“SathSath” means “together.” SathSath is working together with children and youth in Nepal to develop their skills, build their capacity and capabilities, and empower them to claim their rights in society. Established in 1998, initially working with street youth for street-connected children and youth, SathSath was officially registered on March 1, 2001, with the Government of Nepal as a non-governmental organisation.
SathSath has been actively advocating for and raising awareness about children’s and child rights issues to put pressure on Nepal’s relevant government authorities to implement all international treaties and conventions made for children. SathSath has been designing and implementing its programmes and projects, prioritising children as the primary focus and participating in the formulation process. Today, SathSath works to protect, promote, prevent, and prosecute the rights of street-connected children, children in the worst form of child labour, LGBT minors/SOGIE, and the rights of all children.
SathSath focuses on facilitating, supporting, and providing legal assistance for those children who, due to various social and economic reasons, cannot claim or acquire their legal rights and identities. SathSath is working with children and youth to provide overall support through education, leadership, family support, skills development, and vocational interventions, aiming to reconnect them with the formal educational system and vocational empowerment, ultimately helping them withdraw from or liberate themselves from the worst forms of life.
Our society assumes and believes that only girls are sexually harassed and abused sexually. Thus, we find it imperative to educate the public and advocate for these boys with the slogan “Not only girls but boys too also experience sexual abuse and exploitation.” SathSath is a pioneering organisation that has been addressing and working on preventing sexual abuse and exploitation of boys in Nepal since 2013.
SathSath uses an alternative livelihood model to realise the target beneficiaries’ social and economic rights. Economically, we support target beneficiaries in achieving their educational & vocational needs, assisting them in creating a sustainable livelihood. We help them meet their social needs and give them the skills they need to take advantage of opportunities and resources. SathSath focuses on empowering children’s capacities and capabilities by taking into account children’s development and lifestyle choices.
In addition, SathSath has been working in coordination and cooperation with various levels and agencies for the economic and social rehabilitation of children and youth. SathSath continues to help children and young people overcome negative experiences that children and young people have had, such as child labour, social discrimination, exploitation, abuse, gender discrimination, poverty, legal identity-related issues, socially unacceptable and prohibited behaviour, HIV, and so on, to resocialise, rehabilitate, and reintegrate them to turn their negative experiences into positive ones and make them capable of coping with them.