For Sharad Kumar Argal, the weeks after April 25 are a time he will never forget. Sharad has been working for FPAN for twenty years, currently as Kathmandu Valley branch manager. When the earthquake struck, the Kathmandu Valley was among the worst affected area in the country. Thousands of people were killed, injured and displaced, and many of the valley’s houses, schools, buildings and historic temples were destroyed or damaged beyond repair. The 2015 earthquake has been a major test for the country, with bureaucracy and alleged abuse hampering reconstruction. But for FPAN, in the days after the quake struck, there was no time to waste. “The first thing we did was to identify the needs of the people,” Sharad says. “We realised people were being deprived of services,” with many clinics and hospitals damaged, closed or overwhelmed by patients. By the second day after the earthquake, we were conducting health camps. All the volunteers and staff came together and made a plan: we identified the most affected areas and went there with mobile services.” The teams divided their work into two categories: first and second level. During the first phase, they offered check ups for those injured and distributed essential items like oral rehydration, medicines, food and water. During the second phase, a few days later, they gave more comprehensive services: the team set up mobile labs to carry out blood tests, provided contraception and dignity kits [sanitary pads etc], and gave antenatal checks and psycho-social counselling. They also set up women- and child-friendly spaces, in partnership with the UN Population Fund and other NGOs. For women, safe spaces to spend time and access support were vital, particularly given how insecure and vulnerable their temporary accommodation was. “Children were very affected with trauma, as well as physically,” says Sharad. “We set up child-friendly spaces where children could come, spend time and play with toys. We even had a tutor to give them education, as well as counsellors.” Today, the work of the FPAN Valley branch office is still heavily affected by the earthquake. Their Bhaktapur clinic was completely destroyed and they now operate out of tiny room in the ancient heart of the city, surrounded by building sites and the sounds of cement mixers, while they await permission from government and community leaders to begin building a new centre. “Most of our service delivery points are still damaged,” says Sharad. “This is the main hindrance to giving services to the people: we want to provide services but due to the lack of space, we often can’t provide the services they want. This is one of the biggest impacts we are still facing.”

High up in the mountains of Rasuwa in northern Nepal, close to the Tibetan border, is the village of Gatlang. This tight-knit village of traditional stone houses and Buddhist stupas is home to the Tamang people: a Buddhist indigenous group for whom family life is strictly patriarchal. Marriage traditions here can be oppressive: when a man chooses a wife, the girls – many are as young as 14 – have little choice but to marry. Most then go on to have large families, meaning food, money and education are spread sparsely. Jomini Tamang was just 16 years old when her parents forced her to marry. “I don’t want to get married,” she told them, but the wedding went ahead anyway. Jomini lives in Gatlang, a remote village of traditional stone and carved wooden houses, high up in the mountains of northern Nepal, close to the Tibetan border. The people here are Tamang, a Buddhist ethnic group, and family life is strictly patriarchal. Many Tamang marry young – from around 14 years old – and girls tend to be pushed into marriage by both their parents and the young men who choose them. “It’s not easy being married, it’s difficult,” says Jomini, whose husband is eight years older than her. “When I got married, I didn’t know anything about what happens after marriage, about the physical side.” After a year of marriage, Jomini had her first child, a boy called Gauran, who is now two. Women like Jomini are expected to combine childcare with household chores and long shifts farming vegetables in the village fields. “After the birth, I had many difficulties. Bringing up a child in this remote village was frightening and challenging, and Gauran was ill a lot".   Giving birth at a young age can lead to severe physical complications or death, and maternal mortality is one of the leading causes of death for women in Nepal. Only 60% of women receive skilled antenatal support. Luckily for Jomini, shortly after Gauran’s birth, the Family Planning Association of Nepal (FPAN), Nepal’s leading family planning NGO, stepped in to help. Jomini met Pasang Tamang, a local woman who works as a reproductive health female volunteer for FPAN. Through Pasang, Jomini learned about different contraceptive methods and, with careful advice and support, was able to think through which might be best for her. She opted for the contraceptive injection, and says she is much happier now: contraception has given her more freedom, and the space to think clearly about when to have another child. Jomini’s experiences have convinced her to do everything possible to enable her children to live happier lives, less constrained by patriarchy and marriage. If she has a daughter, “I will tell her not to get married at an early age like her mum, and that if she does, she will suffer,” she says. “I will advise her to study more so she can work.” “And I will advise my son the same! Study more and wait til you are more mature to get married.” Stories Read more stories from Nepal