On April 25th, a massive 7.9 earthquake shook the Himalayas causing a series of avalanches and mudslides. There are an estimated 5,000 deaths but the government of Nepal says the total could raise possibly to 10,000 deaths if action is not taken. They say they’re on “War Footing” as they try to help survivors recover from the devastating earthquake that struck. Many climbers and tourists that were climbing Mount Everest were severely injured and some even faced the loss of their life because of the multiple avalanches.

Nepal is one of Asia’s poorest countries with an unemployment rate of over 40%. The average person makes $1,000 dollars per year and they will have to pay a estimated amount of $10 billion USD or half of the national GDP. That will be hard since 59 of 75 districts are severely damaged. To add on top of that housing construction standards in Nepal are extremely low do to poverty.

Since the earthquake hit Nepal we are going to keep our eyes open on Kiva for people in Nepal that need help rebuilding their lives because of all the damage that has happened in the past week. We hope for the best for Nepal.

By: Liam M and Brendan C