The north-east of Mugu is known as the Karan Belt. It is made up of five VDCs: Mangri, Kimri, Pulu, Dolphu and Mugu.
Buddha Higher Secondary School (BHSS) is located in Mangri and is the only source of education for the Karani people. Students have to walk 2-5 hours each day to get to BHSS. Because of this, it is a particular problem for the female students. One option would be to stay in rented rooms close to the school, but they would often have to assist the landlord in daily household chores to help pay for their stay. Families were also concerned that their daughters may not be safe, staying so far away from home. Because of this, many girls were forced to drop out, or found that they fell far behind in their studies.
In partnership with BHSS and the Karani Community Development Centre, UMN arranged for the construction of a girls’ hostel close to the school.
Kunchahang Sherpa is from a poor family and has two daughters and two sons. She wasn’t able to go to school herself, but would like to see all her children, especially her daughters, get an education. She heard about the girls’ hostel in Mangri and was able to send them there. She is happy for this provision and is confident that her girls will study hard and make her proud.
One of her daughters shares that it is a comfortable place to live. It has a fenced-in compound and solar panels have recently been installed, giving much needed electricity.