Access to education in Nepal

Maya* is an 11-year-old girl from a Dalit family. She believes that education is the most effective way to break free from her family’s poverty and combat the persistent untouchability that Dalits face in society. With this conviction, she has set her sights on becoming a teacher to help achieve this change. Living in Dhanauji Rural Municipality, Dhanusha district, she studies tirelessly whenever she can.

As the eldest of four children in a Harawa-Charawa (agricultural bonded labourer) family, Maya feels a heavy responsibility on her shoulders. She explains, “Being the oldest child, I feel it’s my duty to help lift my family out of poverty.”

Her family’s survival depends on her father who works as a labourer in the fields of the local landlord (the pradhan). For generations, her father’s family has worked as a bonded labourer for the same landlord’s family. Maya dreams of freeing her father from this life of servitude. She shares, “Even though my mother and I work alongside my father all day in the pradhan’s fields, we barely earn enough to meet our basic needs.”

Maya’s experience of poverty, combined with the discrimination her family faces, has left a deep impression on her at a young age. She notes, “People discriminate against us more for our poverty than our caste. It’s not just the upper castes; even people from other castes don’t let us enter their homes. While I don’t face discrimination at school, in the village, they still look down on us, calling us ‘Musahar.’” Musahar literally means “rat-ridder” or “rat-eater”.

Currently, Maya is a fourth-grade student at the village school. Despite her family’s difficult economic situation, she is determined to attend school regularly, juggling her studies with household and farm work. Like many other children from Harawa-Charawa Dalit families, Maya attends additional tuition classes provided by the Community Improvement Center (CIC), with support from the Freedom Fund, to help with schoolwork and additional studies.

“School alone isn’t enough,” Maya says. “Since no one in my family is literate, this tuition class has been a lifeline for my education.” With her school classes happening in the morning, she studies there until midday, then returns home to help with chores, bathe, eat, and study again. In the evening, instead of playing, she helps her parents in the fields or takes the goats out to graze in the village pasture. This has become her daily routine.

The CIC supports Maya’s education by providing free notebooks, pencils, a school bag, a uniform, and tuition classes. Reflecting on this, she says, “Without CIC’s help, I would have remained uneducated or ended up working as a labourer. The tuition class, in addition to my school lessons, has strengthened my desire to study.” Maya’s tuition teacher explains that the CIC offers free tuition, educational materials, and scholarships to students from grades one to five.

When asked why she specifically wants to become a teacher, Maya explains, “Untouchability is practiced more against poor Dalits than Dalits in general. Those who are wealthy or hold important positions are respected, but poor Dalits are always looked down upon. That’s why I want to end both poverty and untouchability.”

Maya continues, “Through any profession, we can earn money and overcome poverty, but to truly eradicate the deep-rooted practice of untouchability, education is essential. Even if someone is rich or wise, who will listen to us? No one has the time. But as a teacher, I will have the opportunity to educate future generations and parents, raise awareness, and drive change. That’s why I have set my sights on becoming a teacher.”

When asked what kind of teacher she aspires to be, Maya laughs and says, “I want to be a teacher like my tuition teacher. She has no sense of untouchability or prejudice. Although she is from the Yadav (higher) caste, she visits our home and even shares meals with us. If more people were like her, untouchability would end on its own.”

*All names have been changed.

Suraj, an 8-year-old Dalit boy from a Harawa-Charawa bonded labourer family, dreams of becoming a teacher. He lives in Laxmipurpattari with his mother, Dukhani. His father has left the family, and now his mother is the sole guardian, working as an agricultural labourer. She earns just NPR 500 (US $3.70) per day by working on a landlord’s farm, when work is available. This meager income is barely enough to cover their basic needs, including food, education and medicine.

At times when they don’t have enough food, Suraj’s mother is forced to beg from neighbours to ensure her son can continue attending school. Despite these hardships, Suraj is now in the second grade and is excelling in his studies. He is recognized as one of the best students in speaking, reading and writing.

Before Suraj joined the tuition centre run by Dalit Janakalyan Yuba Club (DJKYC), he spent most of his time playing with friends who did not attend school. Although his mother tried to send him to school, Suraj was initially reluctant, not understanding the importance of education.

The turning point came when DJKYC started working in his community. Suraj’s mother and grandmother joined the savings and credit group, where they learned about the tuition classes offered for Harawa-Charawa children. DJKYC established a tuition centre and a children’s club in the community, which Suraj joined.

At the club, Suraj started learning basic alphabets and numbers. However, he was still hesitant to attend school regularly because he lacked essential educational supplies like notebooks and pencils. Recognising this barrier, the DJKYC team stepped in, providing Suraj with a school bag, notebook and pencils.

With these materials in hand, Suraj became motivated to attend school consistently. He also began participating in the tuition classes, two hours in the morning and two hours in the evening, which helped him stay on top of his schoolwork. Over time, Suraj’s hard work paid off. He quickly became a standout student in both the tuition centre and school.

Suraj is now learning rapidly and developing strong academic skills. His continued education depends not only on his dedication but also on external support. When asked about his future, Suraj proudly shares that he wants to study further and become a good and friendly teacher.

Devaki lives in Dhangadhimai municipality and is 12 years old. Her parents are agricultural labourers during the farming seasons. Devaki studies regularly in class six in the local school as well as attending the children’s tuition class. She improved in her studies and became fifth in the class.

Her mother became the member of the women’s saving and credit group in the village which was formed by DJKYC. Being a member of the group, she said that she is determined to send her daughter to the tuition class. Devaki explained “We are sending our children to school regularly even though we are facing economic problem and challenges in the home.”

Devaki wants to be a nurse and says she aims to serve and treat the deprived people among her villagers. She feels that doctors take a huge amount of money from the Harawa-Charawa families. Her dream is ambitious, as studying to be a nurse is expensive.

Now, since the Nepal government announced the liberation of the Harawa-Charawa from bonded labour in 2022, her father requested a loan of NPR 38,000 (US $287) from the saving and credit group, and he went for foreign employment in a Gulf country. The future for the family is very uncertain.

Still, Devaki is receiving education support from DJKYC and she is hopeful that she can fulfil her wish to be a nurse.

Bishal, from Dhagadhimai municipality, is a bright seventh-grade student. The son of wage labourers, His life was filled with challenges, as his family, like many in their community, struggled to understand the value of education. The community had only just been officially liberated from agricultural bonded labour.

For a while, Bishal was irregular in school, often too hungry or too exhausted to attend. His mother, noticed this and she reached out to the local women’s group supported by the DJKYC. After extensive discussions about the importance of education, Bishal and 30 other children from their Harawa-Charawa community began attending tuition classes organized under the Harawa-Charawa Empowerment Program, supported by DJKYC.

Bishal, along with five of his friends, joined the tuition classes and re-enrolled in school. He received essential supplies like a bag, notebooks, and pens, boosting his motivation to continue. His enthusiasm grew even more after he attended a child rights training organized by DJKYC, which opened his eyes to the rights that he and his peers were entitled to and the responsibilities as a child in their family and in their community.

The daily tuition classes, held from 5 to 7 pm, provided invaluable academic support. Bishal, along with the other children, benefited immensely, as many had no one at home to help them with their studies. The tuition teacher shared that in their community, only a handful of Dalit children had ever passed the secondary education examination. These classes offered a lifeline to children like Bishal, who might otherwise have been forced to drop out due to poor performance or financial constraints.

A district-level Harawa Charawa leader, emphasized the importance of parents guiding their children and the role that tuition plays in levelling the playing field. Parents in the community recognized the transformative impact of these classes and formed a monitoring committee to ensure that the children attended regularly and that the tuition sessions continued effectively.

Bishal’s journey is still unfolding, but his dreams are already clear: He aspires to become a lawyer, determined to serve and fight for justice for the Harawa-Charawa and Dalit communities—people who have long been wronged by false cases and oppression from the elite. Bishal wants to provide justice for those who suffer, ensuring that no one is left unheard or mistreated.

Renu from Bansgadhi Municipality in Bardiya district become a member of the Kamaiya Mahila Jagam Samaj after the announcement of liberation. She received the opportunity to participate in entrepreneurship development training, where she gained knowledge about her rights and understood the importance of organising and raising voices in groups for better responses from the concerned authorities.

Renu became more active in the group, eager to identify and solve the problems faced by liberated Kamaiyas. During her training, she learned about the availability of scholarships for daughters.

The Lumbini Province government had called for applications for scholarships for girls from liberated Kamaiya, Kamlari, Muslim and Dalit commmunities studying in grades 11 and 12. With the group’s support, Renu completed the necessary applications for her daughters and other girls in the community. As a result, her daughters, along with seven Kamaiya and fourteen Dalit girls from the community received scholarships of NPR 8000 (US $58) each.

Renu’s daughter, Binsa, studies in grade 12 at Nepal National Secondary School in Bansgadhi Municipality and received the scholarship support due to the efforts of her mother. She is also the chairperson of the child club where she discusses issues such as quality education, violence against children and ways to prevent it. Binsa also works to help friends with similar financial difficulties to obtain scholarships and resolve other problems.

Binsa is already walking the path her mother started. And both are supporting their communities in claiming their rights.