The project has created a safe learning environment for 119 students at Shree Jaya Devi Secondary School in Lamjung District, a remote mountain community devastated by an earthquake in 2021.
A recent opening ceremony brought saw Year 9 pupils and community members performing celebration dances for a crowd of over 200 people, including teachers, students, families and community leaders who expressed heartfelt gratitude to the Isle of Man for its vital support.
The school is nestled at 1,850m above sea level, overlooking the distant Annapurna Mountain range, in the hard-to-reach village of Purano Duwar, approximately four hours east of Pokhara.
Following the 2021 earthquake and the multiple tremors that followed, more than 100 homes in the region were damaged, and two of the school’s buildings sustained major structural damage, rendering four classrooms unsafe.
In 2024, UK-based charity Pahar Trust Nepal and the local community worked together to demolish the two damaged buildings and begin construction of the new facility which features six safe and strong earthquake-resilient classrooms.
Completion of this project was made possible thanks to the generous support of an Isle of Man Government International Development Small Grant, the Dordi Rural Municipality, and Pahar Trust Nepal’s dedicated supporter community.
The total cost of the project was £74,732.
The Isle of Man International Development Small Grant was for £100,000 to be given to the charity over two years, at £50,000 per year.
Alan Sweetman, executive director of Pahar Trust Nepal, said: ‘Together, we can ensure that children in Nepal have the opportunity to learn in a safe and inspiring environment.’
Headteacher Mr Shyam Prasad Sapkota said: ‘If Pahar Trust Nepal hadn’t helped us build the school here, there’d be a lot of uncertainties regarding the future of these children.’
Pahar Trust Nepal has completed 326 projects in the rural communities of Nepal’s Himalayan foothills.
