SITUATION
On 25 April, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck northwest of Kathmandu. On 12 May, a new earthquake measuring 7.3 magnitude struck. The epicentre was northeast of Kathmandu, an area already affected by the first quake. As a result, a total of at least 8,600 people were killed and 16,800 injured. As of 21 May, according to the Ministry of Home Affairs, a total of 494,717 houses were reported destroyed and 267,373 damaged.
The earthquakes have had a devastating impact on the school sector in the affected areas. An estimated 1,109,000 children aged 3 to 18 years have been unable to return to their permanent classrooms when classes resumed on 31 May, after the earthquakes destroyed over 35,986 classrooms.1 A further 16,761 will require repair, affecting 480,000 children. In addition to the impact on facilities, children and their teachers require psychosocial support and the protective environment that emergency education provides. The Cluster anticipates that the level of damage and destruction will increase because of the monsoon, given the risks of landslides and flooding.