Erractic rains see Nepalese farmers become 'climate-smart'

B

imala Bajagain, a farmer and mother of three, wears a fading red kurta and appears older than her age at 35. She offers us plates of salted guavas at the porch of her quake-damaged house.

By midday, October’s warm sun boils over Kalchebesi village of Kavrepalanchok district. Bajagain insists we also savour a plate of cucumbers.

“We managed to build our government funds from initial government funds and assistance from an INGO,” Bajagain shares, nodding toward a small hovel constructed of corrugated steel, right beside her cow shed.

“But this structure will have to be rebuilt for winter – the steel heated up unbearably in the summer and now it will turn very cold.”

Bajagain plans to reinforce her shelter with plywood for insulation, which she will fund with a loan from a local cooperative, and eventually pay with income from selling her vegetables, if the water holds out.

Read the ClimateHome story - “Nepal’s farmers turn ‘climate smart’ as erratic rains bite.”