Dream #60

Dream #60

Unfortunately, in Nepal and in our project Dreams of Kathmandu, things don't always go as well or as we'd like.

And this usually happens for two reasons.

The first reason is our full responsibility and stems from the fact that we are foreigners trying to help Nepal. As much as we try to help and understand the local culture, we often run into issues that are so deeply rooted that it is impossible to change them. Imagine the circuit in reverse: a Nepalese arriving at our house in our countryl and giving us donations to help with our food or our children's school and wanting to take pictures with us? Maybe we wouldn't like it… it takes a lot of sensitivity to do things.

The second reason is the responsibility of Nepal and its people. Nepal is so poor, but so poor that the most deprived populations are completely dependent on donations. They look at us foreigners as being a wallet! It's as if we have an obligation to give and they have an obligation to receive. It is a vicious circle fuelled by corruption, NGOs, the government and the very people who benefit from these donations.

More recently we had to stop working with the Thaiba shelter in Kathmandu, where 8 children lived. We will continue to support some of these kids, but independently and through other channels.

But the couple who ran this place got used to our donations in such a way, that we paid the rent (see Dreams 25 and 36), food and education for the kids, around €5,000 a year in total, and they didn't make the least effort or work to help with the costs.

We've raised awareness of this addiction problem several times over the past three years, but they've done nothing to change the situation. We even proposed to help start a business to generate income and help with expenses. Nothing was made. The inertia and laziness only grew from day to day.

Please note that the funds have not been misused. All funds were directed to the purposes for which they were intended. But there has to be a joint effort here. It cannot be us, the donors, that bear all the burdens.

This year we also paid 750€ for education (see Dream 53), and eight rents for the building where they lived in the amount of 250€ each, or 2000€.

This amount of €2750 was funded with €1500 gathered with Stage 1 of Project X, and €1250 through a donation from the Foundation Vox Populi. Thanks to everyone who helped and got involved, especially Foundation Vox Populi that had already paid the full rent last year.

But now this help to this shelter will ended and next year we will use these funds to help other people and families.

This is another one of the non-negotiable principles of the project Dreams of Kathmandu: the children and the people who receive the donations must DESERVE them. They have to fight for them. We'll never give up on this principle. We will never contribute to situations of dependency that are not sustainable in the future.