In November 2013, Kate Coffey quit her well-paying job and set off on a quest to reshape her life, apply her skills that would feed her soul a little better and make her life a tad more satisfying. This is the story of Kate’s 5-month stay at the Spinal Injury Rehabilitation Centre in Kavre Nepal, as well as her 2-month stay in rural Bangladesh working at microfinance with BRAC. For more information, please read her blog: www.bowen2bangladesh.wordpress.com

1. TELLINGASTORY
LIVINGANDWORKING IN
NEPALAND BANGLADESH

2. The Big Question
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Why on earth did I do this??

3. Last day at work
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4. Mid Life Enlightenment
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5. Places important for me to spend time
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Nepal – because I love it
there

6. Places important for me to spend time
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Bangladesh – the birthplace of microfinance

7. Places important for me to spend time
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Ireland, England, Australia, New Zealand and Spain –
family and friends

8. Places important for me to spend time
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India did not feature on the original plan (but I went there anyway)

9. Dec 2013 to Dec 2014 travel ended up looking like this
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EUROPE
• Ireland: Cork, Kinsale,
Galway and Swinford.
• England: London and
Holmbridge.
• Spain: Madrid, Ponferrada to
Finisterre, Santiago de
Compostella, Alicante and
the Costa Blanca
ASIA
• Nepal: Kathmandu, Kavre,
Banepa, Pokhara and Lumbini.
• Bangladesh: Dhaka and many
rural villages.
• India: Kolkata,Varanasi,
Jaipur and Delhi
AUSTRALIA & OCEANIA
• Australia: Melbourne and Bairnsdale
• New Zealand: Christchurch

10. Dec 2013 to Dec 2014 travel ended up looking like this
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11. Nepal, Bangladesh and India
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12. Want to hear more about the rest of my travels?
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Check out my blog:
www.bowen2bangladesh.wordpress.com

13. Nepal – how did that come about?
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• Dr Peter Wing and Dr Claire Weeks, SpiNepal www. spinepal.med.ubc.ca
• Spinal Injury Rehabilitation Centre, Kavre, Nepal www.sirc.np.org
• Inaugurated by the late Sir Edmund Hillary in 2002.
• Through funding from Mountains to Mountains and Sir Michael Kadoorie, the purpose
built rehab centre was opened in 2008.
• It currently offers SCI rehabilitation for 52 patients from across Nepal.

14. Daily Life in Nepal
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I stayed with Lok and his family in Banepa

15. Daily Life in Nepal
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Daily yoga and walks around Banepa

16. Daily Life in Nepal
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Buses = scary!

17. Daily Life in Nepal
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Festivals & Celebrations

18. Daily Life in Nepal
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Food – yum!

19. Daily Life in Nepal
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Spending time with Mingmar and family

20. Working at SIRC – the highlights
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21. Working at SIRC – the highlights
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22. Working at SIRC – MBA Interns
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23. Working at SIRC – achievements
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 Program Development
 DisabilityTourism
 Networking and Communication
 Relationships
 Continued to foster existing relationship with Swiss & Canadian medical teams, Livability UK,
Motivation UK, Kadoorie Charitable Foundation, AWON and AIN.
 New relationships extended to LloydsTSB (UK) and SadleTrading (Bhaktapur), Rick Hansen
Foundation (Canada), Canada Gives (Canada) and ACE School of Management (Kathmandu).
 SIRC’s Communication Plan
 SCI Awareness Program
 Social Media, LinkedIn, Staff Script, launch of “SIRC Friends” campaign, School Presentations
 Ram’sWheelchairYaatra
 Online Newsletter
 Improved Online Presence
 Online Donations: e-Sewa, BigGives and soon to be launched Canada Gives.

24. Working at SIRC – achievements
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 Fundraising
 Poor Patient Care Fund launched in Europe and Nepal.
 Heating installation - in-kind expertise from Cork-based Heating Specialist Kevin Fitzgibbon.
 Facility Painting – in-kind donation from Nepalese paint manufacturer
 Successful events completed:
 March 1 International Wheelchair Day
 April 7th SIRC 12th Anniversary (local awareness & celebration)
 Ram’sWheelchairYaatra Fundraiser & Journey. March 21st, 2014.
 Annual GolfTournament. March 22nd, 2014.
 Kadoorie visit to SIRC. March 27th, 2014
 Dinner and SilentAuction Fundraiser. April 4th, 2014
 Human Resource Management
 Team Building (Karen Hilton)
 Performance Management system (Karen Hilton)
 Succession Planning (Karen Hilton)
 MBA Interns (Kate Coffey)

25. Sad to leave my friends in Nepal
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26. Next stop Dhaka
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27. BRAC www.brac.net
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Founded in 1972 by Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, initially to provide
assistance after the War of Liberation.
Today it is the largest NGOs in the world, is self-funded up to 80% to
deliver it’s programs which include microfinance.

28. What is microfinance?
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 Microfinance is the provision of financial services to low-income
people.
 Finances income-producing activities, build assets, stabilize
consumption, and protect against risks.
 Usually focused on groups of women who through peer support,
repay loans (90%) and go on to better the health and wealfare of
their households.
 Usually includes a savings component also.

29. Microfinance in the Mymensing District
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• ChorkaliVillage

30. Microfinance in the Mymensing District
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• HoripurVillage

31. Microfinance in the Mymensing District
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• ShobjiparaVillage

32. Microfinance – does it work 40 years on?
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• Not everyone is an entrepreneur yet it’s the only way for a poor person
to secure a loan.
• Debt cycle: women come back for additional loans once the previous
loan is paid off.
• Credit surfing: some husbands take the cash the women get as loans,
leaving the woman with the debt and no way to earn money to pay it
back. She then may be forced to go to another institution or worse a
moneylender to get a new loan, to repay the initial loan at higher
interest rates. This is a detriment to the wellbeing of the family.
• Results speak volumes. Aside from a small number of women who had
difficulty repaying the loan, the impact of microfinance on the majority
of women was significant and positive.

33. Microfinance – a few suggestions
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• Set up co-operatives and social enterprises. Buy communal equipment
(crafts, farming, fishing etc) for the extended community to use so that
the whole community can benefit.
• Include men with good reputations within the community. The tables
have turned on gender discrimination, many men can no longer access
credit like their female counterparts.
• Most I spoke to liked BRAC’s approach to the ultra poor which includes
an asset grant (a cow, goat, chickens etc), a food stipend & basic literacy
and numeracy training for 24 months. Results show 75% - 98% of
participants progress out of the ultra-poor category.

34. BRACYouth Program in the Mymensing District
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• JamipurVillage

35. Fish Farming – a community effort outside Mymensing
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36. Social Enterprises in Dhaka
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Ayesha Abed Foundation
• A production centre where mostly women (and some men!) dye
bolts of fabric; block print beautiful Bangladeshi designs onto
lengths of cotton with hand-carved wooden blocks; and embroider
exquisite designs onto shalwar kameez and kurtas. Staff benefits
include a dinner program, childcare, health & eyesight care and
flexible hours.
Aarong
• A BRAC-run retail store that sells handmade products from small
producers from every district in Bangladesh. Assists rural women
distribute and market their handicrafts.

37. Social Enterprises in Dhaka
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Sanitary Napkins Manufacturer
• A BRAC-run social enterprise that employs poor women to
manufacture the napkins, allowing them to earn an income. Staff
benefits also include a dinner program, childcare, health & eyesight
care and flexible hours. Making low-cost sanitary napkins available
to poor women and girls allows them to leave the house during
menstruation and continue their work and schooling.
Garden Centre
• A BRAC-run garden centre that employs poor women to cultivate
plants for Bangladesh’s middle and upper class. Staff benefits also
include a dinner program, childcare, health & eyesight care and
flexible hours

38. Social Enterprises in Dhaka
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Arshi
• Run by the Salesian Nuns in Dhaka, they train young girls to fine
embroider beautiful designs, which they then sell primarily to the
ex-pat community in Dhaka.
• The nuns also sell the nakshi kantha designs by world-renowned
Bangladeshi artist Surayia. Surayia is now in her 80s and had the
foresight to train a group of young women to continue this
Bangladeshi art form.
• Threads is a documentary that tells Surayia’s story, check it out on
www. kanthathreads.com.

39. Social Enterprises in Dhaka
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Pebble Child Hathay Bunano
• A social enterprise that employs poor women to knit & crochet
knitted toys for kids that are for sale in Europe & North America.
Staff benefits include childcare, eyesight care and flexible hours.

40. Saying farewell to Dhaka
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41. Was it all worth it??
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A resoundingYES!!

42. Thank you
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Questions??