When her father died of pneumonia, Asmaya Pariyar was shattered. But rather than stay sunk in gloom, Pariyar went to Banepa to train to become an Assistant Midwife as part of the Rotary Club of Kathmandu-Midtown's 'Health, Hunger and Humanity Grants Project'. She will return to her village next year to put into practice the lifesaving skills she has learned.

"My father died because of pure ignorance. I want to study so I can be informed and teach others," explains Pariyar.

Dozens of girls in villages across the country have followed suit. The 3-H Grants Project, which has a total endowment of over $300,000, has brought girls from ten remote western districts to Banepa. There they are given an eighteen-month course on reproductive health. Along with birth attendance training, the girls are given orthopaedic and dental training. With the help of microcredit, they will be able to establish independent clinics in their hometowns.

The project is the brainchild of German Rotarian Hartmut Bander, who worked with Rotary Club of Kathmandu-Midtown and Darmstadt Bergstzasse. He started the project after witnessing the dilapidated state of health posts in rural Nepal.

The objective is to empower villagers to help themselves so they won't have to depend on the largesse of government or NGOs. Says project contact person C.K. Golcha, "The problem with sending city dwellers to help out in villages is that they cannot adjust to the environment there. But if you train locals, their love for their birthplace will drive them to go back and do something productive."

The first batch of graduates are all set to return to their villages. Shy and self-conscious when they first arrived in Kathmandu, they're now brimming with self-confidence and eager to make a difference. Project manager Rajaram Joshi notes, "The graduates feel they don't need to stay in Kathmandu to earn money."

Rina Thakali of Jomsom confirms this, adding, "We are privileged to have been given this opportunity. And we cannot wait to give something back." The girls will continue to receive support once they're working back in their villages.

ariyar, for instance, will be sent back home with Rs 1,26,000 and all the necessary equipment to start up a mother-child health clinic. The interest on the amount will help Pariyar sustain herself and maintain the clinic.

The Rotary Club plans to train many more midwives and run similar projects in other parts of Nepal. With national maternal mortality rates still unacceptably high, a local effort such as this will have positive impacts right across the country.