The UK will help Nepal’s Department of Local Infrastructure Development and Agricultural Roads (DoLIDAR) to reopen after it was damaged in the 7.8 magnitude earthquake so it can coordinate keeping the road network, a lifeline for the country, open.

 DFID will fund rent for a new office space for the initial months following extensive damage to the existing DoLIDAR office building in the earthquake. The funding will be redirected from the UK Department for International Development’s (DFID) Rural Access Programme, a poverty reduction programme that aims to improve the access of poor and marginalized people to goods, markets and services.

 According to a press release issued by British Embassy, Gail Marzetti, Head of DFID Nepal, said: “Our philosophy is to always work side by side with the Government of Nepal, who is working hard to respond to this unprecedented emergency. A successful response to the earthquake means a successful government response”.

 “The UK is coordinating closely with all relevant ministries in Nepal to make sure the relief effort is as effective as it can be. As part of this we will help DoLIDAR to get back to full strength. They will be hugely important to getting Nepal’s road network back up and running.”

 The DFID and the DoLIDAR Rural Access Programme is now in its second phase, working across seven districts in Nepal covering eastern, mid and far western regions.

 The UK Government’s Department for International Development (DFID) is playing a leading role in responding to the Nepal earthquake and is currently the largest donor to the relief operation, with a total package of £22.8 million (3.5 billion rupees) and £33 million (5.1 billion rupees) from the British public. DFID continues to support the Government of Nepal in its relief and reconstruction efforts.