CANADA NEPAL GENDER IN ORGANIZATIONS

Introduction to Canada Nepal Gender in Organizations

Canada Nepal Gender in Organizations project (CNGO) was funded by the Canadian International Development Agency and implemented by SALASAN, a division of GeoSpatial International, over a five year period, 1999-2005. CNGO supported NGO capacity building and district linkage strengthening for gender equality and good governance. The project has strengthened the capacity of eleven participating NGOs (PNGOs) in six districts - Bara, Sarlahi and Mahottari in the central terai and Surkhet, Dadeldhura and Doti in the mid and far west regions - to serve as Gender Resource Organizations (GROs) for their district. Implementation commenced later in one additional district, Kaski, in August 2002, with six NGOs.

These PNGOs contribute to gender sensitive development by providing technical services, training, advice and leadership for gender equality, as well as implementing gender integrated programs to communities, local government and other NGOs.

CNGO also implemented programs to improve the district enabling environment for gender change and NGO collaboration. CNGO facilitated collaborative relations among NGOs and local government with the formation of a District Development Committee sub- committee to provide a platform for coordination and collaboration. A coordinating and monitoring committee to support gender equality was established also in several of the CNGO working districts. Other civil society initiatives were designed to nurture a supportive environment for NGOs and like-minded organizations advocating for gender equality.

Several initiatives at central level supported and linked with the district work:

an NGO database, operated by the Social Welfare Council (SWC) , to provide yearly data on NGO programs for policy and program analysis, with a multi-stakeholder management committee,
an extensive consultation process leading to a new draft NGO Act,
a committee including central HMG Ministries to advise and liaise on the DDC-NGO committees and Gender Equality Committees at district level, and
Strategic planning support to the SWC. Central level management committees guided and advised on these activities. These interventions at the central level facilitated a dialogue on district level results and informed national level policy - makers about district implementation issues in a policy feedback loop.

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Project Rationale

The rationale for the project was based on two identified needs:

first, that the NGO community was as yet not mature in its capacity while at the same time was increasingly taking on roles in development in rural areas, and
Second, that gender discrimination was deeply rooted (especially outside Kathmandu Valley) but few resources (human and financial) were available to address gender inequalities.

The project was designed therefore to promote good governance within the NGO system, including NGO relationships with local government, and build gender expertise in districts. CNGO addressed the capacity needs of NGOs to enable them to sustain their organizations to be vision-led, capable, transparent, and gender friendly. Their role as gender resource organizations was to work with partners to integrate and mainstream gender concepts through all activities. CNGO strengthened the linkages of the NGOs to local government through the platform of DDC/NGO committees and through gender equality committees.

Project Goal, Purpose and Outcomes

The goal of CNGO was to promote good governance and the transition to greater equality between men and women in Nepal. In the long term, the project contributed to this goal by strengthening gender-responsive civil-society organizations, and by contributing to gender-responsive development policies and programs.

The purpose of the project was to strengthen capacities of the Social Welfare Council and participating organizations at the central, regional and district levels to carry out gender-responsive development, and to develop strategic linkages among the SWC, selected government institutions and non-governmental organizations. The project outcomes related to this purpose are:

A Social Welfare Council in partnership with the NGO community in Nepal that effectively promotes a gender-responsive and enabling regulatory and policy environment, and that promotes NGO policy dialogue and gender equality practices among governmental and non-governmental organizations; and
NGO participants that effectively plan and implement gender-responsive development initiatives, and that competently provide technical services to community-based organizations and user groups in a gender-responsive manner.

CNGO Staff and Consultants:

Project Director: Chris Hunter (2003-2005), Anne Deines (1999-2003)
Project Manager: Mahendra Laxmi Sharma (2004-2005), Barbara Duffield (1999-2003)
NGO Coordinators: Mahendra Laxmi Sharma (2000-2003) Jyoti Danuwar (2000-2004) Manju Thapa (2002-2005)
Staff: Tek Regmi, Binu Thapa, Pragya Singh, Rajani Bajracharya
Trainers: SBAN - Sanat Acharya, Sabita Dhakhwa, Khem Thapa (2002-2005)
Didi Bahini - Bijaya Pradhan, Bhagirath Singh, Dadhi Ram Poudel and Sarada Pathak (2000-2003)
Consultants: Hari Bastola, Cindy Hanson, Ram Neupane, Linda Pennells, Raghav Raj Regmi, Aleda Turnbull, Sumedha Gautam and Sarita Karki