The need to build sanitary facilities for children and young people at schools in remote regions of Nepal is undisputed. The west of the country in particular, which receives little attention even from the government, suffers from catastrophic conditions – including a complete lack of sanitary facilities at schools.

Against this background, it is a particular concern of our foundation to help where the need is greatest. However, as the sustainability of our projects is a central pillar of our commitment, it is out of the question for us to “simply” go into a village and build toilets. Instead, we rely on reliable local partners who not only ensure maintenance and sustainability, but also have the necessary understanding and awareness of hygiene infrastructure.

Thanks to our long-standing collaboration with NAG and its commitment to teacher training in western Nepal, Foundation member Pascal Brun – together with our local manager Khemradj Puri – was able to travel to Oda in the Kalikot district to explore potential, long-term sustainable projects directly on site. Thanks to NAG’s close cooperation with the Oda Foundation, which is involved in the region with its own hospital among other things and gave us a warm welcome, we were also able to find another strong local partner.

The journey took them to remote villages that can only be reached on foot – sometimes involving more than seven hours of walking per day through steep terrain to visit the surrounding village schools. As part of this pilot phase, three villages were identified for new projects, which are now being planned. With appropriate financial support, we hope to be able to implement these projects after the monsoon season.

If the implementation is successful and the partnership with the Oda Foundation and the NAG works, the L’Unique Foundation plans to set up a long-term materials warehouse in the centrally located Surkhet in order to be able to coordinate and implement future projects in western Nepal more efficiently and sustainably.