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Nepal – One of the ten poorest countries in the world

More than half of the country's population earns less than 25 euros a month, and thereby lives below the poverty line. Nearly 90 percent of the workforce is in agriculture, where the number of opportunities to work is steadily decreasing. Despair and hopelessness is driving the poorest of the poor, many of whom are illiterate, into the cities. Once there, however, not many are able to make a living, as the unemployment rate is higher than 40 percent. That means that many parents are not capable of providing for their children, let alone sending them to school or an institution where they can learn a trade.

The school system in Nepal is in a desolate state. The public schools are overcrowded, and the teachers seldom have pedagogic training. The government has long promised an urgently needed educational reform, but it is yet to be realised.  More and more children and young adults are forced to eke out a living on the streets of Kathmandu.

In April 2015, an earthquake shook Nepal to its core, killing nearly 9,000 people. Those who survived were condemned to even greater poverty. Blockades at the country's southern border, which lasted from October 2015 to February 2016, led the land into further hardships due to food and petrol shortages.