U.S. AFCP-supported Yenga Hiti restoration completed

KATHMANDU: The U.S. Embassy in Kathmandu, in partnership with the World Monuments Fund and the Chiva Chaitya Organization, has celebrated the successful restoration of the historic Yenga Hiti in Lagan, Kathmandu.

This project was supported through a U.S. Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) grant, reaffirming the United States’ continued commitment to safeguarding Nepal’s cultural heritage and advancing economic growth in tourism to the benefit of Nepali and American visitors and businesses.

US Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Jason Meeks joined local leaders and government officials to inaugurate the newly restored hiti and thanked the partners who made the project possible. “The restoration of Yenga Hiti is more than the repair of a heritage site; it is the renewal of a living water system that has served this community—and the nation of Nepal—for over fifteen hundred years.”

He added, “The U.S. Embassy remains committed to the strong and long-lasting U.S.-Nepal partnership. We will continue to support cultural preservation, community resilience, and a prosperous future for both our countries.”

The ceremony marked the reopening of Yenga Hiti’s water flow for the first time in 50 years. The restoration is part of the Hitis of Kathmandu Valley: A Water Heritage Rehabilitation Project, supported by a $275,000 AFCP grant.

The project aims to restore at least three traditional hitis in the Kathmandu Valley, provide hands-on training opportunities for students and heritage professionals, and support long-term conservation planning. Yenga Hiti is the first site completed after a year of meticulous research, documentation, and restoration.

The restoration of Yenga Hiti was carried out through strong collaboration with the Yenga Club, Chiva Chaitya Organization, Department of Archaeology, and local and provincial governments.

Since 2003, the U.S. government, through the AFCP, has supported 28 cultural preservation projects in Nepal, with nearly $4.6 million in funding, making Nepal one of the program’s most active and valued partners.