NMA Welfare
Fund .

Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA) has always been committed to the welfare of mountain communities. Mountain Tourism is lucrative and at the same time bears immense risks. Every year a lot of mountain expedition workers lose their lives in the mountains. NMA has been working to provide support for the families directly affected by this tragedy and also create a long-term, sustainable way to assist Nepalese affected by the mountaineering accidents since its establishment. The number of accidents in the mountains increases every year leaving the family in agony. Till the date NMA has supported more than 300 children with their education.  Currently, we are supporting thirty-five students with NRs 6000 per student per month and 4 disabled mountaineers with NRs 2500, NRs 5000, and NRs 7000 respectively.

The NMA Welfare fund has already received generous support from Mr. Ken Noguchi - Chairman of SSASS (Seven Summit Action for Sustainable Society) and SSASS family, Seven Summits Foundation, Nepalese Nurses American Association and Non Residence Nepalese Association, Japan Mountain Guide Association, New Zealand High Commission; Dr. In-Jeoung Lee, the President of the Union of Asian Alpine Association (UAAA); Mr. Pierre Humbhet, President of Mountaineering Commission of UIAA Mr. Ang Tshering Sherpa - Chairman of Asian Trekking Pvt. Ltd Ciwec Hospital, Kathmandu, Nepal; Japanese national Mr. Tokinosuke Sugimoto; Honorary Nepalese Consul General of Slovenia, Mr. Thakur Raj Panday - General Secretary of Nepal Mountaineering Associatio; Australian Himalayan Foundation; Korean Alpine Club; Deepanjali Subba; Mekong Organisation for Mankind; Korean Alpine Federation; Weledel Geleerde; UAAA; Chinese Taipei Alpine Association; Mr. James & Mrs. Dorothy Corbin from the USA and Mr. O.Joan Knowles. The Nepal Mountaineering Association has also contributed directly to the Fund.

Himalayan Trust Support's Scholarship for the Children of  Mount Everest Avalanche Victims on 18th April 2014

Himalayan Trust founded by late Sir Edmund Hillary has a long history in providing scholarships for the deserving students from Solukhumbu district to pursue higher studies after schooling, financed by Himalayan Trust New Zealand, Sir Edmund Hillary Foundation Canada, American Himalayan Foundation, Hillary Foundation USA and Himalayan Trust UK and Benoit Chamoux Foundation.

The donors of the Himalayan Trust Nepal have raised funds after the Mt. Everest tragedy of April 2014 with long commitment to support the education of the children.

To ensure that every mountain expedition related victims’ children get opportunity of good education and to avoid duplication, the Nepal Mountaineering Association, under its framework has maintained profiles of each deserving children and requested the Himalayan Trust to support some of the children under its scholarships program.

The NMA would like to thank Himalayan Trust for supporting the children of deceased Sherpa mountaineering workers for many years in Solukhumbu District in Nepal.

Similarly, also NMA would like to thank "AAI-Sherpa Education Fund, USA" for supporting the children of the climbing Sherpas who loss their lives on Mt. Everest in the avalances that occurred on 18 April 2014.

A 19-member committee has been formed under the convenorship of Mr. Ang Tshering Sherpa, President of NMA. The committee includes NMA members, Nepal Government representatives and associate members from related organizations:

1. Convener :  Mr. Ang Tshering Sherpa – President of NMA
2. Member:     Mr. Santbir Lama – 1st VP of NMA
3. Member:     Mr. Deebas Bikram Shah – 2nd VP of NMA
4. Member:     Mr. Thakur Raj Pande – General Secretary of NMA
5. Member:     Mr. Rajendraman Shrestha – Secretary of NMA
6. Member:     Mr. Tika Ram Gurung  – Treasurer of NMA
7. Member:     Mr. Ram Prasad Sapkota – Chief of Mountaineering Section, MoCTCA, Gov. of Nepal
8. Member:     Mr. Dr. Nima Namgyal Sherpa – Executive member of NMA
9. Member:     Mr. Dawa Gelje Sherpa – Executive member of NMA
10. Member:     Miss. Chhurim Sherpa – Executive member of NMA
11. Member:     Mr. Pertemba Sherpa  – Renowned Mountaineer and IMM Advisor of NMA
12. Member:     Mr. Ang JP Lama – Former Secretary of NMA
13. Member:     Mr. Pasang Dawa Sherpa – Welfare Committee Member of NMA

Associate Members:

1. President of Trekking Agents’ Association of Nepal, Mr. Ramesh Damala
2. President of Expedition Association of Nepal, Mr. Damber Parajuli
3. Director of Nepal Tourism Board,
4. President of Himalayan Rescue Association, Mr. DB Koirala
5. President of NNMGA
6. President of NMIA
7. National Advisory Committee: Dr. Ganesh Gurung
8. International Adviosry Committee: Mr. Ken Noguchi (Japan)

Currently the committee is working to investigate the best path forward and create sustainable systems for maintain and managing the Welfare Fund. This process includes consulting to find the best institutional strategy to manage the fund in an efficient, transparent and accountable way; reaching out to other organizations that have an interest in working with mountaineering victims to coordinate and ensure that there is minimal duplication of effort; consulting with experts on education and social welfare; working with the government to find sustainable systems of support for the Welfare fund; and establishing a long-term vision and plan for the NMA’s involvement in the welfare of all victims of mountaineering incidents. While the immediate focus is education and relief for the families of victims from Everest this, the Welfare Fund’s mission encompasses supporting Nepalis who are killed or injured in the course of working on any mountain within Nepal or abroad.

The committee members are establishing communication with each of the families of the mountaineers who died in the 18 April 2014 avalanche to consult about their individual needs and find the best way to support the school-aged children in continuing their education. For the time being, the families are being encouraged to have their children continue in the same schools for the academic year to minimize further disruption and psychological trauma. Over the course of this year, the NMA will work with families to assess their needs and plans for each child’s educational future and assess their other needs. For this fiscal year, the families will receive the following amounts per child as immediate relief:

Infants – Rs. 5000/month

Class 1 – Class 5: Rs. 5,000/month

Class 6 – Class 10: Rs. 7,000/month

Classes 10+2 – Bachelors level: Rs. 10,000/month

If you would like to support the NMA Welfare fund to provide assistance to the children of the 16 victims of the April 2014 avalanche, and also support any future victims of mountaineering incidents, the account details are as follows:

Bank Name: Nabil Bank LTD

Address: Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, Nepal

Swift Code: NARBNPKA

Account Name: NMA-MDRES FUND

Account Number: 1501017500227

For any further inquiries about the MDRES fund, please contact NMA President and Convener of the MDRES Fund Management Committee Mr. Ang Tshering Sherpa via

Email: president@nepalmountaineering.org info@nepalmountaineering.org

            office@nepalmountaineering.org.