Scott Faila says Nepali people need to ask themselves some serious questions

KATHMANDU, Feb 23: Scott Faila, Country Director of Oxfam Nepal, recalls growing up in the United States. Originally of Italian ancestry, Faila’s grandparents were immigrants. He was born and raised in Connecticut in what he calls “a safe environment, no crimes or threats, there was always food on the table, great education.”



“I lived in a bubble, didn’t even know what the rest of the world was like. I was clueless and now after all my subsequent experiences, I’ve come to realize how extremely privileged I was,” he said referring to growing up in a large family with three brothers, a sister and many cousins. [break]



After completing his university education, Faila, who has a degree in engineering, decided to live and work overseas.

“I was full of idealism and joined the Peace Corps in 1973. I’ve been working in the field of development since then and haven’t gone back to America,” added Faila who is married to a Nepali for the last 18 years.



He has so far worked in the Caribbean, Africa and Asia, starting in Malaysia where he worked until 1976. He was previously involved with Care and worked in Indonesia, Haiti, Ethiopia, Nepal, Somalia, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, and Egypt.



According to Faila, Oxfam is concerned about people’s rights, especially the vulnerable and excluded ones. The organization, which has been working in Nepal for 30 years, puts a particular emphasis on women.



One of the major focus areas of Oxfam Nepal is disaster risk reduction work in Terai and flood-prone communities like Saptari and Dhanusha, including earthquake preparedness works in Kathmandu and a few municipalities in the Terai.



Oxfam recently completed a major overhaul in strengthening of the water system in the Teaching Hospital at Maharajgunj. Other recent accomplishments include participation in climate change discussions in Doha. Food security programs centered on the Far-West region including Darchula, Dailekh, Baitadi, Dadeldhura and Surkhet are also one of the major focus areas of Oxfam.



When growing up, Faila was highly inspired by Martin Luther King, John Kennedy who started the Peace Corps, Gandhi who made him interested to come to Asia and Nelson Mandela.



“I’ve witnessed all kinds of poverty and suffering people undergo, like famine in east Africa, in Somalia, Sudan, Haiti which have impacted me tremendously,” Faila said, adding he has always struggled to understand why there’s so much injustice and inequality in the world, and the people he mentioned above as his inspirations in particular were trying to rectify injustice and inequality.



When asked what message he would like to give to Nepali people, Faila said Nepali people, especially the political class, have to ask themselves some serious questions, like why is it that six years after the Peace Agreement they haven’t made sufficient progress, why are there 500,000 Nepalis in Malaysia and several hundred thousands in the Middle East; and why has Nepal’s economy gone to a point where 25% of it is remittances from people overseas.



Faila was featured on “Inspirations: The Essence of Life,” a personality-based television series presented by Media Gallery and Global Exposition and Management Services in association with Republica. The program is aired on Nepal Television every Wednesday at 10:10pm.

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