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Transrural Trust, Nepal

assists women in disadvantaged rural areas to transform their natural resources, traditions, and skills into profitable and sustainable enterprises. Transrural Trust also explores and promotes wiser approaches to channeling aid for international development.

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Better Lives Partner Since: 2009

Programs

Community Economic Development
Transrural Trust aims aims to act as a catalyst to stimulate change by injecting modest amounts of resources and know-how in the short-medium term with pin-point accuracy, so as to make a sustainable change in the long term. The Nettles in Nepal program is an example of this strategy. Transrural Trust is creating a cottage industry for products made from locally-farmed nettles. Nettle products can be sold both locally and internationally. The project includes improving local infrastructure, value-added processing, and marketing.

Community

Project activities are focused on the foothills at 1,500 – 2,200 meters in altitude. In Nepal, the tensions between political factions during the past decade have made the tough life for the village dweller even harder, although since 2008, real progress has been made towards peace and some form of working democracy. In the Nepalese project district, there are simply no roads as we know them. The paths are so steep, twisty and narrow that they are even unsuitable for animal transport, and so people carry enormous loads. The nearest hospital is a minimum two days’ walk.