Emergency communications support

Ncell has been providing emergency communications support to the customers during crisis and disasters enabling customers to communicate with their family/loved ones and rescue/relief agencies. The extent of supports is based on the scale of the disaster and the need of the customers. In a big-scale disaster, the company also provides communications support to the government/humanitarian agencies; the company also collaborates with authority to contribute to easing the life of the people.

Renovation of National TT Hall

We collaborated with the National Sports Council of Nepal, the official government agency for sports to support the government wing for the renovation of the National Table Tennis Hall located in Lainchowr, Kathmandu. The 19th edition of the South Asian Games was hosted in Nepal from December 1-10 and our extended support to the government for renovation of the National Table Tennis Hall supported the government for smooth hosting of table tennis match during the 19th SAG.

Livelihood Support

1. Livelihood Support for Girls Through Music
   As a part of our continued support to promote livelihood support to children from vulnerable segments, we had collaborated with the CheliSangeetikSamuha (2013- 2019), a not for profit musical school for providing musical skills to conflict-affected, destitute children, orphans, and others to establish self-esteem, mainstreaming in the society and enhance confidence for their overall betterment. As of now, this school is providing musical skills to over 200 students.
2. Clean technology to ensure access to drinking water and commercial farming
   Ncell in 2014 launched the Water for Agricultural Livelihood Project in 3 hilly communities (Eladi, Dipka, and Thuladi) of Syangja district to access water (lifted from foothill) and make use of it for raising income through commercial farming.
   
   Under the project, Ncell supported communities to install Hydraulic Ram Pump at the foothills, build storage tanks at hilltops and build water distribution channels with SIM cards (smart meters) in communities to ensure they get reliable access to clean water. Water availability in the village frees community people, particularly women, from the need to spend 4-6 hours every day collecting water. Now, the 75 households and a primary school, representing a total of 420 individuals, are using pumped water to grow high-value vegetable crops using drip irrigation, irrigate fruit trees, provide water for livestock, and for domestic usage like sanitation.
   
   The project was implemented in partnership with Renewable World – an INGO with expertise in clean energy, Center for Rural Technology – technical partner so and Andhikhola Community Development Center – a local project implementor.
3. Micro-financing to vulnerable girls, women
   As a significant chunk of people residing in rural Nepal reel under poverty, young girls remain vulnerable to trafficking. In some of the districts, parents themselves are found to be selling their daughters just to meet day’s end. And the extent of risk remains high particularly in the case of women who have migrated out of their villages to cities in a hope of making better income and living. Further to this, rehabilitation of trafficked women back in the society is still a more difficult task.
   
   Considering this situation, Ncell in 2011 launched a micro-financing project to support women from underprivileged families to prevent them from trafficking and other ill fate. Ncell pledged micro-finance support to 8 girls and women who hailed from rural districts and were trying to establish themselves in Kathmandu in collaboration with Shakti Samuha, NGO that dealt with rescuing trafficked women and rehabilitating them. Shakti Samuha provided training to them for starting a micro-enterprise.
   
   Through the Ncell’s financial support, they started businesses, became self-employed, and are making a decent income. Likewise, Ncell in 2012 provided similar support to 15 other girls and women, enabling them to establish their micro-enterprises.

Art and Literature

1. World Nepal Literature Festival
   Ncell in 2020 collaborated with Sudur Sahitya Samaj for organizing the “World Nepali Literature Festival 2020” to promote Nepalese language and literature to showcase to the entire world that Nepal is rich in terms of language, literature, art, culture. The event was hosted in Dhangadhi, Kailali district, and witnessed the participation of over 500 people from different fraternities.
2. Kathmandu Triennale
   Ncell in 2017 partially supported Siddhartha Art Foundation for organizing Kathmandu Triennale-2017, a non-commercial mega art event to promote Nepali arts and culture. The event presented contemporary and traditional art by Nepali and international artists on a particular edition theme More than 50 artists from 25 countries participated in the event responding to the theme of “My City, My Studio/My City, My Life”.
3. Ncell Nepal Literature Festival
   Ncell Nepal Literature Festival was started in 2011 to support Nepali literature. The project was designed to reach out to the educated and elite mass and contribute to promoting Nepali Literature. The 4-day long festival was organized on an annual basis that brought together eminent writers from Nepal and abroad under a single roof. The programme was continued in the year 2013 and 2014 as well. The overall programme was designed to be audience-friendly and interactive, where readers can interact with authors, and authors from Nepal and other countries can sit together and openly discuss contemporary issues on literature. Several panel discussions, poetry recitals, book launches, and signings, author meets, and much more were organized.
4. Ncell KalaaJatra (Art Festival)
   Ncell in 2013 organised a month-long art fiesta named ‘Ncell KalaaJatra’ that brought amateur and professional artists together, holding exhibitions of paintings, sculptures, and cartoons. Art lovers got to observe more than 100 hundred prominent and emerging artists of the country at work. The festival portrayed contemporary arts and paintings exhibitions along with cartoons and sculptures exhibitions were held, along with rallies of artists for freedom of expression.
5. School to School Project
   In 2012 Ncell started School-to-School Project in collaboration with a popular Nepali folk instrument band to create awareness among people, mainly youth, to preserve culture and heritage, conserve the environment, and support education. Under this project, concerts were organized in big and well-off schools. During the concerts, audiences are informed about the legacy and features of Nepali folk music, the substance of culture and heritage, and the importance of environment conservation and education, motivating them to make contributions on those fronts. The students and teachers were motivated to donate books, copies, pens, pencils, and other educational materials. Donations thus collected were then distributed among poor students in rural schools. Under the same project, Ncell, in 2013 collaborated with the Kutumba band and implemented the project in 14 schools in the Kathmandu Valley and outside. The partner collected substantial education materials and distributed them among poor rural school-going students. The partner used environment-friendly digital technology -- projectors -- to promote the cause of concerts during those concerts and the logo of Ncell was displayed prominently during each of those performances.
6. Kutumba Heritage Concert
   In 2012, Ncell aiming to create awareness among people to preserve culture and heritage, and conserve the environment joined hands with Kutumba, a popular Nepali folk instrument band. Under the project, Kutumba organized three concerts in heritage sites in the Kathmandu Valley and two concerts outside the Valley on the theme ‘Ncell - Talking for Change’ and motivate audiences to make at least one positive contribution, no matter how small it may be, for a social cause.
   
   The partner used environment-friendly digital technology -- projectors -- to promote the cause of concerts during those concerts and the logo of Ncell was displayed prominently during each of those performances.
7. Ncell Sukarma Yatra
   In 2012, Ncell organized a musical tour in collaboration with Sukarma, an ensemble band of renowned national and international folk musicians, as a part of its endeavors to support Nepali music. The musical tour aimed at spreading a message of social harmony through music, and unlike the School-to-School Project, which was confined to schools in Kathmandu, Ncell Sukarma Yatra aimed to reach out to entertain the people and spread the social message in almost all major cities of Nepal.
8. Promoting Ethical Culture
   Ncell aiming to strongly advocate and endorse the need for ethical culture, collaborated with Transparency International Nepal (TI Nepal) in 2014 to promote an ethical culture for fighting corruption. Under the project, TI Nepal worked with the business community, government, local bodies, community-based organisation, and civil society groups to raise awareness, advocate reforms for addressing hindrances to fair business, promote business code of ethics, and improve governance.

Humanitarian Aid

1. Flood Early Warning System
   Since 2016, Ncell has partnered with the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHM) for the implementation of a flood early warning system to contribute to save lives and minimize loss of property damage during incidents of floods that hit the country annually.
   
   We have provided 500 Ncell SIM’s with monthly 250 MB data per SIM to DHM. These SIMs are used by DHM in their telemetry data transfer devices in hydrology and meteorology stations to transfer weather and river level data/information to the server. We will continue and provide such support as per the verified need for new stations that DHM will establish to strengthen its EWS capacity during the term of this MoU.
   
   A toll-free number ‘1155’ has also been assigned where customers can dial in for free and get the recent updates on disasters.
2. Support to Earthquake Victims
   When the country was hit badly by the earthquake of 7.9 Magnitude followed by subsequent aftershocks in 2015, TeliaSonera, the former parent company of Ncell contributed USD 1 million to the Prime Minister Disaster Relief Fund for supporting families affected by the devastating earthquake of April 25, 2015. Apart from these, TeliaSonera employees also contributed over USD 36,000, which TeliaSonera as a company doubled the contribution made from employees and handed over to Red Cross/Crescent to contribute to relief works to quake victims.
   
   Likewise, Ncell also provided communications support (balance and SMS) of about Rs 1.60 billion to the customers to enable them to stay connected with their dear ones and rescue and relief efforts over the first 10 days of the earthquake.
3. Support to flood victims
   Following the torrential rain triggered landslides and flooding that ravaged scores of villages across the country in 2014; Ncell contributed NPR 201 million to the Disaster Relief Fund to support rescue, relief, and rehabilitation of tens of thousands of victims of those calamities. As a part of its support to ensure continued communication support to people, Ncell also provided free talk time of Rs 100 to relieve the families hit hard by flood and landslide in Sindhupalchowk district.
   
   Moreover, Ncell Employee Trade Union (NETU), as well as the individual staff of Ncell, handed over tents, clothing, and food to 200 flood-affected families of Baganaha VDC in Bardiya district through Red Cross Society and Thir Nath Kandel, Secretary of Baganaha VDC.
4. Ncell Charity
   In 2009, Ncell extended financial support to Gauri Shankar Children’s Home. Ncell also supported Kapilbastu and Dhangadi Children's home in 2010. Likewise, Ncell in 2011 supported "AamaGhar" with supplies of various warm clothes, bed, blanket, pillow, and various food items. Ncell also provided clothes, shoes, and mattresses to" Sagarmatha Anathalaya" on the occasion of the opening ceremony of Lahan Ncell Centre.
   
   When the fire gutted the whole of the village in Siraha in 2012, Ncell Employee Trade Union took initiative and supported fire victims. Ncell in June 2013 provided immediate relief support of Rs 317,414 to Bal Mandir to enable the orphanage to meet food and other basic requirements of 140 children living there. Ncell in 2013 handed over 20 Motorbikes and safety helmets to Nepal police and Traffic Police in Kathmandu Valley. Likewise, Ncell also provided 11 computer sets to Traffic Police to facilitate it to deal with growing traffic problems and road accidents.
   
   Ncell in 2013 handed over 20 Motorbikes and safety helmets to Nepal Police and Traffic Police in Kathmandu Valley. Likewise, Ncell also provided 11 computer sets to Traffic Police to facilitate it to deal with growing traffic problems and road accidents.

Sports

1. Football
   Ncell in 2012, supported the All Nepal Football Association to support football activities in the country. The support was provided to conduct A Division football tournament, U-16 football tournament, women's national championship, women's national team, and player of the year awards.
2. Cricket
   In 201, Ncell in collaboration with Zohra Sports Management (ZSM) in technical support of the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) announced the first-ever domestic cricketing event in Nepal - Ncell Nepal Premier League.
3. Basketball
   In 2015, Ncell organised a youth basketball tournament in association with Nepal Basketball Association. The fresh initiative to organize the basketball tournament is to support youths to home the sporting skills and contribute to the development of a pool of fresh professional players. The event was entitled Ncell U-18 Inter- College Basketball Tournament.
4. Golf Tournament
   In 2012, Ncell in association with the Gokarna Forest Resort Golf Club organized the Ncell Golf Championship for amateur golf lovers. The invitational tournament opened for all Ncell Prepaid and postpaid customers. 100 participants were selected for the tournament on a first come first serve basis. 70 early birds will be eligible for the tournament whereas 30 will be invited out of the B2B clients.