Heart of England Co-operative donates £5,000 to victims of Nepal earthquake

Heart of England Co-operative has contributed to a Nepal Earthquake fund set up to rebuild the country.

The society donated £5,000 to Nepalese Community Nuneaton, which has helped raise almost £35,000 for the victims of the earthquake.

Nuneaton has a strong Nepalese community, with more than 400 families living in the area. In April they held a candle-lit vigil to pray for victims and survivors of the earthquake, which devastated the remote mountain country on 25 April.

More than 9,000 people lost their lives as a result of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake and its aftershock, with another 23,000 injured.

Heart of England had also made a £5,000 donation, earlier this year, to the International Co-operative Alliance fund for Nepal. The Alliance’s fund will be used to assist in relief and help rebuild the country’s co-operatives.

Ali Kurji, chief executive of the Heart of England, said: “Nobody could have failed to be moved by the images coming out of Nepal that day.

“The aftermath of the earthquake was truly shocking and just watching the catastrophic consequences as people’s lives were being torn apart was heartbreaking.

“The Nepalese community makes up an important part of Nuneaton’s fabric so we are of course only too pleased to be able to help in any way we can.”

Vinod Shrestha, general secretary of Nepalese Community Nuneaton, also said: “Since the earthquake our community has really come together and we have had some fantastic support from people in Nuneaton – from schools and businesses to kind-hearted members of the public.

“One of our members went back to Nepal recently to see first-hand how the community had been affected and to support its rebuilding.

“He took a significant amount of the money we have raised with him, and already that is being put to good use and helping to make a difference to lives blighted by this disaster.

“Of course, this would not be possible without the support we ourselves have had from the generous community in Nuneaton.

“The generosity shown will help make a huge difference. And, of course, we are grateful to everyone else who has donated – the tragedy has really demonstrated how our own community here in Nuneaton can pull together in times like these.”

Other co-operative enterprises and organisations have also launched appeals to help raise funds for Nepal. These included the Co-operative Development Foundation of Canada, the World Council of Credit Unions and the Asian Confederation of Credit Unions.

The Nepal Federation of Savings & Credit Cooperative Unions (NEFSCUN) is active on the ground, providing relief to staff and members of Nepalese credit unions.