A severe fuel crisis has hit Nepal over the past weeks. Long queues of cars and motorbikes can now be seen throughout the country and the traffic-jammed roads of Kathmandu are now empty. This has become the new normal.
The fuel crisis is having a tremendous impact for everyone in Nepal, as the fuel supply and other crucial commodities are reportedly being blocked along the eastern border of Nepal.
Thousands affected
For organisations like Plan International, the crisis is delaying the delivery of humanitarian relief materials to thousands of children and families living in earthquake-affected areas.
"Our trucks that are transporting relief material have been queuing at the border for well over a week now. There is no fuel at the petrol stations causing delays in deliveries; we are facing the risk of running out of business," says Pramod, a contractor who is delivering shelter material provided by Plan International Nepal.
The material will support families to build temporary shelter, a crucial step in preparing for the winter. Delays in material will have negative repercussions on activities in affected areas.
Deliveries reaching children
With the support of the UN Logistics Cluster, we have securely escorted some of our lorries, ensuring that relief materials are finally able to reach children and families.
With the support of the UN Logistics Cluster, we have securely escorted some of our lorries, ensuring that relief materials are finally able to reach children and families.
Nevertheless, the delivery of education supplies and winter-proof shelter materials have been delayed. If the fuel shortage continues to reach critical levels, organisations aiming to deliver life-saving aid will face major consequences.
Petrol is not the only commodity in short supply. Cooking gas is now very limited and the price of crucial food items, like rice and onions, has increased. Changes in market prices will only have negative repercussions on a country already struggling with adequate access to grains and nutritional food varieties.
Access to food remains limited in the local markets throughout Nepal and families will struggle to afford the food that is available, as prices continue to fluctuate.
If the fuel crisis continues, we will see less food and resources available in the local markets. Communities – and particularly children – will suffer the consequences.
For Plan International, the fuel crisis has also had an impact on our operations. For one, staff members are unable to reach the office. "There are few buses available now. One morning, I had to wait 2 hours for just 1 bus. When the bus finally came, it was already full,” says Sunita, a logistics assistant at Plan International Nepal. Similarly, visits to our activities in affected areas have been strictly limited as the offices’ fuel reserve continues to decrease by the day.
Nepal is now the paradigm of a fragile state: in the aftermath of an earthquake, which impacted the lives of more than 8 million people, crises have resulted in an economic downturn.
Recovery phase soon to begin
It is now more urgent than ever to draw the attention of the humanitarian community to the consequences of this crisis. It is our mandate to grant children full recovery from the disaster and support the most vulnerable communities in Nepal to practice that sense of ‘resilience’.
We are on the cusp of the recovery phase, focusing on longer-term support and helping families to ‘build back better’. We have made great strides in the last 5 months; let us not lose the momentum.
