A vast number of adolescents and youth of Nepal are out of the school system as they have been left-out or pushed-out of the school for various reasons and often found to be at the center of the vicious cycle as being either the cause or effect of the decade long armed-conflict.
As a strategy to work in economic peacebuilding a group of committed professionals with the support from Swiss-Nepal Society (SNS) and DIGA foundation of Switzerland, has established the Lamjung Skill Development Foundation (LSDF) Campus at Gairi, close to Besi Sahar. LSDF in its effort to provide a new life to marginalized youth is committed to provide market based practical oriented high-quality vocational/technical skills to the out-of-school youth so that they can be employed or self-employed after completion of their training.
The campus opened its doors in summer 2008 with the two first long-term courses in civil construction and carpentry. Additional trades (electronic and mechanical) will be implemented step by step.
Goal: LSDF will contribute to enhanced productivity and income of skilled human resources, with community members and out-of-school youth gainfully employed or self-employed with appropriate skills at hand.
The Campus provides demand based two-years of long-term and several short-term courses. The LSDF Gairi Campus is financed by several Nepalese and Swiss stakeholders. SNS is facilitating the co-operation between DIGA Stiftung and LSDF and also finances short-term courses and the construction of a canteen.