The people behind Bhagya Nepal.
Ruta6, Pooja and the children at Himali Boarding School, April 2024
Our founder, the partner in Spain who made it possible, the school that hosts our children, the advisers who guide us, and the organisations who stand with us.
Pooja Pyakurel
Since 2018 Pooja has been Ruta6’s partner in Nepal, managing scholarships for children in need. She has led this work for eight years, and when it was registered as Bhagya Nepal two years ago she became its founder and Executive Director.
She knows every child Bhagya Nepal walks alongside by name: their school, their family, and what they find hard. In close partnership with Ruta6, she gives each of them direct support, holistic care and the personal guidance they need to succeed.
The experience she brings
Pooja’s working life began in 2014 at Women Lawyers Joining Hands, where she was the Canadian non-profit’s principal employee in its early years in Nepal. Coordinating training for more than 60 of Nepal’s women lawyers with UNDP, DLA Piper New Perimeter and the Nepal Bar Association taught her how to carry a programme on the ground for partners abroad, and see it through.
At the Dwarika’s Foundation she coordinated the rebuilding of more than 180 homes in Sindhupalchok after the earthquake. At the American Mission Association she spent four years running operations and membership for over 200 diplomats and mission staff. At Higher Ground she led a fun run for 1,500 people and wrote the business plan for a café, bakery and shop that creates opportunities for young people, and she now sits on its board. Along the way she earned a master’s degree in International Business Management.
Each of these roles gave her something Bhagya Nepal relies on: the standards of an international non-profit, the steadiness to deliver when things go wrong, careful administration, and a head for building something that lasts. Together with eight years of walking alongside the same children, they make her the right person to lead Bhagya Nepal, someone donors and boards abroad can trust with every rupee, and a child in Kathmandu can trust to stay.
Ruta6
Ruta6 is a cornerstone partner of Bhagya Nepal, driving transformative change through quality education, holistic care, and youth empowerment.
How our partnership began
The story of our partnership began in 2018, when Pooja Pyakurel served as a co-partner alongside Ruta6. Building on years of shared vision and hands-on dedication, Pooja went on to officially found Bhagya Nepal. Today, Ruta6 continues to stand as an essential, foundational pillar of our organisation. Without their unwavering belief, guidance, and support, the impactful work we do today simply would not be possible.
An officially registered NGDO with the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), Ruta6 is doing incredible work to uplift underprivileged children and youth across Nepal, empowering them with the tools needed for a brighter future.
Who Ruta6 are
Ruta6 began in 2008 in Cantabria, in the north of Spain, when students at IES Valle del Saja paid for the schooling of one boy from Bal Mandir. Today schools across Cantabria each take a scholar to heart. The scholarships are funded by members and friends, a solidarity calendar every Christmas, and the Casa de los Sueños, a second-hand shop in Cabezón de la Sal run by volunteers. Every year the Ruta6 team travels to Nepal to spend time with the children, and former scholars have gone on to study engineering, nursing, law, pharmacy and social work.
“Education is the most powerful tool to transform the world.”
Grounded in the core belief that every child deserves the opportunity to thrive regardless of their background, Ruta6 funds end-to-end educational scholarships for 50+ students through Bhagya Nepal.
How Ruta6 creates lasting impact
Comprehensive educational scholarships
Providing 360-degree financial coverage, including school tuition, learning materials, housing, and living allowances, and supporting each student from enrolment all the way through graduation.
Long-term empowerment
Fostering independence, leadership, and career development for underprivileged youth as they transition into adulthood.
Cross-border collaboration
Building strong international bridges between Spanish and Nepalese organisations to amplify local impact and cultivate resilient communities.
Through an unwavering commitment to shared values, deep trust, and a passion for child welfare, Bhagya Nepal and Ruta6 continue to bridge opportunities, transform lives, and empower the next generation of leaders in Nepal.
Himali Boarding School
Every child supported by Bhagya Nepal and Ruta6 goes to school at Himali Boarding School in Kathmandu, from their first years in the classroom all the way to Class 10.
Himali is where the children learn, make friends and grow up together, and the teachers and staff are part of the circle of adults who know them. We are grateful to the whole Himali family for hosting them.
Himali Boarding School on FacebookThe people who guide our work
Our board brings together people with expertise across many fields, who guide and support our mission and hold us to the commitments we make to every child.
Lisa LaFlamme
Award-winning journalist, former chief anchor of CTV National News- Award-winning Canadian journalist; chief anchor and senior editor of CTV National News from 2011 to 2022.
- A long-time supporter of Bhagya Nepal and of Pooja, standing behind her and the children in many different ways over the years.
Callie Fauntleroy
Education and social behaviour change, UNICEF Nepal- Education Associate at UNICEF Nepal, working on non-formal education, skills for employability and social and behaviour change, after a fellowship supporting UNICEF’s eight country offices across South Asia.
- Advises Bhagya Nepal on child safety, on how we work, and on supporting the children through mentorship.
- Also guides our governance and management, drawing on an MA in International Relations from Johns Hopkins SAIS and years of safeguarding and refugee-support work.
Margaret Finney Mattinson
Environmental and social development professional, a supporter of Bhagya since its beginning- Environmental and social development professional.
- A supporter of Bhagya Nepal since its very beginning.
The organisations who stand with us
No child is held up by one pair of hands. These are the organisations who carry part of the weight, and how each of them helps.
- Founding partner
Ruta6
Our founding partner in Spain. Ruta6 funds full scholarships for 50+ young people through Bhagya Nepal, from enrolment to graduation.
School partnerHimali Boarding School
A Kathmandu school that hosts every child supported by Bhagya Nepal and Ruta6, from their first years of school all the way to Class 10.
Disaster relief supportHOPE worldwide Nepal
HOPE worldwide has run a school in Kathmandu for nearly thirty years, giving children from the poorest families a free English-medium education and following them through to university and work. We share the same belief, that a child needs someone who stays, and work alongside them in Kathmandu. For our Rasuwa flood relief, they are providing the water filters for the families.
After schoolHigher Ground Nepal
A Kathmandu social enterprise whose bakery, café and crafts businesses train and employ women. Pooja helped build its business side and still sits on its board. Together we provide safe homes for young people from Bhagya Nepal who have finished school and are living on their own for the first time.
SupporterNuVenture Nepal
A Lalitpur social enterprise that trains women in professional video editing and helps them into work. NuVenture Nepal stands behind Bhagya Nepal’s work and our promise to stay with every child for as long as they need us.
Legal adviceSummit Legal Advisory
A full-service Kathmandu law firm. Summit Legal Advisory gives Bhagya Nepal legal guidance, so that the organisation behind every child’s support is set up and run properly.
DigitalVynspire AI Labs
Vynspire AI Labs supports Bhagya Nepal on all things digital, including building this website.
Want to partner with us? Get in touch.
Every child deserves someone who stays.
Pooja, Ruta6, our advisers and our partners have each made that promise. Your gift helps us keep it.
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