Central Level Project Implementation Unit (CLPIU) / Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) organized a “Closing ceremony of Emergency School Reconstruction Project”:

Nepal - Japan cooperation post Nepal Earthquake 2015, today in the presence of Minister of MoEST Ashok Kumar Rai as the Chief Guest. About 100 participants representing the government, development partners, civil society, academia, and media were part of the ceremony.

Total 274 schools with 760 Blocks and over 4700 rooms were built under Emergency School Reconstruction Project (ESRP) with a total cost of JPY 14 billion (about NPR 14 billion) to support the reconstruction of disaster resilient schools in Gorkha, Dhading, Nuwakot, Makwanpur, Rasuwa and Lalitpur Districts, based on the earthquake-resistant type design guidelines jointly formulated by Japan International Cooperation agency (JICA) and ADB under the principle of “Build Back Better” (BBB).

The reconstruction of the school structures is part of the Emergency School Reconstruction Project (ESRP) supported by JICA. The Project is being implemented by CLPIU - Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST). The ESRP was implemented based on designs and structural guidelines which complies with Nepal National Building code.

All the 274 school buildings are reconstructed with multi-hazard resilient structures which are child, gender and disable friendly to provide improved learning environment for the students based on the concept of BBB which increases resilience not only physically but also socially.

Besides the school buildings, the support also includes classrooms well-equipped with furniture, laboratories, early childhood development centers, separate toilet blocks for boys & girls, solar back up, playground, boundary fences and footpath pavement. Amongst the 274 schools, two of the schools in Lalitpur- Patan Secondary School and Namuna Machhindra Secondary School were reconstructed with special designs where Namuna Machhindra Secondary School, being reconstructed with a focus on providing a conducive learning environment for students with visual impairments.

During the ceremony, Minister for Education, Science and Technology Ashok Kumar Rai thanked the Government of Japan for providing its assistance for reconstruction of the 274 school buildings with the concessional loan post the earthquake and contributing towards enhancing the education sector. Secretary of MoEST and the Chairperson for the event, Ram Krishna Subedi recalled the long history of Japanese cooperation to education through different schemes.

He opined that it has been instrumental for enhancing access and quality education and capacity of education system in Nepal. He also requested for continuous cooperation to the sector. Ambassador of Japan to Nepal, H.E. Mr. KIKUTA Yutaka reiterated “Japan’s assistance aim is not only limited to the rebuilding and retrofitting of the schools, but also to build back to the further extent under the concept of “the Build Back Better”.

It contributes to the improvement of education services and earthquake resilience for sustainable socio-economic growth. He further stated his hope on cooperation between Nepal and Japan will further strengthen the friendly relations the two counties have developed over the years.”

At the beginning of the ceremony, project director of CLPIU Mr. Dilli Ram Luintel welcomed all the guests and CLPIU also presented synopsis of school reconstruction including ESRP. In addition, JICA also provided a brief overview of Japanese assistance for reconstruction and recovery in Nepal through presentation and video show.

OKUBO Akimitsu, Chief Representative of JICA Nepal, emphasized that JICA will make more efforts so that the children studying at schools of ESRP will inherit the more resilient Nepali society as a result of our cooperation.