Katmandu, Nepal

I sat together with a group of beautiful girls who looked at me unsure if they should or should not be making eye contact. As I look at them, I could sense both their deep pain and strong hope igniting from their eyes.

I was introducing myself, and one girl stopped me and asked, “So, what do you do? Why are you here?” She was eager to know why I have come to Nepal all the way from Sri Lanka and my colleagues from other parts of world. When I explained about the Good Shepherd Mission across the world and the work of GSIF, two other girls one after the other bravely wanted to share their stories with us.  

Their stories are part of a much larger reality. According to the Trafficking in Persons in Nepal, National Report 2026, an estimated 11,000 women and children are trafficked in Nepal every year*. The date from cases registered by the Nepal Police over the past three years also reveals the gendered reality of trafficking, as women and girls represented 92% of those affected.  

These figures give a glimpse into what lies behind the statistics. As much as it was both unbelievable and unbearable to listen to the girls’ stories of being trafficked across borders and being sold into forced prostitution and sexual exploitation in Nepal, it also gave me much hope. Our zealous Good Shepherd sisters and partners in mission, Opportunity Village Nepal and GSIF Nepal, are truly transforming one life at a time, journeying with vulnerable girls and women to reclaim their dignity and respect. 

One girl, who had been a victim of trafficking twice; once across the border to India and once within Nepal, joined her hands, with eyes full of tears and shaking voice, bowed down towards us and said, “Thank you so much, thanks to all of you, my life has finally changed, I am safe now, I am safe”.

These words made me realize the magnitude of impact we are creating with the Good Shepherd Mission; One Life at a time.  

Later in the day, we walked down the same streets where these girls were trafficked to; the roads seemed frighteningly ordinary, souvenir shops and coffee shops with the usual hustle and bustle. But behind those locked windows and doors, was a whole different world we would not be able to imagine.

This girl said her life was completely destroyed at the age of 13. She was a school dropout, running away from her family, had no guidance, no goal and no hope. Today, in front of us was a confident young woman who was well aware of her past and immensely hopeful of her future. She is now enrolled at school, continuing her studies and learning different vocational skills so she could earn a dignified living one day. She was excited to show me all the different colourful bracelets she made with her friends, ready for sale.

Her story is a reminder that behind every statistic is a person, a girl or woman with dreams, talents, relationships and a future that deserves to be protected.

So I came back from Nepal, with a handful of beautiful handmade bracelets and a heart full of hope, determined to continue upholding justice for all the children, girls and women in Nepal and across the region together with our sisters and partners in mission. 

This article is a reflection shared by Onalie De Silva Ariyabandhu, from GSIF Asia Pacific, following a field visit in Nepal. 

*Source: Trafficking in Persons in Nepal, National Report 2026; National Human Rights Commission Nepal.