CCF and Drokpo Nepal Partner to Expand Menstrual Health Programs in Remote Tibetan Communities
Written by CCF Volunteer Connor Chen
With support from CCF over the past year, Drokpo Nepal has been able to expand its menstrual health programs, supporting women both in remote Nepal and the Kathmandu valley.
CCF & Dropko Menstrual Health Training at Pal Evam Monastic School and Nunnary on January 23, 2023
Drokpo Nepal’s home-base is in an alleyway near Boudhanath, Kathmandu, close to the local Tibetan community. This center serves a multitude of purposes: a library for school children who don’t have access to books, a residence for recuperating street dogs, and an event center for a wide variety of initiatives supporting the local Himalayan and Tibetan populations.
Under its mental health initiatives, Drokpo Nepal enables women, nuns, and school children to better mental and physical health. Under the Re Min initiative, Drokpo teaches mothers and elderly women to generate income through cultural crafts and skills. Under the Microenterprise initiative, Drokpo Nepal provides seed grants to those who wish to start a business, but don’t have the capital to do so. In addition to all of these programs, Drokpo also feeds around 150 street dogs on the streets of Boudha.
CCF supports Drokpo to continue its role as “friend” to the Tibetans and Himalayans in the Kathmandu valley and beyond. CCF is the primary supporter and funder of Drokpo’s menstrual program, an initiative that through teaching and workshops, focuses on removing the traditional stigma surrounding women’s health. Part of this program involves teaching women to stitch reusable pads, a practice that is not only environmentally sustainable, but also cost-friendly, given the high price-tag of sanitary products.
The menstrual program has expanded into more remote regions of Nepal like Pokhara, helping rural women take care of themselves. The programs are also run in nunneries. In a sense, Drokpo is able to help women continue their practice of Buddhism. Drokpo has no intention of slowing down.
Over the course of a 12 day CCF & Dropko Menstrual Training Program, a total of 370 young girls, nun and women (8-86 years old) received training, information and education on menstruation and related hygiene practices. They were provided with menstrual kits as well as trained in making eco-friendly sanitary pads which was very well received by the community.
When asked about what they would like to do in the future, program director Dolkar’s eyes shone brightly, and she energetically laid out a variety of ideas. One idea was the creation of safe spaces in remote Nepal, where women can discuss domestic and bodily issues without any external stigma. Finance and Logistics director, Pema, also mentioned how they would love to scale their programs upwards in terms of size and endowment, to help more people.
I was surprised to hear that Drokpo Nepal is a volunteer-run organization, with members as young as 18 years old working their hardest to make an impact. I was even more surprised to hear that there were full time members working on this initiative, spending their lives making a change in the community.
To the supporters of CCF, Dolkar and Pema express their utmost gratitude, not only for fiscal support, but also for your faith; faith that Drokpo can truly help others, and faith that the lives of strangers in a different part of the world will truly improve.
Drokpo Nepal team leads Pema (left) Dunga (right) with CCF’s Kesang Drokpatsang and Denise Attwod.
Thanks to CCF volunteer Connor Chen for his time spent interviewing the Dropko Nepal leaders and writing up this story!