Omar Havana

Photographer

omarhavana.com

Portfolio NGO Education

Location: Brussels, Belgium

Nationality: Spanish

Biography: Omar Havana, 1975 Granada, Spain. Spanish Freelance Photojournalist. Based in Brussels, Belgium. Previously based in France 2017-2021, Nepal 2014-2015 and Cambodia 2008 - 2014 ; 2015-2017. Omar has worked as a professional photojournalist since... MORE

SUNAKOTHI, NEPAL - JANUARY 28: ...y; Omar Havana for The Guardian

SUNAKOTHI, NEPAL - JANUARY 28: A group of mothers and children have lunch inside the dining hall of the Nepal Youth Foundation’s Nutritional Rehabilitation Home on January 28, 2015 in Sunakothi, Nepal. During mealtimes, mothers sit with their children as part of the rehabilitation program where they are taught to feed their children nutritious and balanced meals based on locally-available food they will have access to in their own community. Photo: © Omar Havana for The Guardian

DOBINI, NEPAL - JUNE 01: 15 yea...ar Havana for VSO International

DOBINI, NEPAL - JUNE 01: 15 years-old "Little Sister" Arti looks at life in her village sitting on the bed of her room in Parsa, Nepal on June 01, 2019 in Dobini, Nepal. Photo: © Omar Havana for VSO International

SVAY CHEK, CAMBODIA –...mar Havana for SeeBeyondBorders

SVAY CHEK, CAMBODIA – FEBRUARY 27: A student does some work while attending a mathematics class inside a classroom in the Svay Chek School on February 27, 2017 in Svay Chek, Cambodia. Photo: © Omar Havana for SeeBeyondBorders

DOBINI, NEPAL - MAY 28: 20-year...ar Havana for VSO International

DOBINI, NEPAL - MAY 28: 20-years-old "Big Sister" Anu does homework inside her home on May 28, 2019 in Dobini, Nepal. Photo: © Omar Havana for VSO International

AMBALANGODA, SRI LANKA &nda...y; Omar Havana / Aide Et Action

AMBALANGODA, SRI LANKA – DECEMBER 10: 19-year-old Ashra Begam attends a computer laboratory class at the iLead Hikkaduwa center on December 10, 2018 in Ambalangoda, Sri Lanka. Ashra is the only Muslim student attending this year's batch at iLead-Hikkaduwa. Ashra often feels discriminated during her daily life but here in iLead, she feels like just one of the students, despite her religion forbidding her to take part in several activities in which boys are involved. Ashra comes from a very deprived family; her father is a tuk-tuk driver and her mother is a volunteer teacher. She is the eldest sibling of 6. She enrolled in iLead-Hikkaduwa after hearing about it from a former student, and she decided to study graphic design. Ashra's dream is to work as a graphic designer for a local company to help her family. Photo: © Omar Havana / Aide Et Action

DOBINI, NEPAL - MAY 29: 15-year...ar Havana for VSO International

DOBINI, NEPAL - MAY 29: 15-years-old "Little Sister" Arti reads a book sitting in a corner of her bedroom inside her home on May 29, 2019 in Dobini, Nepal. Arti was only 14 when her parents arranged her marriage. Big Sister, Anu, stepped in. Working with her parents and the community to delay marriage and keep Arti in school. Arti is now focussing on her studies, with the hopes of becoming a teacher. Photo: © Omar Havana for VSO International

BOMPHEN REACH, CAMBODIA &nd...mar Havana for SeeBeyondBorders

BOMPHEN REACH, CAMBODIA – FEBRUARY 28: 10-year-old student Hon Abson does some homework under a hut set up as kitchen on February 28, 2017 in Bomphen Reach Village, Cambodia. Abson’s mother, Perb Sok, divorced a year ago and she now works as a cleaner in a gas station in Siem Reap, earning USD120 a month. She visits her two daughters only once a month, who have been living with their grandmother since their parents divorced. Their father has not seen them since the divorce and he does not help the family anymore. Abson misses her mother a lot. Abson is now one of the students supported by SeeBeyondBorders’ programs. She would like to be a teacher in the future. Abson studies Grade 5 at the Spean Thmey School. Photo: © Omar Havana for SeeBeyondBorders

BATASE, NEPAL - February 27, 20... Omar Havana for WaterAid Nepal

BATASE, NEPAL - February 27, 2015: Young students attend classes at a local school where health and nutrition education activities are organized by the NEWAH organization in Batase, Nepal on February 27, 2015. Despite Nepal’s extensive natural resources, access to clean and affordable water remains a problem throughout the country. For many people in the more remote mountains and hills, water sources are often far away and not necessarily safe, and the simple act of fetching water can drain a community’s human resources. Photo: © Omar Havana for WaterAid Nepal

ITAHARI, NEPAL - February 25, 2...Omar Havana for water Aid Nepal

ITAHARI, NEPAL - February 25, 2015: Badal (left), 13 years old, drinks water while Barsa (right), 8 years old, brushes her teeth from a water tap installed by the organization Lumanti before going to school in Pragatitol neighborhood on the outskirts of Itahari, Nepal on February 25, 2015. Despite Nepal’s extensive natural resources, access to clean and affordable water remains a problem throughout the country. For many people in the more remote mountains and hills, water sources are often far away and not necessarily safe, and the simple act of fetching water can drain a community’s human resources. Photo: © Omar Havana for water Aid Nepal

BHEDIARI, NEPAL - MAY 30: 17-ye...ar Havana for VSO International

BHEDIARI, NEPAL - MAY 30: 17-years-old "Big Sister" Raskumari poses for a photo with her "Little Sister," 16-years-old Shreekanti on May 30, 2019 in Bhediari, Nepal. Photo: © Omar Havana for VSO International

BATTAMBANG, CAMBODIA - DECEMBER...opy; Omar Havana / Getty Images

BATTAMBANG, CAMBODIA - DECEMBER 20: Children play with their teachers during a break from their classes on the grounds of the Phare Circus on December 20, 2013 in Battambang, Cambodia. Phare supports a local school, of the same name, donating funds to pay teachers' salaries, as part of their educational projects in the community. 'Phare, the Cambodian Circus' is part of a wider project, 'Phare Ponleu Selpak,' which translates to 'the brightness of the arts,' and which began in 1986 in a refugee camp on the Thai-Cambodian border. A group of 9 children who took part in drawing workshops in the camp formed a creative association to provide other children with an outlet from the trauma of war. Today, artistic practice and development are at the heart of the formal education, life and social skills offered to the young people they work with. Alongside a government-run public school serving about 900 children, Phare Ponleu Selpak has run an art school, social support, and education for almost 20 years in Battambang, Cambodia. Photo: © Omar Havana / Getty Images

BHEDIARI, NEPAL - MAY 27: 27-ye...r Havana for VSO International.

BHEDIARI, NEPAL - MAY 27: 27-year-old Adult Champion Sunti helps one of her "little sisters" with homework sitting under a tree on May 27, 2019 in Bhediari, Nepal. Sunti was studying in grade seven when her parents arranged her marriage. At 13 years old, she gave birth to her first daughter. Refused by her family-in-law for having had a daughter, Sunti felt isolated by her husband and family. A few years later, she gave birth to a son. Hoping to be accepted and be loved by the family, she went back to her husband's house with her newborn son only to find out that her husband was already remarried to another woman. She was left with the only option to leave the home again. In 2013, Sunti joined Sisters for Sisters' Education project as an Aunty Champion (community volunteer) supporting other young volunteers in the community (Big sisters) working for girls' education awareness connecting with local government stakeholders, schools and service providers. Today, Sunti mentors seven Little Sisters. Photo: © Omar Havana for VSO International.

SIEM REAP, CAMBODIA - MARCH 10:.... Photo: © Omar Havana

SIEM REAP, CAMBODIA - MARCH 10: A young girl reads a book that she found in the tons of waste in the Anlong Pi landfill on March 10, 2013 in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Despite help provided by local organizations to the inhabitants of Anlong Pi, education levels are very low, with only a few of the workers knowing how to read and write. Over 300 people work in the Anlong Pi landfill, where tons of rubbish are being thrown every day from the nearest city of Siem Reap, home to the world-famous Angkor Wat, visited by millions of tourists every year. Here, they look day and night for recyclable material that they can sell to local middlemen who pay anywhere from a few cents to a few dollars, depending on the type of material collected, per kilogram collected. The inhabitants of Anlong Pi need to collect around four kilograms of plastic, paper or metal in order to make a dollar per day. The enormous accumulation of junk over the last years has doubled the capacity of the landfill, producing new chemical and biological reactions between organic and inorganic compounds. The resulting toxic products are washed by rainwater, contaminating soil and groundwater, or are emitted into the atmosphere. Photo: © Omar Havana

BHAKTAPUR, NEPAL - AUGUST 13: A...opy; Omar Havana / Getty Images

BHAKTAPUR, NEPAL - AUGUST 13: A displaced girl studies on a hill in front of the Bode displacement camp on August 13, 2015 in Bhaktapur, Nepal. There are 1,087 people living in the displacement camp in Bode, Bhaktapur, all of whom have lost their homes in Sindupalchowk district, one of the worst affected areas by the earthquake that hit Nepal, and are currently being supported by NGOs. Approximately 60,000 people are still living in over 100 official displacement camps throughout the affected districts. Living conditions in the camps are dire, with limited or non-existent access to sanitation services, clean water and food, and health services. These conditions have been made worse by heavy monsoon rains, as the camps most often lack drainage systems and are prone to flooding. Photo: © Omar Havana / Getty Images

THIMI, NEPAL - AUGUST 07: Child...ternational Labour Organization

THIMI, NEPAL - AUGUST 07: Children attend a non-formal school operated by NTUC on August 07, 2015 in Thimi, Nepal. Photo: © Omar Havana for The International Labour Organization

KATHMANDU, NEPAL - JUNE 21, 201.... Photo: © Omar Havana

KATHMANDU, NEPAL - JUNE 21, 2015: Young children attend a class inside a tent set up in one of the temporary camps for people who lost their homes in the earthquake that hit Nepal in Kathmandu, Nepal on June 21, 2015. Photo: © Omar Havana

SIDDHIPUR, NEPAL - MAY 08: A yo...s Populaire Français

SIDDHIPUR, NEPAL - MAY 08: A young girl attends the Shree Siddhi Mangal School daycare centre on May 08, 2019 in Siddhipur, Nepal. Photo: © Omar Havana for Secours Populaire Français

SIDDHIPUR, NEPAL - MAY 08: A young boy writes the alphabet in his notebook during a class at the nursery of the Shree Siddhi Mangal School on May 08, 2019 in Siddhipur, Nepal. Photo: © Omar Havana for Secours Populaire Français

SIDDHIPUR, NEPAL - MAY 08: A young girl smiles as she attends a class at the Shree Siddhi Mangal School on May 08, 2019 in Siddhipur, Nepal. Photo: © Omar Havana for Secours Populaire Français

BOMPHEN REACH, CAMBODIA – FEBRUARY 28: Students write what they would like to be after graduating from school on the board during a class in the Spean Thmey School on February 28, 2017 in Bomphen Reach Village, Cambodia. Photo: © Omar Havana for SeeBeyondBorders

SIDDHIPUR, NEPAL - MAY 08: A st...s Populaire Français

SIDDHIPUR, NEPAL - MAY 08: A student answers a question during a fourth-grade class at Shree Siddhi Manga School on May 08, 2019 in Siddhipur, Nepal. Photo: © Omar Havana for Secours Populaire Français

DOBINI, NEPAL - MAY 29: 15-years-old "Little Sister" Arti attends a Grade 10 class at a local school on May 29, 2019 in Dobini, Nepal. Arti was only 14 when her parents arranged her marriage. Big Sister, Anu, stepped in. Working with her parents and the community to delay marriage and keep Arti in school. Arti is now focussing on her studies, with the hopes of becoming a teacher. Photo: © Omar Havana for VSO International

ALAAU, NEPAL - MAY 27: 10-years...ar Havana for VSO International

ALAAU, NEPAL - MAY 27: 10-years-old "Primary Actor" student Mobina raises her hand to ask a question during a Grade 6 class that she is attending in the Shree Dwardevi Madhyamik Bidhyalaya School on May 27, 2019 in Alaau, Nepal. Photo: © Omar Havana for VSO International

DOBINI, NEPAL - MAY 29: 15-years-old "Little Sister" Arti stands while asking a question during a Grade 10 class at a local school on May 29, 2019 in Dobini, Nepal. Arti was only 14 when her parents arranged her marriage. Big Sister, Anu, stepped in. Working with her parents and the community to delay marriage and keep Arti in school. Arti is now focussing on her studies, with the hopes of becoming a teacher. Photo: © Omar Havana for VSO International

BHEDIARI, NEPAL - MAY 27: 27-ye...ar Havana for VSO International

BHEDIARI, NEPAL - MAY 27: 27-year-old Adult Champion Sunti poses for a photo in a bamboo forest on May 27, 2019 in Bhediari, Nepal. Sunti was studying in grade seven when her parents arranged her marriage. At 13 years old, she gave birth to her first daughter. Refused by her family-in-law for having had a daughter, Sunti felt isolated by her husband and family. A few years later, she gave birth to a son. Hoping to be accepted and be loved by the family, she went back to her husband's house with her newborn son only to find out that her husband was already remarried to another woman. She was left with the only option to leave the home again. In 2013, Sunti joined Sisters for Sisters' Education project as an Aunty Champion (community volunteer) supporting other young volunteers in the community (Big sisters) working for girls' education awareness connecting with local government stakeholders, schools and service providers. Today, Sunti mentors seven Little Sisters. Photo: © Omar Havana for VSO International

HARISIDDHI, NEPAL - JUNE 22: St.... Photo: © Omar Havana

HARISIDDHI, NEPAL - JUNE 22: Students play on the grounds of a school damaged by the earthquake just weeks after coming back to school on June 22, 2015 in Harisiddhi, Nepal. According to UNICEF, more than 25,000 classrooms in more than 8,000 schools were damaged or destroyed during the earthquake. Almost 9,000 people died, more than 22,000 people suffered injuries and more than half a million houses were destroyed. Photo: © Omar Havana

KATHMANDU, NEPAL - FEBRUARY 12:...py; Omar Havana for UNICEF ROSA

KATHMANDU, NEPAL - FEBRUARY 12: A young girl passes by a sign pointing to the importance of education outside of a school in Chandol on February 12, 2015 in Kathmandu, Nepal. Schools in Nepal often display signs about the importance of education as a part of raising awareness amongst the population of the need to send children to schools. Globally, 58 million children of primary school age are out of school, in addition to 63 million adolescents between the ages of 12 and 15, due to a range of factors, from gender discrimination to disability, to ethnicity-based discrimination, to child marriage, to poverty, amongst other issues. In Nepal, where approximately 40% of the population lives in poverty, many families cannot afford to send their children to school, as they cannot pay for uniforms, textbooks, and transportation to schools that are often far away from their homes. Families also often need their children to work in order to supplement the family’s income. As a result, approximately 1.2 million children between the ages of 5 and 16 are currently out of school. While the problem is exacerbated in rural areas, families living in slums and other poor communities in or near large urban areas, including Kathmandu, are also affected. Photo: © Omar Havana for UNICEF ROSA

BHEDIARI, NEPAL - MAY 30: 27-ye...ar Havana for VSO International

BHEDIARI, NEPAL - MAY 30: 27-year-old Adult Champion Sunti holds the hand of her little sisters, 15-year-old Pramila while walking in their village on May 30, 2019 in Bhediari, Nepal. Sunti was studying in grade seven when her parents arranged her marriage. At 13 years old, she gave birth to her first daughter. Refused by her family-in-law for having had a daughter, Sunti felt isolated by her husband and family. A few years later, she gave birth to a son. Hoping to be accepted and be loved by the family, she went back to her husband's house with her newborn son only to find out that her husband was already remarried to another woman. She was left with the only option to leave the home again. In 2013, Sunti joined Sisters for Sisters' Education project as an Aunty Champion (community volunteer) supporting other young volunteers in the community (Big sisters) working for girls' education awareness connecting with local government stakeholders, schools and service providers. Today, Sunti mentors seven Little Sisters. Photo: © Omar Havana for VSO International

DOBINI, NEPAL - MAY 29: 15-years-old "Little Sister," Arti writes "thank you" on the blackboard in her classroom on May 29, 2019 in Dobini, Nepal. In Nepal, early marriage, menstrual taboos, and domestic duties are keeping girls out of school. Photo: © Omar Havana for VSO International

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Public Story

Portfolio NGO Education

Copyright Omar Havana 2022

Updated Dec 2020

Location Brussels, Belgium

Topics Adolescence, Aide Et Action, Cambodia, Children, Conceptual, Editorial, Education, Europe Photographer, France Photographer, Human Rights, International Labour Organisation, International Organisation, Nepal, NGO, On Assignment, Paris Photographer, Photography, Photojournalism, Portfolio, School/College, Secours Populaire FranÃ§ais, SeeBeyondBorders, Sri Lanka, Still life, UNICEF, VSO International, Water Aid, Youth

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Omar Havana

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