The combination of domestic upheaval and the dilapidated state of higher education in Nepal has contributed to a large number of young and relatively affluent youth heading abroad. Foreign higher education destinations of choice have ranged from nearby India and Thailand to the United States, Europe, and Australia further afield.
The trend has become so widespread that sending one’s children abroad has become a coveted status symbol for upper and middle class families, and for families aspiring to move up the social ladder. Without getting into the controversial debate about whether this is good or bad, traitorous or inevitable, I would like to explore some of the positive impacts of the emigration of youth for higher education.
It is clear that a new generation of Nepali leaders is in the making in the United States and elsewhere. Many of these younger generation Nepalis in the age group 20-35 may have left the country physically but they possess a keen sense of responsibility to helping less fortunate people back home. These Diaspora Nepalis who want to improve the situation in the homeland are highly educated, creative, well connected, and cosmopolitan. Of those in the United States, many have attended some of the finest institutions of higher education and many now work at prestigious private firms and reputed academic institutions.
The first example I would like to highlight of how young Diaspora Nepalis are giving back to their country is that of Nyaya Health, a US-based non-profit public health organization that is primarily funded by Nepalis and Americans in the United States. Nyaya Health’s mission is to provide free community-based healthcare in rural areas of Nepal affected by poverty, isolation, war, and neglect.
Nyaya Health’s main project is the Bayalpata hospital and its affiliated mobile medical services in the far western district of Achham. Achham suffers from extremely high child and maternal mortality and has one of the highest rates of HIV prevalence in Nepal. Prior to the establishment of the hospital with its 29 Nepali staff, including four medical doctors, the 250,000 people in Achham did not have access to a single doctor. With an annual per capita income of less than $200, a literacy rate of 33%, and with the nearest airport and main health referral center being a ten-hour drive away, medical care was simply out of reach of most people of the district until the opening of the Bayalpata hospital. Today, the hospital serves 3,000 patients every month and provides comprehensive primary care, maternal and child healthcare, infectious disease prevention and treatment, and management of chronic conditions.
Since it was founded in 2006, approximately 50,000 patients have been treated at Bayalpata hospital, and its staff there have partnered successfully with local government authorities, the Ministry of Health, and local communities. The 250,000 people of Achham owe their newfound access to life-saving healthcare to the efforts of Nyaya Health.
The non-profit’s founding was spearheaded by a group of US-based Nepalis such as Bibhav Acharya, a student at the Yale School of Medicine. Its 11-member board of directors includes other Nepalis and non-Nepalis from top US institutions, such as Harvard Medical School. The group also works closely with world renowned public health experts like Paul Farmer, who works with Nyaya Health as an adviser.
Bayalpata hospital’s operations in remote and underserved Achham have been made possible because of the efforts of a group of young US-based Nepali public health experts. The organization has grown rapidly too. In 2009, it spent about US$ 80,000 (Rs 6,000,000), while this figure rose to over US$ 160,000 in 2010. The United States-based executive committee of Nyaya Health trains, funds, and employs the 29 staff of the hospital and an additional 30 community health workers. They have shown that armed with determination and a spirit of public service, Nepali youth thousands of miles away can make a substantial and positive impact back home.
A non-profit that funds environment, education, and healthcare-related projects in Nepal is another example of how young generations of expatriate Nepalis have helped empower and nurture entrepreneurship back home.
Youth for Nepal (YFN), which is also based in the United States, is run by a team of 11 Nepalis in the United States and nine people in Nepal. It was co-founded by Abishkar Shrestha, a graduate student at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and his friends Suyog Shrestha and Sanchit Chokhani. All three of them attended Grinnell College for their undergraduate studies.
Founded in April 2007, YFN staff work on a voluntary basis. The group raised US$ 22,000 (Rs 1,650,000) in 2010, including a grant from the social networking site, Facebook. Fundraising activities are done all over the United States through happy hours, cultural events, potluck dinners, and raffle competitions organized by YFN members in their schools, offices, and neighborhoods.
According to Abishkar, “YFN’s operating model is based on funding grassroots development and social awareness-raising projects initiated by a broad array of people and organizations in Nepal.” Ideas proposed by people and groups in Nepal are vetted and finessed by YFN staff, after which the group provides funding to the projects. The people whose projects are funded are expected to carry out their work with minimal supervision, thus allowing for creative ideas to blossom and fostering a sense of entrepreneurship and responsibility. Some of the main projects funded have included rebuilding schools in Dang and Sindhupalchowk (US$ 5,000 each), first-aid training in Lamjung for students and teachers from 10 schools, and reproductive health education for over 900 adolescents (US$ 530).
Groups such as Nyaya Health and Youth for Nepal perform a commendable role in providing desperately needed social services and in fostering a sense of entrepreneurship and responsibility among youth. They demonstrate how a generation of relatively young and highly educated Nepalis based abroad is actively engaged in lending a helping hand to their native land.
While these efforts are commendable and inspiring, a major challenge is that they remain mostly localized and at the grassroots level. Scaling them up to reach a larger segment of Nepal’s population will be something that would need to be more seriously considered. At the same time, these groups can only do so much. It is the government’s responsibility to provide healthcare, education, and social services to the population. While efforts of this nature can certainly assist and supplement the state’s capability, efforts to bolster state capability should be given priority at the national level.
Saurav J. Thapa is an employee of the School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University in Washington DC, USA
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