EMPOWERMENT THROUGH SPORT
The Culture on Women empowerment through sport in Nepal
Nepal is still a very patriarchal society and it is a challenge for the older generation to understand about equality for women and girls. The older generation also have some difficulty in understanding that sport can be important to the wellbeing of the children and many think that it is just a distraction from lessons and that you cannot play sport and still get good grades at school.
Empowerment through Sport at NMA
It is interesting that the attendance rate at the NMA improved even more when they introduced sport in 2014. That progressive attitude of the community in Nalang towards this, and the importance of education and equality for girls is the major reason for us setting up our base at the Nalang Model Academy. Furthermore we established The Yearley Trust Centre of Excellence there to provide training to people from rural communities throughout Nepal .
If girls believe in equal rights, they will take that back to their family and educate them, and of course they are also the mothers of the future, so in time will also make sure that their children also believe in equality.
Women Empowerment through sport in Nepal
We chose volleyball, as major sport, because wherever you go in rural Nepal every bit of flat land has some form of primitive volleyball net. Volleyball is a national obsession.
Kopila Upreti already has a very successful tried and tested program of working with pupils in rural school and this program will continue and will be augmented by a series of residential courses at The Yearley Trust Centre for Excellence. There around 10 to 12 teachers accompanied by few of their older pupils will receive volleyball coaching as well as training on how best to educate the pupils at their respective schools on girl’s rights.
The Trust is proud to also be working in Nepal with Volleyball4Life to empower women and Kopila will be leading both programs.
Women Empowerment and equality talks
Santoshi Shrestha will be promoting empowerment and equality through a series of school visits and talks in rural schools all around Nepal. Her gold medal attracts considerable attention from pupils all of whom want a good look and to touch if possible. She will also conduct workshops at The Centre of Excellence for teachers on how to promote equality. She is a very popular media personality and will be using every opportunity to promote empowerment in her various interviews.
You can help Kopila and Santoshi to promote equality. Your gift of just £4 a month will help them bring a program of empowerment through sport to the girls in rural Nepal.
By helping our experts to empower the life of even one girl you can help to change a whole generation.
At the Trust we have numerous campaigns for Empowerment for Women and Girls through other means and it will form an important element of educating people through our Welfare Clinics and workshops.
- “Change the life of one girl and you will change a whole generation”
Kopila Uprety, the Yearley Trust’s Sport Development Officer, on Women Empowerment through sport in Nepal
The Yearley Trust Centre for Excellence
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Kopila Upreti
Sport Program Officer, The Yearley Trust
Kopila herself had to overcome prejudice to be even allowed to play volleyball when she was young, as girls were not allowed to play sport at all. She has now 17 years behind her back representing Nepal in International level volleyball.
”Change the life of one girl and you will change a whole generation. When I decided to leave my house, my mother, brothers and sisters, I didn’t know anything about empowerment. I just chose to leave a situation that was destructive to me. Without a plan, goal, money or network. At that time I was only aware about one thing: if I would stay, I would die.

Santoshi Shrestha
Sport Program Officer, The Yearley Trust
“Achievement isn’t only the success”
Santoshi is First International Gold Medalist Women Athlete of Nepal in Athletics. She is Public Health Graduate. She is currently studying two different masters degrees, while training for numerous competitions
”As I know if there is a want there is a way. I still remember those days when I didn’t have any idea about the life, career, aim, destination, including running. Just I knew that I should do study, household chores and should be a good girl with good habits. These were known from my guardian, relatives and from my teachers. But didn’t know about that there are lots of things which we should know and we will know infinite things in life.