Nasreen Sheikh; Women Rebuilding Nepal

Nasreen Sheikh; Women Rebuilding Nepal

The sun is setting on the crowded and dusty streets of Thamel, Kathmandu. Tourists are sporting backpacks and dreadlocks file in and out of the complicated maze of table vendors and storefronts, with each salesperson promising a more authentic product than their competing neighbour.

While the chaotic normalcies continue outside, I find myself in Local Women’s Handicrafts, a store located on a side street of Thamel.  I’m nestled between racks of colourful yak wool products, hand-sewn dresses and bracelets made of recycled sari silk, with tears in my eyes. Nasreen Sheikh, the organisation’s founder, tells me the story of her roots. In a beautifully articulate manner, she starts with this story:

“I grew up in the impoverished and rural village of Rajura. When rich people passed through my village, they would always throw their orange peels on the side of the street. When I was little, I would walk to collect firewood and on my way. I would pick up the orange peels and smell them, longing to taste one, but knowing I could not because they represented a life I did not have. Once Local Women’s Handicrafts was founded and I could afford my property, I planted an orange tree in my backyard. It reminds me every day of where I have come from and where I am now.”

Challenges

As a likely future, an 11-year-old Nasreen fled from her village and began working for her older brother in Kathmandu. He worked in a handicrafts factory but was soon fired after Nasreen’s arrival. 

At 5 am, she awoke and sat on the stoop “to watch life on the streets of Kathmandu, dreaming that I had the life of the people I was seeing.” As she looked out on the early-morning scene, Nasreen was startled by a man walking his dog. After he assured her that she was safe, Nasreen recalled that “I was struck by something in his voice. I broke down at the moment and told him my story.”

During this early morning interaction, the man decided to help Nasreen fulfil her wifulfilhat stoop. Fulfil or Nasreen under his wing and gave her primary schooling until she was ready to enrol in a formal education setting, which he helped found.

After a few months of obtaining an education and working in a handicrafts factory, Nasreen came across a pregnant 18-year-old begging on the streets. Nasreen could quickly tell that the woman was from the same region of Nepal as she was since they spoke a similar dialect. Nasreen insisted that the woman works with her at the handicrafts factory.

By 14, Nasreen had recruited seven women to leave the factory and start their organisation. Fearing that her family would track her down, she hid in a different part of Kathmandu for over a month.

Nasreen

This didn’t stop Nasreen from focusing on the women who needed her help. As the organisation began to gain traction in the community, Nasreen raised $25,000 in loans from international friends and customers to buy a plot of land that would act as a space for Local Women’s Handicrafts to train. The training process lasts for six months. The women choose to pursue sewing, weaving, embroidery, design, jewellery making, knitting, or pattern work while being provided with a stipend, optional housing, and a potential sponsor. The training provides women with tangible, marketable skills and the confidence to be independent and self-sufficient, necessary for Nepal's socially and economically sustainable future.

All you need is a bit of support and hope. That is what I hope to give these women if they want to make a change in their life.

Local Women’s Handicrafts

LWHs’ priorities shifted when the 7.8 magnitude earthquake occurred on April 25th 2015, and the next 7.3 magnitude earthquake on May 12th 2015.   Nasreen’s team of 28 women, aided by the monetary support of international donors, has helped rebuild multiple shelters. They have supplied 480 homes with a one month's supply of food. Nasreen has also started a separate training program specifically for women who suffered losses during the earthquakes. The $60 a month sponsorships provided by international donors allow these women to rebuild their homes.

On the other hand, it united Nepal in a completely unselfish way. Families began coming together, building together, cooking together, and becoming one.  They are helping each other instead of letting small things divide them,” said Nasreen.

Diana Brugos, an operative for Operation Sock Monkey, a Canadian-based NGO, has known Nasreen since 2011. Nasreen affectionately refers to Diana as “Aama,” meaning “Mother” in Nepali. She is humble, generous, compassionate, intelligent, personable, friendly, and a pure beauty inside and out. Her leadership and determination will enable them to move on,” said Diana.

To find out more about Nasreen, her organisation, and Local Women’s Handicrafts’ post-earthquake recovery programs, visits http://www.lwhnepal.com/

Julia Abbiss | USA Photo By: Julia Abbiss  &  Markus Winkler on Unsplash | Duke Nepal