OUR STORY

Children of the Mountain was founded in 2009 by Irishman John Matthews. During a visit to a remote village in the district of Ghorka John encountered what he thought was a derelict shed for animals, it was in fact Maitum Primary school. The building was unsafe with dismal dark classrooms void of any color or materials.

John rebuilt the school providing bright and colourful classrooms and committed himself to helping other children facing similar conditions.

John was later joined on his mission by his brother Brian who founded Children of the Mountain Austria. Both John & Brian continue to play active hands on roles but both organisations now have expanded teams with Mike Smith leading day to day activities in the UK and Helmut Neuwirth activities in Austria. Together the two organisations make up COTM International and exclusively support Children of the Mountain Nepal, a charity we registered to implement our programs. 

Our aim is to support the poorest children in rural and urban Nepal, providing them with opportunity through access to education and personal development. We actively campaign against gender and caste bias and promote education as a practical alternative to rampant child labour. We advocate for investment and directly invest in child centred education as a critical and effective tool in the fight against extreme poverty in rural and inner city communities. Our programs now include Kindergardens, Primary Schools, Computer labs and Teacher Training.