The Vision of Sungabha Nepal is to encourage, equip and empower women, children and communities from various backgrounds of Nepal.
Our mission is to foster educational opportunities by equipping 7 underserved communities with resources, encouraging a culture of learning, and empowering women and children in those communities to reach their full potential by 2030.
Every meaningful journey begins with a single moment.
For Sungabha Nepal, that moment came in 2006 when a 22-year-old Australian woman, Stephanie Woollard, met seven women with disabilities working in a small tin shed in Kathmandu. Despite their determination, these women faced immense discrimination and had limited opportunities to earn a sustainable income. Moved by their resilience and potential, Stephanie made a simple but life-changing decision. With her last $200, she hired a trainer to teach the women skills that would enable them to create products for local and international markets.
What began as a small act of belief in seven women soon grew into a movement.
Over the years, Stephanie built the foundations of the organization then known as Seven Women, expanding its reach, establishing an Australian fundraising arm, and creating market pathways that helped support a growing operation in Nepal. What started in a tin shed evolved into an organization that would go on to educate, train, employ, and empower thousands of women and children.
The story of this remarkable journey was later captured in Stephanie's book, From a Tin Shed to the United Nations: How Every One of Us Can Make a Difference, and in a documentary released in 2016 that has since been screened hundreds of times around the world, inspiring countless individuals to believe in the power of grassroots change.
As the organization grew and evolved, so did Stephanie's aspirations. After years of building Seven Women into a thriving organization and creating opportunities for thousands of women and children, she decided to embark on a new chapter of her life and pursue a bigger vision through new ventures and initiatives.
To deepen local leadership and strengthen its long-term impact in Nepal, Seven Women transitioned into a new chapter, becoming Sungabha Nepal under the leadership of Kusum Tamang.Under Kusum's guidance, the organization entered a new era as Sungabha Nepal, a locally led organization committed to empowering women, strengthening communities, and creating sustainable change across Nepal.
A Nepali social entrepreneur and community leader, Kusum brings nearly two decades of experience working across community development, women's empowerment, humanitarian response, and social impact initiatives both in Nepal and internationally. Her dedication to service has earned her recognition as a STAR UK Award recipient and a Victorian Cultural Ambassador.
Throughout her career, Kusum has stood alongside communities during some of their most challenging moments. She played a key role in rescue and relief efforts following the devastating Nepal Earthquake and later served as a frontline worker during the COVID-19 pandemic, helping coordinate and deliver more than one million hot meals and ration packs to individuals and families facing crisis.
Today, under Kusum's leadership, Sungabha Nepal continues to build upon its strong foundation while charting an ambitious future. The organization works alongside women, children, families, and communities to create opportunities through education, skills development, employment, health initiatives, and social empowerment programs.
From seven women in a tin shed to a movement that has touched thousands of lives, the story of Sungabha Nepal is a testament to what is possible when compassion, courage, and community come together. It is a story that continues to unfold into a bigger picture with an even bigger impact.
