The Small Earth Nepal (SEN) and Ministry of Works and Human Settlement, Government of Bhutan, successfully conducted a 5-day workshop cum training program entitled ‘Flood Defense Infrastructures in Himalayan Region’ for executive and chief engineers on June 3-7, 2019 in Kathmandu. The five- day program included watershed and flood management, hazard and risk assessment, mitigation measures of flood and landslide, infrastructures, relevant sites visits and many other relevant topics.

There were 16 executive and chief engineers from Ministry of Works and Human Settlement, Government of Bhutan representing 20 districts of Bhutan attended the program. The Workshop began on June 3 with Er Mahendra Bahadur Gurung, Executive Director of SEN giving welcome note to all the foreign participants. He also briefly described about the Kathmandu valley and the places of tourist attraction with religious, cultural and historical significance.

The workshop cum training comprised of sharing of theoretical knowledge in the class by senior officers and experts and site visits at the local areas such as in Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Kavre districts and at longer distance to Nuwakot, Dhading and Gorkha districts, where they visited flood defense techniques being applied through hard core engineering and bio-engineering. The participants were given ample opportunity to see how the knowledge shared in the classes by senior officers and experts were being implemented in the fields. The participants expressed satisfaction for the knowledge gained in the class rooms and the on-site experience.

With the similar nature of landscape and river characteristics between Nepal and Bhutan, the training program was focused on learning and exploring to the knowledge and the good practices of combating the flood hazard in Nepal.

The workshop was concluded with the closing remarks and certificate distribution by the SEN President Mr. Dhiraj Pradhananga.