KEENAN'S KIDS

June 21, 2020

Nepal’s Pandemic

Like the rest of the world, Nepal has been engulfed by the COVID -19 Pandemic. The first case in in the country was confirmed on January 23, 2020 when a 31-year-old student, who had returned to Kathmandu from Wuhan on January 9^th, tested positive for the disease. By March 24^th, the Nepalese government implemented a country-wide lockdown.

Orchid Garden Nepal (OGN) also closed in March. Nevertheless, Bina and her dedicated staff have continued to provide basic food needs for the families of the children it supports. As you can imagine, this has been a monumental task. OGN has put safety procedures in place (including the wearing of masks) to allow families to come to OGN to pick up food. In many instances, however, the OGN staff has delivered food to families who cannot make the journey in.

Nepal’s Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) is the principal government agency working to control the spread of the disease. Early on, MoHP took steps to procure essential supplies, equipment and medicine, upgrading health infrastructure, training medical personnel, and spreading public awareness. Land borders with India and China have been completely sealed off, and all international flights have been suspended.And while the government is doing the best it can, support to organizations like OGN is very slow. People are getting sick and dying.

For our part, Keenan’s Kids is increasing its financial support to OGN to help fortify their efforts in providing basic food needs to families throughout Kathmandu. Above, are a few photos of family members picking up food at OGN’s facility. We continue to stay in touch with them, so they know they are not alone.