Pic: Stéphane HuëtOn the eve of the second anniversary of the 2015 earthquake, donors helping to rebuild Nepal said that ‘reconstruction momentum has picked up' but 'some people and communities are yet to receive help'.
In a statement on Monday, the Nepal International Development Partners Group (IDPG) said that 'more has been done than meets the eye, and now all efforts are needed to expand this momentum in the coming year'.
The IDPG added: 'But for people who are yet to receive help, the process of reconstruction has not moved fast' and 'these processes will need to move faster'.
The IDPG is the apex platform of international donors supporting post-earthquake reconstruction in Nepal, and includes UN bodies, aid agencies and international NGOs.
The group said that reconstruction has to be Nepal's top priority for some time to come, and that it is possible to build back safer through collective efforts.
A 7.8 magnitude earthquake devastated central Nepal on 25 April two years ago, killing nearly 9,000 people and destroying about 500,000 houses, schools, health posts and other structures. At a conference in Kathmandu exactly two months after the earthquake, donors pledged about $4.1 billion for reconstruction.
Two years later, most earthquake survivors are still living in temporary shelters, frustrated at the delay in rebuilding.
The National Reconstruction Authority (NRA) says Nepal has so far received only half the amount pledged by donors, and warns that a funding crunch could further slow reconstruction. On the other hand, aid agencies blame the government for hampering reconstruction.