Nepal | sdef

Nepal is an Asian country and is located in the Himalayan Mountains between India and Tibet. It is called the land of the laughing people. Of the ten highest mountains in the world, eight are located in Nepal, including the highest mountain in the world: the Mount Everest. Nepal is 147,181 km2 (4 times bigger than the Netherlands) and has almost 29 million inhabitants. The capital is Kathmandu and is located in a valley where many people live.

The average life expectation is 59 years. Just under ninety percent of the population adheres Hinduism and about five percent is Buddhist. About twenty percent of the area can be used for agriculture. Nepal has many mountains, leaving many areas inaccessible. Some years ago Nepal was hit by one of the worst earthquakes. Nepal was already one of the poorest countries in the world and the earthquake destroyed a lot.

Many people in urban and rural areas are extremely poor; more than half of the population lives below the poverty line. Agriculture is very important and almost eighty percent of the population works in it and produces jute, sugar cane, tobacco and grain. The production of textiles and carpets is increasing. Tourists are also an important source of income, they come mainly for the unspoiled nature and the Himalayas.

For further information about Nepal click here.

SDEF joined Nepal Netherlands Federation (NFN). In this federation, foundations in the Netherlands

are united that support Nepal. By working together, exchanging knowledge and to consult together, forces can be joined and people can help each other. This will prevent overlap in projects and hopefully work will be more effective and efficient in Nepal, but also in the Netherlands.