COVID-19 in Nepal + finding joy!

Clare Bartram

Namaste our friends - how are you?

What a question in this unbelievable time. It goes without saying, we’re all adjusting to a new kind of normal. We hope you and your families are staying healthy, navigating the anxiety, confusion and enormity of COVID-19 and finding some social solidarity in the isolation. 

We’re concerned for our colleagues and friends in Nepal, who like us, are working out how to move forward. Nepal has only 2 confirmed cases, but some say this number reflects a lack of tests. There is a strict stay-at-home order in place, with schools, businesses and government offices closed and domestic and international flights grounded. 

Durbar Square, Kathmandu. Image: The Mercury News.

Nepal has also closed its land borders with India and China. When one of our co-founders, Sarah, left Nepal over a week ago there were already queues for petrol, gas and cooking oil, with fear of fuel and food shortages, much of which comes from India and China. ​

The women and girls and our colleagues at our partner, Asha Nepal, are all healthy. They have closed the office and are continuing to support the family care homes and families in the community with the team working from home where possible. The family care homes are well stocked with food, toiletries and basic medical care. Asha has purchased induction heating stoves in anticipation of a shortage in cooking gas. With schools closed, the family care mothers are considering creative ways to make the time productive and not too disruptive for the girls. They have been reading, cooking together, playing indoor games, doing art and watching movies. 

These are heartbreaking times for so many and especially for already fragile communities. For those already vulnerable from violence and precarious livelihoods, unable to rely on an affordable or adequate healthcare system, COVID-19 will be devastating. There are no stimulus packages in Nepal. 

It’s also a testing time for our global community and the shared connections we have built across cultures and borders, as we, by necessity, turn to our here and now. 

After a cooking class with one of our groups in Nepal last year, Mina*, who along with a number of the family based care mothers have set up a catering business, said

“I felt really joyful while conducting the cooking class."

So in the spirit of finding joy where we can and remembering we are part of a global community, the Project Didi team have decided to cook a number of the mothers’ recipes.

We’ve shared a recipe below, so we hope you’ll join in our Nepali feast and find joy in the food and connection to our didis in Nepal. 

Mixed Vegetable Curry

You will need:

• 250g green peas
• 250g carrots, chopped into sticks
• 500g cauliflower, chopped into pieces
• 250g green beans, chopped into diagonal pieces
• 250g potato, chopped into bite size pieces
• 1 cup of chopped tomatoes
• 1 medium onion, chopped finely
• 1 pinch fenugreek seeds
• 1⁄2 tsp turmeric powder
• 2 spring onions, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic
• Finger size bit of ginger
• 2 tsp cumin powder
• 1 zucchini chopped
• Salt to taste
• 60ml oil​

You can swap these vegetables to use those that are in season.

Pound garlic and ginger into a paste.

Heat a large pan and add the oil. When hot, fry the fenugreek seeds until they turn red.

Add the onions and fry until they turn brown.

Add the tomatoes, ginger and garlic paste and cook for 2 minutes.

Add the vegetables and turmeric powder. Stir occasionally and cook until tender.

Then add the spring onions, cumin powder, salt and cook for 5 minutes.

Enjoy! 

*Name changed to protect privacy.