Dal bhat, a lentil stew and rice, is a Nepali superfood that powers people to climb mountains, go to school, and do daily chores.
Text: Elisa Rimaila Photos: Antti Yrjönen
WHETHER WE COOK bacon and eggs breakfast, eat ramen for lunch, or prepare fish and potatoes for dinner, in Nepal the same dal bhat is enough for every meal of the day. That’s true whether we are in the Himalayan mountains, in the valley surrounding the capital Kathmandu or on the border of India in the Terai region. In fact, they call it ’24 hour dal bhat power’. Nepalese people of all ages spoon lentil stew and rice on their plate for the most important meals of the day.
But what exactly is this Nepalese superfood and why is it so popular? The rich protein of lentils combined with the carbohydrates of rice effectively tops up both the stomach and energy reserves, and many people find the raw materials in their own fields or vegetable gardens. Spinach, cauliflower, potato, fresh herbs, spices and yogurt are usually added to the dish. Vegetables and other side dishes not only provide eye candy, but they also add vitamins and minerals to the dish, such as calcium, iron and potassium.
In addition to lentil stew, rice and side dishes, dal bhat can also be served with fish and meat soup, as in this sample dish photographed at the traditional fish restaurant in the Chisapani village on the banks of the Bheri River.
According to stories, the roots of dal bhat go back centuries. The dish is known to have developed in the countryside, where farmers doing heavy physical work in the fields needed nutrient-dense but locally produced and cheap food right from the morning to get through the long day. Since then, dal bhat has become something of a symbol of Nepali culture, cherished and prepared in the kitchens of every Nepali home and in traditional restaurants from the cities to the remotest mountain villages.
Dal Bhat is most commonly eaten with fingers. At lunch, Nepalese wash their hands and scrape the lentil stew and side dishes with their accustomed fingers using lumps of rice or the local flat roti bread. Eating with your fingers is an art form of its own when there is steaming stew and rice in front of you.
In traditional restaurants, cooks stir lentil stew with the heat of smoking campfires. The waiters, on the other hand, go around the tables in turn with a large pot of rice, a pot of lentils or a dish containing vegetable curry that serves as a side dish, asking the diners what they would like more of. Many people also add preserved pickles and clarified butter, or ghee, to the food for a strong taste. At the end of lunch, no one seems to be in a hurry to leave. Your stomach is so full that the easiest thing would be to just sit comfortably on the bench for hours.
A large proportion of Nepalese people get their daily food from their own backyards. Vegetable gardens, which are vulnerable to the effects of climate change, are the lifeblood of families in remote areas of Nepal.
Text: Elisa Rimaila Photos: Antti Yrjönen
A BROWN CHICKEN that until recently pecked around the yard has lost its head. Its fate? To end up as part of the lunch Sabitri Gurung Ale, 28, and Dhansara Ale, 31, are preparing today. Before its demise, the bird was free to roost and dig in the yard with its fellow birds, living a life of which most of the world’s domestic animals can only dream.
Video shows chicken curry being made in Taranga village in Nepal.
Dhansara’s chicken stew
MAKES ABOUT 6 SERVINGS You will need: a sharp knife for carving the chicken, a large wok or frying pan with high sides. Serve with jasmine rice.
1 chicken or 600–700 grams of chicken meat
2 onions
1 garlic clove
A good piece of ginger
500 g cherry tomatoes or tomatoes, chopped
1 chili pepper (spiciness to taste)
A dash of oil for frying
300–500 ml water
A pinch of salt
2–4 tablespoons ground turmeric
1. Cut the chicken into small pieces.
2. Chop the onions, garlic and ginger and sauté them in oil in a pan.
3. Add the turmeric and stir. Add the chicken and fry until cooked.
4. Add the chili, chopped cherry tomatoes and water. Cook until you have a soft stew.
In rural villages in Nepal, chickens are allowed to live freely in the yards.
IN TARANGA VILLAGE in Surkhet district of western Nepal, chicken is rarely eaten. Birds and goats are slaughtered for food, mainly for celebrations and guests. Meat may also be needed when the fields and vegetable gardens produce a poorer harvest than usual.
Sabitri and Dhansara belong to the same family, as their husbands are brothers. The women’s home is 34 kilometers from the nearest big city, Birendranagar. The journey takes an hour and a half on the dusty, hilly and partly unfinished road, even in a four-wheel drive. Shops and health services are far away, and Sabitri and Dhansara’s families don’t have enough money to spend there in any case.
In the village of Taranga, self-sufficiency is a lifeline for families.
Vegetable curry from one’s own vegetable garden
The ashes are still smoking as Sabitri gathers them into a bowl with her bare hands in the shade of her rustic kitchen.
Soon a new fire is burning in the campfire, and she pours cooking oil into the pan. The ingredients for the vegetable curry are waiting to be added to the pot: plump cabbage, onions, garlic, and potatoes as small as the bottom of the pot. Everything has been picked directly from the family’s own field.
Video shows how to make vegetable curry.
Sabitri’s vegetable curry
MAKES ABOUT 6 SERVINGS You will need: a large wok or saucepan for the curry, a saucepan for heating the milk, a stone base and a grinding stone (a mortar and pestle will do).
1 white cabbage
About 1 kg potatoes
2 onions
A dash of cooking oil for sautéing the vegetables
1 chili pepper (spiciness to your taste)
1 whole garlic clove
400 ml milk
700 ml water (you can add more water if the curry consistency seems too dry)
A pinch of salt
2–4 tbsp ground turmeric
1. Start by heating the milk in a saucepan.
2. Chop the cabbage, cut the potatoes into pieces and slice the onion. Cut the chili into pieces and the garlic cloves into smaller pieces and grind them into a smooth paste, to which you can add a couple of tablespoons of cold water if necessary.
3. Sauté the onion in cooking oil for a while in a wok.
4. Add the turmeric and the chili garlic paste you prepared. Stir.
5. Sauté the potatoes over low heat first, stirring, and add the cabbage when the potatoes start to cook.
6. Add the milk to the mixture and gradually add the water. Simmer gently over low heat. Stir and let it simmer under the lid.
Video shows how to make spice paste.
Minty spice paste
ABOUT 30 GRAMS OF PREPARED PASTE You will need: a stone base and a grinding stone (a mortar will also work).
300 g fresh cherry tomatoes or chopped tomatoes
A good bunch of fresh mint
1 chili pepper (spiciness to taste, but preferably hotter than mild)
A good pinch of salt
About 1 cl water
1. Chop the tomatoes, mint and chili pepper into small pieces.
2. Grind the chopped tomatoes, mint and chili pepper into a smooth paste. Add cold water in small amounts if necessary until the consistency is correct.
3. Finally, add salt to taste. You can also add mint, chili pepper and tomato if you like.
DID YOU KNOW? 70 per cent of Nepalese people earn their living from agriculture. The country’s agricultural area is 2.7 million hectares. Only half of that is irrigated. (Source: cdkn.org)
Climate change is affecting Nepal, making life particularly challenging for families who have traditionally relied on their own fields for not only their livelihood but also their food.
Irrigation of the cropland creates a lot of extra work for Dhansara Ale and Sabitri Gurung Ale when the rains don’t come normally. According to the women, unusual weather events such as drought have plagued the village of Taranga for a decade.
TOMATO STEMS snake along their support canes. Their leaves are pale yellow, and the soil in the potato field cracks with thirst. This year there hasn’t been enough to sell the crop, which means the family has been living on a shoestring.
“Everything depends on water. Now there is none,” says Sabitri.
Climate change is affecting Nepal. As a result, rainfall is more erratic than before. In addition to drought, Nepal has experienced heavier than usual rainfall this year, resulting in devastating floods.
The family carries irrigation water from a river about two hundred meters away, even though there is a water pump in the yard.
The pump was installed as part of a larger regional irrigation project. It was intended to improve water access in remote villages like Taranga by pumping water from the Bheri River using electricity generated by solar power. Taranga has been waiting five years for solar power to be installed.
Raj Ale Magar, 5, climbs on a branch of the mango tree in the yard.
Drinking water carried from the river
The scent of the clear, rushing Bheri River brings to mind a Finnish lake landscape. The family’s children rush to swim. Today, only a few tiddlers are caught in the nets, which the children release back into the river.
Children pour water into a larger plastic barrel in their backyard. The water is used for cooking and drinking.
“Drinking water has to be fetched every four days,” Sabitri says, pouring a drop of water into the spice mixture that she grinds between stones from fresh mint, chili, and small tomatoes.
Fetching water from the Bheri River, which flows a few hundred meters from the home, is the job of the family’s children. From left: Maya (11), Simra (10), and Raj (5).
Maya Ale Magar, 11, is an experienced water carrier for her age. In the village of Taranga in rural Nepal, there is no electricity, and without electricity, water cannot be pumped from the river for domestic use or irrigation.
The Bheri River is a tributary of the Karnal River, Nepal’s longest river that originates in the mountains. The river’s strong flow is being harnessed for electricity generation in rural Nepal.
Carrying water is a child’s job in the village of Taranga, on the banks of the Bheri River. Maya Ale Magar, 11, carries a water barrel to her home on a hill about two hundred meters away.
Climate change is separating families
Drought doesn’t just affect food production and livelihoods. It tears families apart.
“When it doesn’t rain and there are no crops, people go elsewhere to work. Because of the drought, we can’t live together as a family,” says Sabitri.
Dhansara Ale and Sabitri Gurung Ale.
Her husband works in Malaysia, her father-in-law in India.
“We used to live happily together. I haven’t seen my husband for almost a year and I miss him,” Sabitri says.
Sabitri and Dhansara’s families have lived in the region for decades. In recent years, the families have been learning about new farming methods that help them adapt to climate change in a project funded by the Finnish and German Foreign Ministries and the European Union. The project is implemented by FCA together with the German development agency GiZ.
“We now have the knowledge and skills we need. But that’s of no use if we lack water,” says Sabitri.
Outside the courtyard cattle nestle under trees, resting in the midday heat. For Hindus and Buddhists, cattle are sacred animals that are not slaughtered for food. Their milk is still good for sweet, spicy tea. Sabitri also pours thick, fatty milk into the cauldron of onions, cabbage, and cooked potatoes. The cauldron smells of turmeric, chili, and garlic. Lunch is soon ready.
Time to eat! Birds and goats are slaughtered for food in rural Nepal, mainly for guests and celebrations. In the village of Taranga, self-sufficiency is a lifeline for families.
10+1 things to know about food security and climate change
What we eat is one of the biggest contributors to climate change, along with fossil fuel use and deforestation. Climate change threatens food security both directly and indirectly almost everywhere in the world. However, a lot can be done to improve the situation.
Text: FCA Working Group Illustration: Carla Ladau
1 Climate change is changing food production.
Food production and distribution are affected by changes in temperature and rainfall, the increase in storms and other extreme weather events, rising sea levels, the spread of disease, a reduction in pollinators and an increase in crop-eating insects amongst other factors. The impacts on food security are multidimensional, making it impossible to predict the consequences with certainty.
2 Food security is faltering.
Food security is achieved when all people – including future generations – have access to enough safe and nutritious food from one day to the next. For example, climate change may affect the availability of food on the market and reduce individual access to food. Climate change can also affect the quality of food.
3 Extremes increase insecurity.
According to the Global Report on Food Crises by the Global Network Against Food Crises, nearly 282 million people in almost 60 countries experienced acute food insecurity in 2023. Although the underlying factors are diverse and mutually reinforcing, the report estimates that extreme weather events were the cause of food insecurity in 18 countries, or about 72 million people. Other factors causing food insecurity include instability, conflict and economic crises.
4 The spiral fuels itself.
Because ecosystems are complex entities, undesirable developments in one area often accelerate them in others. Heat fuels drought, which in turn increases the need for irrigation, which affects water quality and availability. In some areas, global warming may be thought to improve yields, but at the same time, plant diseases and insects may spread. The chemicals used for control also affect pollinators.
5 Food shortages create refugees.
Climate change knows no borders. For example, droughts or floods can deprive entire communities of their livelihoods, and sometimes the only way to survive is to leave their homes. Those forced to leave their homes often end up in areas where there is already a food crisis. When large numbers of people settle in existing communities, disputes over resources can lead to conflict and instability, which already undermines food security.
6 Adaptation is unavoidable.
There are already many ways to improve food security that have been forgotten in the context of mono-cultural intensive production. Innovations have already been seen, for example, in plant proteins, the production of which places a significantly lower burden on the environment than animal production. It can also be a matter of simple changes: in Kenya, some pastoral communities have replaced cows with camels, which are more tolerant of drought and heat.
7 Our relationship with food needs to change.
The current food system in the so-called developed countries is unsustainable. According to estimates by the UN’s agricultural and environmental organizations, more than a tenth of food is lost before it is sold. In households, restaurant services and shops, almost a fifth is lost. Improving food security requires a significant change in attitude, especially in the global North, and a more equitable distribution of food.
8 Changes can be good too.
Industrialised animal production in particular poses significant ethical and environmental problems that accelerate climate change. A shift to a plant-based diet would also be good for human health. For example, with the return of traditional preservation methods and new recipes, a planetary diet could bring many benefits to people, other animals, and the environment – and thus also to the survival of the human species.
9 Solutions can be found in nature.
Mono-cultures or giant livestock farms that are prone to diseases and pests are detrimental to biodiversity. Agroecology, or diverse food production, is a more sustainable option from a land use and biodiversity perspective. Solutions must be tailored to each region, as there is no one-size-fits-all recipe. Local food production strengthens communities and reduces dependence on imported food.
10 Food security is part of resilience.
Adequate and nutritious food is a vital part of the well-being of both individuals and communities. It is not just that only a well-nourished person can be a productive part of their community. Food insecurity increases psychological vulnerability. Worrying about food often interferes with schooling and work.
+1: FCA is supporting this transition.
Food security is strongly linked to Finn Church Aid’s work on peace, livelihoods and education. Sustainable food production helps, for example, in conflict prevention, and by providing education rather than supporting livelihoods, people have better opportunities for sustainable and local food production and diets.
Sources: Interview with Aly Cabrera, climate expert at Finnish Church Aid, IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Land, FAO and WFP Hunger Hotspots report, and 2024 Global Report on Food Crises.
Hunger is a brutal weapon – wars in Ukraine, Sudan and Gaza significantly undermine global food security
Food should not be used as a tool of war, yet conflicts affect people’s access to sufficient and nutritious food. In recent years, alongside local challenges, the world has witnessed a unique phenomenon: the war in Ukraine, now in its third year, has affected food security worldwide.
Text: Ulriikka Myöhänen
Critical food aid lifelines into northern Gazasevered Starvation in war-hit Sudan ‘almost everywhere’. Russian missiles hit two grain ships in the Black Sea.
THESE HEADS ARE EXCERPTS from the international media and UN agencies in September-October 2024. A quick glance at the news will tell you a few important things:
Firstly, war always affects the food supply of ordinary people. Secondly, even in today’s wars, the control of food and its associated resources is the weapon which affects civilians the most.
The actions behind the headlines – such as bombing, destruction of farmland and water resources, and sabotage of food shipments – are horrific acts not only from the perspective of civilians struggling in the midst of conflicts, but also because they strongly undermine the international rules-based order.
International humanitarian law is a set of rules that seeks to limit the effects of armed conflict. It clearly states that starvation of civilians is absolutely prohibited as a method of warfare. It is also forbidden to attack objects that are essential to the survival of the civilian population. These may include food, grain fields, crops, livestock, water supplies and irrigation systems.
The rules of war are constantly being violated. In 2024, we still live in a world where children are starving to death, missiles and rockets are destroying food supplies, and food aid is not reaching civilians living in the midst of devastating conflict.
In developing regions, wars are often fought in areas that already suffer from a lack of adequate food and livelihoods, such as limited pasture and cropland. Food and disputes over food can therefore be both a tool of warfare and a cause of conflict.
Food is a human right
THE RIGHT TO FOOD is a right of every human being.
According to the World Food Summit held in 1996, food security is achieved when “all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and preferences for an active and healthy life.”
There are four main dimensions to food security. Food must be available: it must grow in fields and be stored. To achieve food security, people must also have access to food. In other words, they must be able to buy or produce food for themselves and their families.
In addition to being available, food must be nutritious and varied so thatpeople’s energy and nutrient needs are met. The fourth dimension is the stability or permanence offoodsecurity. Good quality and nutritious food must be available from day to day and people must have access to it for an individual to be considered food secure. Political instability, extreme weather conditions, rising prices and unemployment can all affect stability around food security.
Up to a third of the world’s food ends up as waste
TODAY, FOOD SECURITY is not achieved for everyone, even to the extent that food is available at all. According to a recent report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), one in 11 people in the world and one in five on the African continent will go hungry in 2023 – this despite the fact that the world produces more food than people can eat.
It is estimated that at least a fifth or even a third of the food produced goes to waste. In rich countries, too much food is bought and then left uneaten. In the poorest countries, food is wasted already at harvest time due to inadequate storage facilities and markets.
The past few years have been exceptional in terms of the deterioration of global food security. This is due to the Covid pandemic and Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine.
Coronavirus began spreading around the world from the Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019. The viral disease, which became a pandemic in the spring of 2020, closed borders and significantly limited people’s interactions and daily life.
The pandemic had an impact on nutrition, food security and food systems, i.e. the whole that consists of food production, processing, distribution and consumption.
Covid also had a significant impact on food chains, i.e. how raw materials end up on people’s tables through processing, handling, distribution and sale. The effects were global due to the lockdowns and restrictions during the pandemic and the sickening of those working in the sector.
Additionally, the pandemic also forced people to change their eating habits, as informal markets that often sold cheap vegetables to families, especially in developing countries, were closed due to restrictions on gatherings. Social programs that helped the poor could no longer provide food assistance in the same way as before.
Many lost their livelihoods, which meant that families had less money to buy food. At the same time, as the pandemic progressed, food prices rose significantly.
Illustration: Julia Tavast
In Ukraine, the war has turned fields into minefields
In 2022, the world was hit by a new global crisis, this time starting on the European continent. Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine has proven how interconnected the world we live in is.
Ukraine is a major European breadbasket, with agricultural products reaching tables around the world in recent years. The country is located on the Black Sea, through which significant amounts of grain, cooking oil and fertilizers are transported to the world.
When the war began, Russian warships in the Black Sea blockaded Ukrainian ports, thus closing trade routes. Energy and fuel prices rose. Food exports from Ukraine to the world suffered significantly before transport across the Black Sea was restored, at least partially, and alternative routes were found for Ukrainian agricultural products through European countries.
Ukrainians have lost their fertile farmland to invading forces, and the fields have become minefields. The fields themselves and the crops they grow have been completely destroyed in some places. Those who still farm are struggling to grow crops in the midst of war. There is a shortage of electricity due to ongoing attacks on energy infrastructure.
Transporting food from farms to international consumers has become significantly more difficult due to closed trade routes, ongoing security threats, and increased transportation costs.
The war in Ukraine and its impact on food security have been felt across the world, from Central America to the Middle East and Asia. The war caused global food prices to reach record highs in March 2022, but have since fallen to pre-pandemic levels.
The Covid pandemic and the war in Ukraine have been visible on family dinner tables around the world. But think about this: many people in the developed world buy a bag of highly processed bread from a store, the price of which consists of the shares received by the producer, the food industry and the store, as well as VAT. The share of raw materials – and the price change that has occurred due to the global market – is ultimately just a small everyday expense in our breakfast rolls.
In poorer countries, instead of buying ready-made rolls, people buy a big bag of raw materials, grain, from which they grind flour at home, for example, for a month’s needs. The price of wheat on the world market is reflected more painfully in the monthly expenses of a low-income family and also in the price of breakfast bread than in richer families.
Attacks on grain ships and food production continue in Ukraine
Despite the rules of war, Russia has used food as a weapon of war in Ukraine repeatedly, forcefully, and for a long time.
The war in Ukraine has been going on for almost three years, and yet attacks on grain ships, grain warehouses and food production continue. Although markets have managed to at least partially compensate for the lack of Ukrainian products on world markets, the war is already having, and will continue to have, long-term effects on food security.
The effects have already hit those who were already most hungry. As prices have risen, organizations have also had fewer food aid resources at their disposal. This means that fewer and fewer families dependent on food aid in crises around the world are getting enough food on their plates.
FAO predicts that up to 600 million people will be chronically malnourished in 2030. If the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine had not happened, there would be up to 119 million fewer people undernourished in 2030. The war in Ukraine alone affects the forecast by 23 million people. Chronic malnutrition is hitting Africa hard, where people are already living in famine.
Illustration: Julia Tavast
Hunger is being used as a weapon against civilians in Gaza and Sudan
THE LAST few years have brought turbulence to the big picture of food security, but there are also many regional and local crises in the world today that are significantly undermining food security.
Of all of them, the most difficult has received the least attention. More than half of Sudan’s population – 25 million people – will be acutely food insecure when the country enters civil war in 2023.
A famine has already been declared in the North Darfur region, which is also home to a camp for 500 000 internally displaced people. International organisations agree that hunger is currently the main cause of suffering among Sudanese civilians.
The warring factions in Sudan are also using hunger as a weapon of war. According to reports, the conflict parties are severely destabilising food systems, causing mass displacement and systematically destroying livelihoods. The parties are alsoblocking food aid from reaching the opposing territories.
The situation is also very serious in Gaza, where civilians are not getting enough food due to continuous airstrikes. Israel is also severely restricting the adequate access of food aid to Gaza.
There are also reports that food aid reaching the Gaza Strip has been looted. Israel blames the looting on Hamas, the Islamist extremist organization that controls Gaza. Organising food aid is currently difficult, also because Gaza is under constant bombardment and evacuation orders, and it is not possible to organize food storage and distribution safely.
It has long been known that Gaza is in a food security emergency that could soon turn into an outright famine. In October 2024, three-quarters of the population of the Gaza Strip is completely dependent on food aid, the limited farmland has been destroyed by bombing, and food supplies on the market are scarce and, as a result, very expensive.
How will food security be restored?
THE WORLD FOOD PROGRAMMEestimates that there are now as many as 71 countries facing acute hunger. The situation is most serious in Sudan and Gaza, but hunger is also seen in countries such as South Sudan and Mali. The hunger crisis has also been prolonged in Somalia, which first suffered from a historically long drought and then from rains that have caused devastating floods in the country.
In addition to conflicts and economic shocks, climate change is a significant factor increasing food insecurity. Conflicts, lack of livelihoods and climate change, in turn, force people to leave their homes. The cycle repeats, as displacement also significantly increases human food insecurity.
So what can be done to ensure that everyone has bread on their plate in the future? The most informed guesses emphasise cooperation; in which governments, financial institutions, the private sector, and sectors responsible for humanitarian work and development cooperation improve food security.
The importance of politics and diplomacy is key in order to end wars that have a devastating impact on the lives of civilians. The various parties must commit to complying with international humanitarian law, which prohibits attacks on food and civilians.
And finally, as the dust settles on the battlefields, it will be time to look to the future and think about how people will be able to return to their farms to produce food and earn a living.
The article uses as sources numerous press releases and web articles from the World Food Programme and OHCHR, the FAO’s The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2024 report, regional IPC reports on food security and the Impacts of COVID-19 on food security and nutrition report. In addition, Kaisa Karttunen, a working life professor at the University of Helsinki who specialises in food security, was interviewed for the article.
FCA recognises impact faced by women in Nepal through climate award
Bio-fertilizer scientists win FCA’s inaugural climate innovation award in Nepal that focuses on impact on women during the organisation’s tenth anniversary celebrations in the country.
SEPTEMBER 12 2024, FCA hosted the first ‘FCA Climate Innovation for Her’ awards in Nepal. To coincide with 10 years of FCA work in the country, the awards aimed to highlight the importance of gender-sensitive approaches in climate action and to encourage the development of innovative solutions that could be scaled and replicated.
The winner of the “FCA Climate Innovation for Her Award” was Dr. Pooja Manandhar and Nepal Bioscience Research Laboratory Pvt. Ltd. for their groundbreaking use of indigenous microorganisms to develop bio-fertilizers. This project addresses the harmful effects of soil degradation—caused by excessive use of chemical fertilisers—on women’s livelihoods. The bio-fertilizers, produced through sustainable agricultural waste management, offer a long-term solution.
FCA Nepal’s Country Director, Sofia Olsson, presents FCA’s Climate Innovation for Her Award to the winner, Dr. Pooja Manandhar, from Nepal Bioscience Research and Laboratory Pvt. Ltd.
The award was launched earlier in the year as an open call for applications from Nepali individuals, organisations, private companies, NGOs, and academic institutions.
FCA Nepal received twenty-nine applications submitted from across Nepal, each presenting creative ideas to combat climate change. The enthusiasm and level of innovation were inspiring, showing how both individuals and organisations are working to make communities more climate resilient.
Runners-up included Nitro Grow Agrotech Nepal, for their initiative Grow Greener, Grow Stronger: Harvesting Hair for Sustainable Future which converts waste human hair into organic, nitrogen-rich fertilizer, and Bighnaharta Nepal’sBio-engineering Social Enterprise for Disaster Risk Reduction and Livelihood Upliftment which combats soil erosion and enhances sustainable livelihoods through broom grass plantations.
The three finalists (left to right – Nitro Grow Agrotech Nepal, Bighnaharta Nepal and Nepal Bioscience Research and Laboratory Pvt. Ltd) for the FCA’s Climate Innovation For Her award during the award ceremony at the event.
“This award is valuable to me and my company as it recognizes our efforts to develop and produce a bio-fertilizer that addresses the impact of soil degradation on women caused by the overuse of chemical fertilizers. It is especially meaningful as it marks our first recognition after several previous nominations. We thank FCA for this honor and for recognizing organizations working to address the impact of climate change on women in Nepal,” said award winner Dr. Pooja Manandhar.
Sofia Olsson, FCA’s Country Director for Nepal, felicitated the nominees and presented the award, along with a cash prize of NPR 100,000 to the winner, in the presence of FCA’s Executive Director, Tomi Järvinen.
A group photo with the winner along with FCA representatives, jury members and two finalists.
Nepal is primarily an agricultural country. The latest data from the country’s agricultural census of 2021/22 shows that around 66% of households in Nepal are engaged in agriculture. This context is important because the majority of Nepali households, especially in rural areas, have lifestyles, household chores, cultural influences, incomes, and gender roles shaped by agricultural practices.
With climate change having a significant impact worldwide, Nepal too has been severely affected. These consequences directly impact the lives of Nepali women, as many male members of the household seek employment abroad for additional income.
The award had three key criteria: applicants had to be Nepali, their initiatives needed to address climate challenges, and the projects had to be successfully piloted or implemented. An external jury panel was formed to review the submissions based on relevance, innovation, impact on women, scalability, and sustainability.
The jury included Juna Mathema, Chairperson of the Startup & Innovation Forum at the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI); Björn Söderberg, Social Entrepreneur and Managing Director of Build Up Nepal; and Shakti Gurung, Executive Director of the Centre for Disaster Management Studies (CDMS).
In one of the world’s largest swamps, livelihoods must be constantly adapted to the realities on the ground. Through an EU-funded project, FCA are supporting fishermen to increase their catches and incomes.
Text: Björn Udd Photos: Antti Yrjönen
IN A CANOE that looks very much like a hollowed-out tree trunk, a gangly man is kneeling in the bow and paddling. He moves smoothly along the shore, handling his long net. Occasionally, and with a small smile, he picks up a fish, pulling it out of the mesh and putting it behind him in the canoe. The fish is the family’s income and food.
Kuol Puoth Thiew says he has been fishing since he was a small child. He grew up in Old Fangak, a town in northern South Sudan, located in the incredible swamp landscape formed by the White Nile. The al-Sudd Swamp is one of the largest in the world and has often been affected by extreme weather conditions. During the rainy season, the whole area is flooded and during the dry season the temperature can rise up to 45 degrees.
Mr Thiew moved to the nearby town of New Fangak with his two wives and nine children so that his children could go to school. Thiew himself finished school after the fifth grade, but wants his children to have an opportunity to get an education.
“I wanted my children to have a better future than mine. That’s why we moved here,” says the soft-spoken Thiew.
Khuol Phuot Thiew’s dream is to buy his own canoe. For now, he borrows or rents his canoe from fellow fishermen.
The income he receives from fishing is largely used to pay his children’s school fees. The nine children are aged between 3 and 25, and the two oldest have already moved away to the capital Juba to study at university – that’s more than a week’s boat journey away.
“My children going to school gives me hope for the future. That’s why I work hard to support them,” says Thiew.
THIEW LEAVES the riverbank at sunrise. Then he goes out with the canoe to scour the nets. In addition to fish, the waters are home to crocodiles, poisonous snakes and hippos. But Thiew still feels safe in his canoe.
“I’ve never been bitten. If a snake looks like it wants to attack, I just turn the canoe round and paddle away.”
If Thiew gets going early in the morning, he can catch 30-50 fish, usually perch-related Nile tilapia and mudfish, a particularly fast-growing fish that can weigh up to 7 kilos after just one month alive.
The fishing waters around New Fangak contain good numbers of fish.
“I sell the fish for 500-1000 South Sudanese pounds. So on a good day I can earn 30,000-50,000 (around €20-30), which goes towards the family’s daily expenses and the children’s school fees,” says Thiew.
Fish that is not purchased is eaten by the family.
“We all like fish, it has a lot of protein.”
The family also has a small garden and some cattle he bought with the income from fishing. Previously, the family had more cattle, but they died during heavy flooding. The recurrent floods and drought also make it difficult to grow crops, but for now the family still gets some food from the garden.
Fish provides both a good income and food for the family. It is a good source of protein in an area where many have lost their livestock.
IF THERE is fish left over, Thiew dries it to sell later. He learned this at a course organised by FCA’s European Union Humanitarian Aid-funded project last year. During the course, the fishermen learnt the best ways of laying and placing nets. The fishermen also received new, durable nets.
“The nets are very good. They have been very useful.”
Thiew would like to increase his catch, but at the moment it is difficult. He doesn’t own his own canoe, but borrows one from a fellow fisherman. Most of the time he can borrow the canoe for free, but sometimes – when his colleague is short of money – he pays a small rent. But his dream is to buy his own canoe.
“Then I could go deeper into the swamp, where there are more fish. I could make 2-3 day trips and increase my catch and income,” says Thiew.
Harvesting equality in Nepal: FCA & partners talk climate resilient development at CSW
At the 68th annual Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68), the UN’s largest annual gathering on gender equality and women’s empowerment, FCA and Nepali partners discussed the effects of climate change on women while sharing practical solutions.
Gender agenda for women in Nepal
CLIMATE CHANGE and environmental protection form a strategically important gender agenda for women in Nepal now and in the future.
The FCA event took place during the UN’s annual Commission on the Status of Women.
On March 12, 2024, experts gathered in New York during the UN’s event on gender quality. FCA hosted an event, co-sponsored by Finland that focused on how to mitigate the effects of climate change on Nepali women farmers, while remaining gender responsive and supporting economic empowerment.
The event drew on experiences from the GRAPE project in Nepal, a climate-resilient agriculture programme that FCA works on with main implementer, German development agency, GiZ.
Laura Rissanen, the State Secretary to the Minister of Social Security of Finland, opened the session by describing FCA’s work with Nepalis and how grassroots approaches and inclusion of women and girls is when climate action can make an impactful difference.
Ms Rissanen also highlighted that 2024 marks the 50th anniversary of Finland/Nepal diplomatic relations.
State Secretary Laura Rissanen opened the event
Shikha Shrestha from VSO Nepal emphasised that time and again, women’s voices are not heard.
Shikha Shrestha underlined that women must be involved in disaster relief.
“Women are always being engaged in agriculture & our knowledge & expertise is not considered. We need to consider holistic approach & have voices of women making the plan for disaster relief.”
The vivid panel discussion touched on the topic from various entry points with examples from mountainous indigenous women realities on the ground as well as experiences shared by women from marginalized communities, complemented by findings from recent research on how actually climate financing has remain very thin.
Yasso Kanti from the National Indigenous Women Forum narrated from firsthand experience the challenges and triumphs faced by indigenous women in their pursuit of equitable participation in agricultural endeavors amidst the ever-evolving climate landscape.
“There needs to be concrete recognition & action to putting indigenous peoples contributions at the forefront because indigenous people, especially women and girls, are mostly affected by land and climate induced conflicts,” she said.
Et ole hyväksynyt markkinoinnin evästeitä nähdäksesi videon.
Watch how climate change is threatening women farmers in Nepal
The panel also included DanChurchAid‘s Senior Advisor in Gender Equality, Kira Ugaz-Simonsen and youth climate activist, Tashi Lhazom, who joined remotely.
“Climate Change impacts everyone, but not equally. Key is the decentralization in power & resources. In most cases, it’s not an issue for women to speak out but for women to be listened to,” she contributed via remote link.
Youth climate activist, Tashi Lhazom joined the panel remotely
Targeted actions to mitigate the effects of climate change on women and gender equality remains extremely low whist there are growing needs to finance mitigation measures to women farmers and agribusiness entrepreneurs on climate change effects and prevention of further damage.
While the challenges of the Nepali women remain complex with deeply rooted gender stereotypes and practices, the discussion proved commitment and true trust for the better future as long as women’s agricultural role and potential is truly recognised and nurtured.
Panel biographies
Laura Rissanen
Laura Rissanen has served as State Secretary to the Minister of Social Security since June 2023 and is responsible for EU and international affairs that fall within the Minister’s area of responsibility, and matters related to gender equality, occupational safety and health, and farm relief services. Rissanen has over twenty years of experience in policymaking, ranging from municipality decision-making to the European Parliament.
Tashi Lhazom
Tashi Lhazom is a prominent climate activist working at the intersection of climate action, gender equality, indigenous rights, and political literacy. She has spoken at grassroots, national, and global platforms. Tashi is a Co-Founder of two civil society initiatives, is a researcher and filmmaker, using storytelling to bring awareness to critical climate challenges in the Himalayan region.
Yasso Kanti Bhattachan
Yasso Kanti Bhattachan presently holds the position of Vice-Chairperson at the National Indigenous Women Forum. She is an esteemed figure known for her pivotal role as an advocate, researcher and leader for Indigenous Women’s Rights. Yasso is one of the founding members and advisor at the National Indigenous Women Federation and a Regional Council member of the Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD), and the South Asia Focal Person of the Asian Indigenous Women’s Network (AIWN).
Kira-Ugaz Simonsen
Kira Ugaz-Simonsen is a Senior Advisor in Gender Equality at DanChurchAid, based in the head office in Copenhagen. Kira has more than 10 years’ experience working with gender responsiveness in development programming, both as a gender specialist and independent consultant, with experience from a broad range of countries. She has previously lived and worked with gender issues in Mozambique for close to five years and have prior to that, worked for UN Women in Bolivia.
Shikha Shrestha
Shikha Shrestha has more than 25 years of experiences on gender equality and social inclusion, feminist leadership, and good governance. Currently working with VSO Nepal as Country Project Implementation Lead, she completed her masters in forest ecology that helps her to understand agenda of climate change both from gender and ecological perspectives. Shikha has been actively engaged in promoting gender agenda in climate change actions and systematizing efforts of harmful social norms transformation for promoting gender equality and empowerment of marginalized communities.
Flooding has disrupted the education of millions of children in south-west Somalia
As world leaders, UN experts, and climate specialists discuss mitigating the effects of climate change in the world, they continue to wreak havoc on millions of lives around the globe, especially in Africa and other third-world countries.
IN MY RECENT visit to schools supported by FCA Somalia in the hard-to-reach areas of Elberde, Hudur, and Baidoa in late November 2023, I witnessed firsthand the devastating impact of the El Niño rains.
These heavy rains have triggered widespread flooding, resulting in the loss of life, the displacement of thousands of families, and significant damage to critical school infrastructure.
Schools supported by FCA Somalia have been severely affected, with walls, windows, roofs, latrines, and even temporary learning spaces that were previously constructed by FCA, being destroyed or rendered unusable. This poses serious safety risks for students, as broken windows and walls exposed them to potential hazards.
Flooded classrooms pose a risk to students
Furthermore, the heavy flooding has left most schools waterlogged, rendering routes impassable for both students and teachers. This disruption in transportation has severely hampered teaching and learning activities, even in areas where the rains have temporarily subsided.
Increased drop-outs
Consequently, many learners have been forced to remain in their settlements or homes, leading to increased dropout rates. Additionally, the situation has put young girls at a higher risk of early marriage as their families seek alternative means of survival amidst these challenging circumstances. It is disheartening to note that many of these individuals were either recently or previously displaced due to drought or conflict before the onset of the rains, exacerbating their suffering.
The flooding also leads to the outbreak of waterborne diseases
Moreover, the waterlogged conditions have resulted in the outbreak of waterborne diseases such as dysentery and cholera, affecting both students and internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the surrounding areas of the schools, and many learners have been admitted to local clinics with the support of FCA school-based child protection focal points and school community leaders.
It is crucial to highlight that numerous schools have also suffered significant damage and lost desks and other essential teaching and learning materials, including books, as a result of the floods, and the few schools that have survived the flooding are being utilised as shelters for the affected IDPs.
Prolonged effects of flooding
Considering this disaster, the government, specifically the Ministry of Education, had taken the necessary step of temporarily closing schools for a period of two weeks. This decision was made to prioritise the safety of learners. However, by the time of my visit, the government had reopened the schools, allowing students to resume their education. Nevertheless, the effects of the flooding are still visible in many schools, as they have suffered significant damage due to the heavy devastation caused by the Elinino-induced rains.
Even though schools have reopened, many bear significant damage
On our part as FCA Somalia, we actively responded to the floodings by working and coordinating alongside our partners and other key actors, such as education cluster partners, in the areas of assessment and support. We also supported the most affected schools by distributing learning materials to a few affected learners whose materials were destroyed by the flooding.
In the future, we will conduct community advocacy to raise awareness about the importance of building a protective learning environment for children. To achieve this, we will provide training sessions on appropriate climate change and disaster risk reduction (DRR) to teachers, child club members, the school community, and the administration.
We aim to empower the school community, teachers, and learners and enhance their participation in creating a safer and more resilient educational environment. By equipping teachers, child club members, and school administrators with the necessary knowledge and skills, we believe that we can better prepare them to handle future challenges related to climate change and natural disasters.
The writer of this blog is FCA Somalia’s Senior Education and Quality Advisor in Somalia
COP28 was a source of hope, but the vulnerable communities cannot afford complacency
Attending the COP28 in Dubai for the first five days was encouraging for me because I witnessed how the global momentum is picking up in responding to the climate crisis, writes FCA’s Executive Representative Jussi Ojala.
FINN CHURCH AID has seen through its work the devastating effects of climate change and its consequences for vulnerable people and communities in least developed countries. East Africa witnessed five consecutive poor rainy seasons in 2020–2023, only to be followed by catastrophic flooding affecting Somalia, Kenya, and Ethiopia especially.
The consensus reached at COP28 in Dubai on climate action, including a pathway out of fossil fuels and tripling renewable energy use, is good news for the world. And there are more reasons for optimism. Attending the COP28 in Dubai for the first five days was encouraging for me because I witnessed how the global momentum is picking up in responding to the climate crisis. From FCA’s perspective, several important structural developments bring the most vulnerable and crisis-affected contexts to the radar of the climate debate – and the core competence of Finn Church Aid.
First, the pledging to the loss and damage fund to compensate for climate damage in particularly vulnerable countries, especially by the United Arab Emirates and Germany. This is a key step towards global climate justice and complements the Green Climate Fund and efforts led by the Republic of Korea.
Second, a series of pre-COP consultations were held with the religious leaders and faith communities, including a High-level Faith Leaders Meeting that contributed to the first ever Faith Pavilion at COP28. Religious leaders can not only show a moral compass to local communities but also provide leadership in policy influence and grassroots engagement and set an example through interfaith collaboration of how people from different backgrounds can join forces to address a global challenge.
Third, at COP28, a declaration on Relief, Recovery and Peace was issued, and there was a special day to deliberate on these critical themes specifically and their linkages to climate change. FCA and its local partners have too often borne witness to how climate change is hitting areas that are already under stress from conflicts and chronic development challenges, compounding the negative effects, inducing displacement, and contributing to refugee situations in developing and developed countries alike.
“Yet the pledges need to become reality, and issues such as sustainable climate financing need more resources.”
Fourth, never before has the Right to Quality Education been featured as prominently at the COP meetings as is the case in Dubai. The “Greening Education Hub” often served as my base during my stay, given the quality events that the NGOs, the UN and the various Governments were organizing. Yet more important than the events was the emerging will to consider climate change education, teacher capacities and vocational training through the lenses of needed climate action.
The COP Presidency promised an ambitious summit and it indeed delivered one. COP28 has the potential to write history in the global response to climate change. Yet the pledges need to become reality, and issues such as sustainable climate financing need more resources desperately. There is no room for complacency by the Conference of Parties and other stakeholders. Leaving no one behind must be our joint climate commitment and a promise we are keeping.
There is hope even amid multiple crises – our latest report shows over 1 million people were supported through our work
2022 WAS A YEAR OF CRISES that shook and challenged our worldview and affected us on many levels, perhaps more deeply than anything else ever before.
Crises always lead to a great deal of suffering, and no matter the causes, and no matter where in the world we are, we all feel the impact.
People are starting to question the rules we play by. Long-simmering discontent is boiling over. The world is changing; but listening to discussions – not only between experts, but also ordinary Finns – I believe it is changing for good.
Lviv Railway Station, March 11, 2022. Photo: Antti Yrjönen
For Finn Church Aid, 2022 was a year of changes. Just a few years earlier, we had discontinued our European operations, thinking our work there was done. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022 changed everything overnight, and for much longer than we anticipated.
Thanks to unprecedented support from Finnish people, Finn Church Aid was able to quickly mobilise programme work in the country. In no time at all, a country office and one of our organisation’s biggest aid programmes were up and running.
Despite their own sense of shock and disbelief, people wanted to help. Individuals, businesses, churches and public authorities were ready and willing to give money and their time to support people in Ukraine.
Collecting donations for Ukrainian refugees in early March 2022. Photo: Saara Mansikkamäki
By the end of February 2023, our partner Hungarian Interchurch Aid (HIA) reached 275,860 people in the humanitarian response supported by FCA. Our country office’s work focused mainly on education and reached 18,400 people in Ukraine already in 2022.
What happens in Ukraine also has repercussions for our activities elsewhere, including in Africa. The Horn of Africa is facing its worst drought in decades and our local employees, particularly in Kenya and Somalia, are fighting it on a daily basis.
Cereals from Ukraine used to be a major part of the region’s food security, but the war stopped grain shipments, causing an acute food crisis and rapid inflation in a region suffering from various challenges.
Hamin 25 walks one hour to the nearest water borehole in Marsabit county, Kenya. The ongoing drought has worsened the already rising food prices. Photo: Björn Udd
Meanwhile, our efforts to build long-term development cooperation are hampered by the ruling military junta in Myanmar, the earthquake in Turkey and Syria, and the impacts of the climate crisis.
What this shows us above all, is that the work of Finn Church Aid is still needed. We can alleviate suffering and offer a ray of hope for many in times of despair.
In addition to the very tangible crises caused by war and disasters, we are facing a global political crisis. In times of crises, it is easy to withdraw mentally and physically; this is a natural protective mechanism and how we instinctively react to danger.
In Aleppo Finn Church Aid provided vital aid to those affected by the earthquake, including warm clothing and female hygiene kits. Photo: Ward Nassan Agha
But in today’s world, no one can make it alone – this is what the crises mentioned above have shown us. We need others. We must learn to work together.
At its essence, this involves recognising the needs of others and acting for the common good – within and beyond Finland’s borders.
It is fair to ask if there is hope left in this world? To answer that, I want to bring your attention to things we can do with your support.
George returned to Boru Haro Village School after being absent for 10 days, due to helping his parents fetch food and water. Photo Björn Udd
We can help children and youth go to school and learn, we can provide water to those who are thirsty and food to those who are hungry, we can offer asylum for refugees and strive for those who have no livelihood.
In all crises, human response is of key importance. With the support of our donors, we supported over one million beneficiaries in 2022. We have been able to empower people living amidst crises to take action to improve their lives.
