Essay Competition: Paving the Path to Peace without Landmines and Explosives

Ban Landmines Campaign Nepal (NCBL) continues to prioritize risk education and engaging with youth. To continue this mission NCBL has launched a 3 part series of educational competitions at Mangal Secondary School in Kirtipur. These events will be taking place between May 30th and June 13th. This series of events is a part of NCBL’s Zero Mines, Zero Victims campaign.   

May 30th, 2025 marked the first installment of this series of events organized by NCBL at Mangal Secondary School. Paving the Path to Peace without Landmines and Explosives was the theme of this event and the main activity, an essay writing competition open to students in grade 6,7 and 8. This competition welcomed 25 students to learn about landmines from NCBL and then use what they learned to write their essays. 

As this was a competitive event, four winners were chosen based on the quality of their essay. The winners, in order from first to fourth place, were Kanchan Nyaupane (grade 8), Raisha Maharjan(grade 8), Namrata Dhami(grade 7) and Irina Maharjan(grade 6). Each winner was presented with a prize consisting of various school supplies, including notebooks and stationery. Additionally the first and second place winners received school bags.

This event is important as it is often young children who are most vulnerable to landmines and improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Educating them on how to identify these hazards can play a crucial role in ensuring their safety. Moreover, there have been reports of explosives found near or on school grounds throughout Nepal which has only reaffirmed the importance of the work NCBL does and the need for these events.