The Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Nepal Park Tae-young, and UNICEF Representative to Nepal Alice Akunga, visited flood and landslide affected communities in Kavrepalanchowk District yesterday. Together the Ambassador and UNICEF Representative officially opened a child-friendly space and handed-over essential health and hygiene supplies.

Nepal witnessed heavy rainfall in September, which caused widespread flooding and landslides. Tens of thousands of homes were damaged and destroyed, as well as thousands of water and sanitation facilities, andhundreds of schools and clinics. UNICEF is working closely with the Government of Nepal and other humanitarian partners to reach the flood-affected children and their families with lifesaving supplies, as well as social and protection services.

“The recent floods have significantly increased protection risks for vulnerable groups, particularly women, children, adolescents, and persons with disabilities”, says Alice Akunga, UNICEF Representative to Nepal. “With the support from the Government of Korea, UNICEF is, amongst others, setting-up eight child-friendly spaces where girls and boys can play and heal.”

With many health facilities damaged, access to healthcare is a major concern. On request of the Government of Nepal, UNICEF has already responded by setting up one medical tent in Panauti Municipality. Thanks to the Government of Korea, UNICEF is establishing an additional ten medical tents as well as essential health equipment and supplies.

“The timely response to the floods- and landslides in Panauti Municipality helped community members to continue accessing lifesaving social and protection services, including healthcare”, says Ram Saran Bhandari, Mayor of Panauti Municipality. “We are thankful to the Government of the Republic of Korea and UNICEF for the provision of medical tents, health and hygiene supplies, which benefits women and children in our municipality.”

Furthermore, with the generous contribution of the Government of Korea, UNICEF – in collaboration with the Government of Nepal and other humanitarian partners – is providing safe water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) supplies to 3,000 families. At the same time, critical water and sanitation facilities that were damaged and destroyed during the floods and landslides are being reconstructed, helping communities regain access to essential WASH services and safeguarding them against potential waterborne disease outbreaks.

“We are proud to partner with UNICEF to ensure that the most vulnerable people and their communities affected by the disaster receive critical support in a timely manner”, says HE Park Tae-young, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Nepal. “Today, we distributed lifesaving supplies, including WASH supplies and newborn kits for mothers and their infants, which included warm clothes and blankets essential to keep them warm as temperatures are dropping at the start of winter.”

Thanks to the timely and generous contribution of USD 500,000 provided by the Government of Korea, UNICEF Nepal was able to respond to the needs of the most affected children and their families in an efficient manner, including delivery of critical supplies before the start of the cold season.