has been helped and supported in this effort by her husband, Peter Vecker.
Through many stays – of which various were year-long stays – in Nepal, Barbara and Peter have built up a functioning organization on site in Pokhara. During their later annual stays at CWA Children’s Home, they continued to expand the various organizational structures, train and motivate the employees while giving the children as much quality time as possible.
Through email and telephone Barbara and Peter keep in constant contact with the Children’s Home management and with the children personally. They are updated about the latest needs and developments on the ground on a regular basis.
As far back as 2005 a straightforward accounting system covering all income and expenditures was introduced in the Children’s Home. Besides, every month the management in Nepal is required to send the cash book-updates and bank statements to the Executive Board in Switzerland. Consequently, transparency about the use of donated money is uninterrupted and comprehensive.
In order to expand assistance to disadvantaged, poverty stricken, underprivileged people in Nepal, the charitable organization called “Children Welfare Association Schweiz”, based in Riehen (Basel City), was established in June 2008. The association is politically and denominationally neutral. More about the Association.
- to offer the children in our care a complete range of necessities starting out with a “home to stay in” with regular nutritious meals
- to offer a “roof” to sleep under in a place that the children can call their ‘home’ and shelter, where they can find a loving arm to lean on and psychological support
- to organize qualified day schooling for the children
- and to provide medical care when necessary
In short, we provide a comprehensive educational trajectory to every individual child to thrive in, within the safe, family environment of the Children’s Home!
Nepal has two separate educational systems, viz. government schools and private boarding schools. Initially, children from the CWA Children’s Home attended state schools. The classrooms, however, comprised of 70 to 100 children sitting on benches facing overexerted teachers. These conditions conferred only minor learning advantages onto the children and their progress was, consequently, limited.
Yet, to give our children a head start in the greater project of helping Nepal develop economically and socially, focused and qualified education is a necessity. That is why we are so happy that through the generosity of our donators we can presently offer our children highly qualified boarding school education, where the classes are smaller, the teachers better educated and where English is the language of instruction in all disciplines.
Like all children our children show great enthusiasm for learning new things. They are very diligent and especially the older ones have recognized their chance of getting a proper education.
Thanks to generous donations, a new building was constructed and inaugurated in the summer of 2010. It is located on land on the outskirts of Pokhara. The site and the building contain sufficient space for studying and playing, and in these improved circumstances every single child now has his or her own bed.
The remaining land of the site is used to grow cereals and vegetables in order to contribute to the daily nutritional needs. Our 2 cows give fresh milk for the children to drink. A small biogas plant produces gas from bio materials that is used for cooking. Our specially installed solar system produces electricity for light, for the water pump and for the water filter system.
The school bus brings our children over the new but rather bumpy road to school.
- Mr. Bijay Kumar Pradhan – Project Manager, full time
- Mrs. Sarswati Devkota – Children Care Taker, full time
- Mr. Prakash Giri – Administration Officer, Accountant, Homework Teacher, full time
- Mrs. Parvati Poudel – House Mother, 100 %
- Mrs. Sunita Shresta – House Sister, full time
- Mrs. Binita Mijar – Junior House Sister, full time
- Mr. Ganesh Bhujel – Coordinator Organic Farming, 60 %
- Mrs. Mina Prativa – Farming Staff, full time
- Mrs. Kim Maya – Animal Care Taker, full time
- Mr. Hari B.K. – Assistant Animal Care, 50 %
In addition to the salary, a fixed age pension (Provident Fund) is paid into for all employees. 10 % of its costs are paid by the Children’s Home and 10% by the staff-members themselves.
In case of sickness of employees or their children, 80 % of the costs for medical treatment and medicine are pledged for by CWA.
Both the CWA Organizations in Nepal and Switzerland (the Swiss Association) focus specifically on realizing the long term self-reliance of the Children’s Home. The construction of the new building, the realization of the small farm and the Home’s production of their own energy from renewable sources, mean that the first stage to attain this goal has been successfully negotiated.
In addition to ensuring a balanced diet for the children, to providing medical care and to raising the necessary school fees, the next goal is to enable those children who are getting on in their teenage years to realize the vocational training they prefer. Like in any family, our children will be taken care of until they are able to build up an independent life.
