Life of My Sisters
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Only a mere 28 percent of girls in Nepal are literate, and less than three out of ten can read. Without essential skills, these girls risk falling victim to prostitution rings and child trafficking networks. Others are forced to live on the streets.
Education is the best hope these girls have of a normal life. A life of independence and true freedom.
For more than a decade. The Little Sisters Fund has been giving Nepalese girls a glimmer of hope through scholarships for underprivileged girls in Nepal. Photographers Debby Ng and Edwin Koo entered the home of our little sisters - Nepal's hope for a better future. These photographs tell their story.
In March and April 2009, Debby and Edwin, photographers with asia! magazine, exhibited their work at The Cathay Gallery in Singapore. A collection of their work is presented in the book, Life of my Sisters, and is available for purchase.
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Mandira lives in the compound of the social welfare council with her parents and two brothers. The family of five share a shack alongside other needy families.
Photographer: Debby Ng
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Mandira is a talented artist with a unique perspective. She plays an English spelling game with her classmates before classes begin.
Photographer: Debby Ng
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Meenakshree is a candid 13 year old who loves to act and dance. On an early winter morning, she began sneezing while playing with her neighbour, obviously hemming it up.
Photographer: Debby Ng
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Menuka's mother prepared breakfast in what is both the kitchen and her bedroom. With limited space, families find creative ways to keep store.
Photographer: Debby Ng
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Menuka's brother walks to school and gets home much later. He has his dinner on the floor of his mother's room while Menuka does homework on the bed.
Photographer: Debby Ng
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Sabhyata says a morning prayer with her parents before going to school. She wishes she could switch places with her little sister who misses home a lot.
Photographer: Edwin Koo
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Rabina's father died seven years ago fighting Maoist rebels. She attends to the religious rites at 8am before going to school.
Photographer: Edwin Koo
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Rabina makes a call home from a shop at the foot of the hills. Winter days are short, and girls often have to return home in the darkness of night.
Photographer: Edwin Koo
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Sharmila's mother took her three daughters to east Kathmandu, fleeing her violent drunkard husband. They have lived in secrecy ever since.
Photographer: Edwin Koo
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At 13, Manisha, a Dalit or "untouchable", stands out like a giant in her Grade 4 class. But she is lucky; most girls from her predicament are already mothers.
Photographer: Edwin Koo
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Laxmi relocated to Kathmandu after receiving her scholarship. The hardest thing for her is loneliness. She lives with her guardian, a retired politician.
Photographer: Edwin Koo
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