More than half of the population earns less than 25 euros a month and thus lives below the poverty line. Almost 70 percent of the working population is employed in agriculture, but more and more jobs are being lost there. Desperation and hopelessness are driving the poorest people, many of whom are illiterate, to the cities. However, only very few of them can make a living there. Unemployment is high. Against this backdrop, many parents are unable to provide for their children, send them to school or even enable them to get vocational training. In addition, the Nepalese school system is in a desolate state. The public schools are overcrowded, the teachers have hardly any pedagogical training and there is a lack of teaching materials. The urgently needed education reform, which has been promised for some time, has been a long time coming. Many children and young people are forced to eke out an existence as street children in Kathmandu.