Making a world of difference

Thanks to support of members of the LCA, along with backers of other international Lutheran aid agencies, life is improving for one poor Nepalese community.

Madargachh, a Santhal settlement in the South-East Asian country’s east, is one of the areas being served by Australian Lutheran World Service (ALWS), as a partner agency of Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Nepal.

More than 50 households of Santhal, a marginalised ethnic community, have been able to access resources from local government agencies, improve sanitation, send their children to school, collect money, and loan it within their cooperative, because of the Santhal Community Empowerment project.

‘You have presented a very impressive list of ACHIEVEMENTS… I would like to thank you for achieving a lot within five years.’

The project, otherwise known as Model Village, is an initiative of LWF Nepal under its long-term scheme Nepal Development Program (NDP). The NDP is jointly supported by ALWS, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Finn Church Aid and the German National Committee of LWF.

The Australian Ambassador to Nepal, His Excellency Mr Glen White, recently visited the community at Madargachh, which has had long-term ALWS support specifically from Good News Lutheran Church Middle Park, in suburban Brisbane.

Ambassador White said he appreciated the efforts made by the community and that their progress was inspiring.

‘You have presented a very impressive list of achievements. You should take pride in it. I would like to thank you for achieving a lot within five years’, he said of the ALWS-backed project.

During the visit, Mr White also observed biogas plants, a bio-sand filter and vegetable nursery, among other projects, and interacted with the local people.

He said while the pace of development was slow in Nepal, it would progress within the next 10 to 15 years. He urged community members to continue what they were doing.

LWF Nepal and its implementing local partner, Social Network for Justice and Development, have been supporting the community since 2011.

Prior to the field visit, Ambassador White met with LWF Nepal Country Director Dr Prabin Manandhar, LWF Geneva Asia Program Coordinator Mr Allan Calma, Regional Program Coordinator Dr Shambhu Kattel, and LWF Nepal Resource Mobilisation and Communication Coordinator Ram Sharan Sedhai.

Dr Manandhar, who is also the chair of the Association of International NGOs (AIN) in Nepal, told the ambassador about projects LWF Nepal has undertaken since 1984, as well as how the international agencies were working on development and humanitarian issues, particularly in the aftermath of the April 2015 earthquake.

For more information on how you can support international aid and development work by our own Lutheran agency, contact ALWS:

p: 1300 763 407

e: alws@alws.org.au

www.alws.org.au