KATHMANDU: Minister for Peace and Reconstruction Ek Nath Dhakal said youth would have a great role in rebuilding the nation rattled by the devastating earthquakes last year.

Speaking at a function in Kathmandu on Sunday, the Minister said nation building would be possible only with the contribution from energetic hearts.

On the occasion, Dhakal awarded certificates to 27 volunteers who were engaged in a six-month earthquake recovery programme carried out by the Global Action Nepal, a non-government organisation.

According to the organisation's Krishna Sharan Dangol, the volunteers had provided education and psychosocial support to quake-hit population of Solukhumbu, Dolakha, Makawanpur, Rasuwa and Gorkha districts from August 2015 to January 2016.

"The main aims of the project were to ensure that education can continue where schools have been damaged or destroyed and to provide psychosocial support and disseminate key educational messages in critical areas such as education, health, hygiene and sanitation," he added.

While the team constructed 20 temporary learning centres, they also trained 210 school teachers on child-friendly and creating teaching-learning, according to the organisation.