Nirmal Prasad Adhikari
Jhapa, August 8, 2008:

Nepal Red Cross Society Refugee Assistance Programme (RAP) is supporting through life skill development training activities to 350 Bhutanese refugees of seven camps and 150 persons from affected local community. The assistance programme has been running since January 2008 in the financial support of Netherlands Red Cross (NLRCS). Nepal Red Cross has been providing different services to 107,000 Bhutanese refugees since they came to Nepal for shelter in 1992.

The refugees who have been taking trainings hope that they can sustain in their own fully if they are provided further assistance. They feel sure that the vocational skill would make their life easier. This would also provide them job or economic opportunities. They have this hope because they have seen earlier vocational trainings run by the NRCS where the trainees have made their life easier by creating job opportunities within the camp. “I would like to thank the Nepal Red Cross for giving me an opportunity to learn bicycle repairing,” said a former trainee who was running a bicycle repair center inside the Beldangi-I camp.

Both refugees and persons from affected community have equally participated in learning activities. Because the trainings are given to both the refugees and local persons together, the discrimination between Nepalese and refugees has reduced. “We don’t see any sort of discrimination between them, rather they are helping each other in learning as close friends,” said Deepak Karki, Director of CSE at Damak, a computer institute where 20 persons are taking advance computer training.

NRCS has provided the following trainings to enhance the vocational skills of the Bhutanese refugees and the local population in eastern Nepal so that their living standard would improve:
• Hair Cutting Training
• Basic Tailoring Training
• Advance Tailoring Training
• Advance Beauty Parlor Training
• Domestic Electric Training
• Auto/Driving Training
• Radio, TV , Monitor, Mobile Repairing Training
• Plumping and Sanitation Training
• Advance Computer Training
• Bicycle/Rickshaw Repairing Training
• Carpentry Training
Besides these, NRCS is working to provide further support to the refugees in their vocational education like Certificate in Medical Assistance and Laboratory.

Ganesh Kumar Shrestha, resident of Damak-5, Jhapa, is providing services for 13 years to the local community and refugees of Beldangi-II camp by running a grocery shop. “The relationship between the local population and the refugees is of brothers, and there are many similarities in the culture of refugees and local,” said Shrestha.

The stakeholders including the UN agencies and Government offices with whom the NRCS has coordinated have positive observation. They are confident that by acquiring certain skills from the trainings provided by the NRCS, the refugees can survive inside and outside the camp. “Trainings provided by the Red Cross are more effective because they are targeted even to women and disabled persons, so such training activities should be continued even in the future that would make life of several refugees easier,” said Harka Bahadur Rai, camp assistant of RCU, government office branch under Home Ministry.

“The trainings would be more useful to the refugees when they go to third country for settlement or return to Bhutan through legal process,” said Prakash Khadka, camp management officer of Luthran World Foundation at Beldangi-I.

Ganga Ram Kharel, 30, of Beldangi-2, F435A, is taking advance computer training and thinks the training helps him survive in any corner of the world. He says the training would definitely provide opportunities after the third country settlement. He is surprised by the friendly behavior shown by the local community and the management of the training institute. Hundreds of refugees have gone abroad for third country settlement legally and several thousands have filled up form for the process. IOM is working in Nepal for the third country settlement of the interested Bhutanese refugees.

Menuka Nepal, a refugee and Secretary of Sanischare Camp Management Committee, remembered that Red Cross came as an implementing partner since the beginning which provided food and non food items and ran awareness programmes. She said that the refugees have been getting vocational trainings which deserve quality. She added even for few seats for the training there are hundred of applications filled up.

A coordination committee is formed with all stakeholders including the NRCS in the leadership of a representative from UNHCR in order to provide quality service, share resources and avoid duplication. The committee is planning to make an action plan for a single common objective. “To maintain a consistency in the number of the trainings and the number of the beneficiaries, and avoid chances of duplication, the coordination committee is planning to establish data base system,” said Krishna Khanal, field monitor of the UNWFP in Jhapa.

A Local Management Committee in the district level has been formed in the leadership of Rewati Rawan Nepal, President of Jhapa district chapter and a RAP office at Damak sub chapter to operate the training activities. “These trainings have strengthened the relationship of the local people with the refugees which would promote humanitarian values and avoid discrimination,” said Nepal in a sharing meeting organized at the district chapter office after the monitoring visit of the training spots, affected communities and camps.

In the same meeting, Lok Raj Dhakal, Secretary of Jhapa district chapter, pointed out the need of capacity building of the district chapter along with the running of the programme for the refugees so that it could address any disasters immediately.