Women in makeshift shelters in Nepal. (Anadolu Agency/Getty)
Local and international aid workers and organizations are scrambling to meet the demand for humanitarian relief in Nepal, which was pummeled with two major earthquakes in a span of two weeks. The disaster has devastated the small Asian nation, which was already one of the world’s poorest countries before the quake hit.
Over 8000 Nepalese people have died, and millions more are believed to be displaced or otherwise affected. In this relatively rural and underdeveloped nation, relief has been inefficient and slow to come. Like the quake that hit Haiti in 2010, the extent of the damage in Nepal is largely due to poverty. Inadequate infrastructure, shoddy buildings and food insecurity has left the country particularly vulnerable to natural disaster, since it is devoid of surplus resources that could act as a safety net. Reports of inadequate food, water, housing and hygiene in makeshift shelters have dominated global coverage of the aftermath of the deadly tremors.
While the fallout from the deadly tremors has touched on all walks of life in Nepal, women and children may be particularly impacted by inadequate relief and recovery efforts. Various studies have noted that women are more physically and economically vulnerable amidst serious social upheaval than men.
This is particularly true in many areas of Nepal, where the lack of employment opportunities has forced many men to support their families by becoming migrant workers abroad. As a result, a high proportion of Nepalese households are helmed by mothers who often have no choice but to make do with the income their husbands send while raising their children alone. Journalist Purvi Thacker spoke to many such women while reporting from Nepal. In an interview with PRI, she noted that some tents are shared by as many as 50 people, all families led by women. Many of them told her that they had no job experience, but were concerned they’d now have no choice but to find work to bolster their meager family budgets.
Worldwide organizations like the Global Fund for Women have recognized the particular need in Nepal, and have stepped in to support efforts focused on them. While the organization asserts that adequate interim shelter is the most urgent need the country now faces. it has also made a point to prioritize issues like hygiene and gender-based violence. Menstruation has posed particular problems, since most Nepalese women use rags that are difficult to clean in the absence of suitable water. Other organizations have focused on providing gynecological and reproductive health services.
Furthermore, experts worry that Nepalese women are at high risk for trafficking, and sexual violence - meaning aid efforts must include crisis response and safe spaces for women coping with trauma.
But international aid organizations are hardly without controversy. Many analysts argued that in the aftermath of the 2010 quake in Haiti, some humanitarian relief efforts actually made the situation on the ground even worse. When recovery initiatives are poorly organized, badly coordinated and lack a plan for sustainability, aid efforts can easily go awry. While Haiti and Nepal have considerable differences, the situations seem to share a bottom line: successful recoveries are painstaking and long, and absolutely must follow the lead of local partners.
One such grassroots group leading relief efforts in Nepal is the Women’s Rehabilitation Center (WOREC), the Global Fund for Women’s local grantee. WOREC has worked with several afflicted communities to provide items such as lactation supplies, rehydration salts, medicine, and soap. The group has also provided mental health support, including counseling and resources for women affected by violence. They have also set up a hotline to provide support and advice to women in need in a way that is unthreatening. As one WOREC counselor said in an interview with Open Democracy, “as local activists, we are committed to our people and their well-being in all its forms. We will not leave them alone.”
Indeed, local participation in relief efforts ensures cultural competency and sustainability. Centering such groups — and their work for the country’s most vulnerable populations — offers hope that Nepal will make it through such a difficult time.
