Fupu is a young woman from Taplejung District. She belongs to an indigenous group and has bilateral hearing loss. Currently living in Kathmandu with her family, she connected with SHRUTI in 2019 and has since become an Executive Board member.
During her childhood, Fupu’s parents took her to several hospitals for ear check-ups. She started using hearing aids, but they were not suitable and she stopped again after just two months. Fupu faced challenges at school, enduring discrimination and bullying due to her hearing difficulties. It was difficult to understand the teachers, and she relied on help from a few friends to grasp the content.
Fupu managed to complete a BA in Social Work, although the difficulties in accessing education persisted throughout her academic journey. Understanding assignments and questions during practical tests and oral exams were particularly challenging, leading to low marks. Unfortunately, her teachers lacked training on how to support students with hearing loss, and even Fupu herself was unaware of the specific needs of hard-of-hearing people.
Through SHRUTI, Fupu was able to consult recommended doctors and audiologists, and finally found hearing aids to suit her needs. With the assistance of these new hearing aids, Fupu participated in the SHRUTI/DDP IT training program supported by BFSS in the UK.
This training proved a transformative experience for Fupu: it was the first class that was fully accessible to her. She felt empowered to ask the trainer questions without hesitation. The training was specifically designed for hard-of-hearing individuals, and the trainer’s expertise and support made all the difference. This positive encounter not only boosted Fupu’s confidence but also helped her secure a job as a recruitment officer at an IT company, after a prolonged struggle to find employment.
Fupu’s journey reflects the importance of accessible education and support for people with hearing loss, allowing them to overcome challenges and thrive in their chosen fields. “Education plays a vital role in shaping our future, but even now, hard-of-hearing people face so many difficulties, and the government doesn’t even provide for basic needs such as captioning,” says Fupu.
