FINAL!REPORT!–!May!2013 Nepal:Final!EvaluationReport! … · 2017-12-11 · CARE DK Final Evaluation of the CHULI Programme in Nepal, April 2013 6 The emphasis on land use and natural

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FINAL REPORT – May 2013

Nepal: Final Evaluation Report of the CHULI programme Final external evaluation of the Churia Livelihood Improvement Programme in the Sarlahi, Mahottari and Dhanusha districts of Nepal, 2007-‐2013

Charlotte Ørnemark Mohan Thapa

CARE DK Final Evaluation of the CHULI Programme in Nepal, April 2013

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Name of document Final external evaluation of the Churia Livelihood Improvement Programme in the Sarlahi, Mahottari and Dhanusha districts of Nepal, 2007-‐2013

Full title Final external evaluation of the Churia Livelihood Improvement Programme in the Sarlahi, Mahottari and Dhanusha districts of Nepal, 2007-‐2013

Acronym/PN CHURIA Livelihood Improvement Programme

Country Nepal

Date of report Final report 27 May 2013

Dates of the program 2007-‐ June 2013

Evaluator(s) Charlotte Ørnemark, Nordic Consulting Group, [email protected], Mohan Thapa

External? Yes

Donor(s) CARE Denmark (Danida)

Type of report Final evaluation

The program Objective The CHULI programme shall contribute to improving the livelihood security of the poor, vulnerable and socially excluded women, men, girls and boys in Sarlahi, Mahottari and Dhansua districts at household, group, community and district levels.

Specific Objectives Immediate Objective 1: The technical-‐organizational capacity of Community Based Natural Resource Management groups, Civil Society Organisations, service providers, and poor, vulnerable and socially excluded women and men will have been enhanced for their better representation of in decision making processes, reducing inequalities and discriminatory practices, promoting pro poor local development planning and enabling them to claim for their rights. Immediate Objective 2: The livelihood options for poor, vulnerable and socially excluded women, men, girls and boys will have been increased and diversified through improvement in: skills, income opportunities, equitable management and utilization of natural resources, resilience against disasters, mechanisms for upstream and downstream linkages, school attendance, and access to services. Immediate Objective 3: The advocacy capacity of poor, vulnerable and socially excluded women and men; Community Based Natural Resource Management groups; and Civil Society Organisations will have been enhanced to influence government policies and their implementation for: promoting social inclusion and good governance, strengthening local democratic processes, adopting holistic approaches for identifying and analyzing the underlying causes of poverty and social injustice.

Evaluation Methodology

See Section 3.

Summary of lessons learned

See Executive Summery

Contribution to MDG(s)?

1a:Income / 1b:Hunger /3:Women’s Empowerment / 7a:Environment / 8:Civil Society


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Table of contents List of Abbreviations .................................................................................................................................... 4

Executive Summary ...................................................................................................................................... 5

1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 9

2. Background & context ........................................................................................................................... 10

3. Approach & methodology ..................................................................................................................... 12

4. Overall programme design& approach ............................................................................................... 13

4.1 Description of overall approach .................................................................................................... 13

4.2 Assessment of overall programme structure ............................................................................... 16

4.3 Coherence in levels of objectives and indicators ........................................................................ 21

5. Assessment of strategies and approaches applied ............................................................................. 23

5.1Targeting the poor using UCPA ..................................................................................................... 23

5.2 Local accountability through pro-poor planning & services ..................................................... 24

4.3Economic empowerment and livelihoods ..................................................................................... 26

4.4 Resilience to disaster risk and climate change ............................................................................. 28

4.5 Natural resource governance .......................................................................................................... 31

5. Working in partnerships ........................................................................................................................ 32

5.1 Implementing partner CSOs at district level ............................................................................... 32

5.2 Strategic partnerships ....................................................................................................................... 33

6. Working in fragile political & governance context ............................................................................ 34

Annex I: Terms of Reference (TOR) ....................................................................................................... 36


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List of Abbreviations

CAPA Community Adaptation Plan of Action

CBO Community Based Organisation

CFUG Community Forest Users Group

CFMG Collaborative Forest Management Group

CHULI Churia Livelihood Improvement Programme

CSO Civil Society Organisation

CSRC Community Self-Reliance Centre

DDC District Development Committee

DRMC Disaster Risk Management Committee

FECOFUN Federation of Community Forest Users Nepal

HLLRC High Level Land Reform Commission

INGO International Non-Governmental Organisation

IPC Integrated Planning Committee

LAPA Local Adaptation Plan of Action

LGCDP Local Government & Community Development Programme

LIP Livelihood Investment Programme

MFALD Ministry of Federal Affairs & Local Development

NGO Non-Governmental Organisation

NRM Natural Resource Management

TOR Terms of Reference

PEC Public Education Centre

PNGO Partner Non-Governmental Organisation

PVSE Poor, Vulnerable and Socially Excluded

RDF Rural Development Foundation

UCPA Underlying Causes of Poverty Analysis

VSLA Village Savings and Loans Association

VDC Village Development Committee

WCF Ward Citizen Forum


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Executive Summary This external end evaluation of Churia Livelihood Improvement Programme (CHULI) in the Sarlahi, Mahottari and Dhanusha districts of Nepal covers the programme implementation period 2007-2013. It was conducted during March-April 2013, two months prior to the end of the programme, at a time when it was clear that CHULI in its current format would not continue for yet another phase. The programme was funded by CARE Denmark, using framework funding from Danida.

The focus of the Evaluation was therefore largely on the use and usefulness of the approaches and strategies applied in CHULI against its overall objectives, and on the overarching lessons that can inform future work of CARE and its partners (for full TOR, see Annex 1).

The CHULI programme was designed and implemented in the immediate aftermath of the conflict between the Government of Nepal and Maoists in a fragile political and governance context. The programme area was one of the worst affected in the political turmoil that broke out in 2007 when a people’s movement broke out in the Terai (the low-lying plains in the southern belt adjacent to India) demanding an end to discrimination and greater autonomy and influence within the Nepalese State. The identity-based autonomy agenda led to a series of arbitrary actions with criminal elements which widened the sense of distrust between people originating from the hill areas but living in the Terai, and the Madhesi originally living in the low-lands.

The absence of elected representatives at the local level created a leadership vacuum that severely affected the local government system, limiting people’s participation in local planning and decision making processes. Government efforts to reactivate the participatory planning process at community level has focused on citizens’ participation through Ward Citizen Forums (WCF) where the needs and priorities of disadvantaged groups are prioritized and channelled to the Integrated Planning Committees (IPCs) of the Village Development Committees (VDCs).

In addition to an overarching thematic strand of local governance, the CHULI programme – initially designed as a traditional livelihoods programme – focused on the sustainable use of natural resources, climate change and the economic situation of primary beneficiaries. These were the poor, vulnerable and socially excluded (PVSE), with a focus on women, living in the selected 50 target VDCs in the three districts.

Numerous strategies and approaches were employed, with the main entry-point being an in-depth identification process of pockets of poverty where women considered being among the ‘poorest of the poor’ were mobilised and organised into women’s groups or Popular Education Centres (PECs). PECs were then linked to other local governance structures such as the Community Forest User Groups under FECOFUN, also supported as a strategic partner of CHULI (for a complete overview of approaches and strategies applied at local level, see Table 1, Section 4).

Key f indings & lessons

(i) Overall programme structure and design The Evaluation noted that CHULI used a fairly complex programme design and that it was involved in a number of processes related to the many needs of the primary target group. There was a clear poverty focus, but the detailed targeting was time consuming and limited the ability of local planners to use and monitor progress based on the data collected (which represented only a subset of the VDC population located in the pockets of poverty, and with only women in the PECs).


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The emphasis on land use and natural resource governance was seen as highly relevant as it is central to the livelihoods of the primary target group. The programme generally seemed well prepared to engage numerous stakeholders in this thematic area, building on the work undertaken in the programme preceding CHULI, and with established working relations with local and district officials and local structures (such as Community Forest User Groups, CFUGs). CHULI also worked with relevant and locally anchored civil society partners in the area of land rights via the National Land Rights Movement.

In relation to establishing and supporting PECs, and linking them to other local decision-making structures, this was largely facilitated and driven by the programme through local implementing NGOs with less institutionalised strategic linkages particularly in the area of gender, women’s rights and civic and political human rights in the broader sense (in line with issues identified as underlying causes of poverty in the UCPA approach).

District-level Women’s Rights Forums were established with demonstrated ability to e.g. mobilise women in a campaign that led to an increase in daily wages for labourers. However, it was unclear at the time of the Evaluation how sustainable such forums will be without external funding or facilitation after the end of the programme. Structural and cultural causes of poverty identified as part of the UCPA approach and continuous facilitation will be difficult for PEC members to drive and pursue without such strategic institutional linkages from outside their own communities.

Access to information and programme support led PEC women to increasingly claim their entitlements and taking joint action to advocate at VDC or District level. This led to a number of important results for women and their children, such as an increase in enrolment of Dalit children, widow’s allowances being paid out, and improved services and infrastructure for their ‘pockets of poverty’ in the VDC (e.g. electrification projects were speeded up).

A number of collective actions were ad hoc and taken up by individual women through demonstrations or marching to the District Development Officer’s office with complaints. The programme was weaker in terms of establishing or strengthening institutionalised channels for broad-based and inclusive local participation in planning through the existing channels, such as the Ward Citizen Forums (however, in places where the WCF existed, PECs were in contact with them).

The selection of overall approach coupled with the fragile governance situation led to a pro-longed start-up phase and delays. Finding, hiring and training personnel with a representative distribution of staff from ‘high’ and ‘low’ communities was time consuming with quick turnover of staff due to the harsh working conditions and security threats. Given the relatively high costs involved in setting up programme implementation structures and the delays in the start-up period (until 2009), the overall implementation period before phase out seems was found to be too short.

(ii) Use of strategies and approaches to fulfil program objectives

Ø Targeting the poor using UCPA: The UCPA process was underpinning interactions with VDCs to identify the pockets of poverty and to guide more in-depth poverty analysis among PEC members. It was found to have increased the situational awareness of PVSEs participating in the process, which in turn may have positively united them for collective action. The Evaluation noted, however, that in terms of risk management, less focus on people’s ethnic origin and cast (published as part of the process) would be desirable in a context of rising ethnic tension, and that the programme should actively monitor and manage risks to avoid potential misuse of information by political parties and populist groups in the fragile


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operating context. While many merits of the participatory process was noted, the facilitation could also be less ‘problem oriented’ (on structural causes of poverty) and more clearly focus on building and strengthening systems for local engagement, equipping PECs with skills (including linkages to adult literacy) and tools for continuously acquiring and using local information to inform their advocacy and to decrease their dependency on the local facilitator.

Ø Local accountability through pro-poor planning & services: The causal link between forming PECs and reducing culturally embedded and institutionalized discriminatory practices (as outlined in the objective) was difficult to establish. However, the group unity and dynamics in the PECs, in combination with increased access to information through locally based facilitators and implementing CSOs was found to be a triggering factor for more PEC members claiming entitlements and getting increased access to public services. Positive effects were also found in the area of gender based violence with group structures intervening in mediation or reporting of cases. There were also sings of increased accountability at VDC level planning through more open processes and a larger focus of the limited resources on addressing priorities in the targeted poverty pockets. Programme implementers noted that it had helped to start a culture of interaction between local planners and PEC members.

Ø Economic empowerment and livelihoods: VSLAs among PEC members helped to structure and formalise their meetings. This, in turn, was noted to have reinforced a sense of self-sufficiency among members with signs of improved ‘economic coping’ (in terms of livelihood resilience). An emergency ‘social fund’ among members also allowed them to intervene and help out members in special need. It was however noted that several members also participated in other village-level saving schemes initiated by other INGOs, and that a more harmonized approach would be desirable. As a result of the VSLAs together with livelihoods investment plans (LIP) to a selected number of participants, several positive livelihood effects were noted (such as improved food security or micro-enterprises). However, amounts saved or invested were generally small with little effort to more systematically tap into local value chains with the programme implementers’ facilitation or assistance. Entrepreneurship training could also have been less theoretical and more hands-on from learning-by-doing, using real examples from the group and following them over time, rather than as a one-off training.

Ø Resilience to disaster risk and climate change: The up-scaling of community adaptation plans of action (CAPAs) drawn up by PECs, to VDC-level ‘owned’ local adaptation plans (LAPAs) was well aligned to government policies and relevant in the current context. Activities at local level were also simultaneously reinforced through lobbying for a more integrated approach between disaster risk management and climate change at national level, undertaken by CARE. In terms of sustainability, it was unclear who would ‘drive’ the process of rolling out the participatory approach leading to the establishment of LAPAs and VDC-level Disaster Risk Management Committees (DRMCs) across the district in order for the approach to be mainstreamed into general government practice, and who would monitor and reinforce accountability for its implementation (with district officials lacking time and resources for active involvement and oversight). The piloting used a quite a comprehensive and in-depth process and series of tools. These could be further enhanced by adding and building capacities for community involvement in monitoring the implementation. Accountability mechanisms should also include ways for communities to tap into mechanisms for quality control and assurance from authorities supplying inputs such as seedlings or other materials; where possible tapping into local supply chains to ensure that


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inputs (such as seedlings) are appropriate and locally adapted varieties appropriate for the soil and local conditions.

Ø Natural resource governance: The programme has contributed to enhanced accountability of FECOFUN (district level) towards CFUGs and of CFUGs to its constituencies in the target areas. At the policy level, good gender and poverty provisions have been established with the support of the programme, but its implementation falls short of in-house skills and funding. With the support of the programme, a wellbeing ranking of CFUG members has also been introduced. It uses a different categorisation than the UCPA process used partly in the same communities and should in the future be aligned to official poverty rankings by the government. This could help to avoid potential confusion as to how the 35 per cent allocation of resources to the poor and marginalized should be implemented in practice. Another priority area for future programmes would also be to look at the risk of CFUGs ‘ring-fencing’ access to natural resources with few benefits for non-CFUG members. Since VDCs do not get any income in terms of taxes for use of common resources, it clashes with the approach to claim improved service delivery from VDCs in areas where CFUGs have more financial resources than local authorities. CARE could play a role in providing inputs into future policy process around a legal framework around the sharing of income from forest use between Central/Federal/Local Government and between user-groups and non-users. This area of support also saw active engagement in the policy area around land rights and land use through the National Land Rights Movement and its district and local chapters.

(iii) Working in partnerships The programme worked with two types of partners – implementing and strategic partners. Implementing partners were selected after the programme design at district level with the role to implement and roll out the PECs across the 50 selected VDCs. Given the ethnic tensions in the region, the process of partner selection was highly sensitive and required involvement and approval of local authorities. Local partners also needed to be trained both in grant management and in methods of implementation, delaying the inception phase further. On the other hand, their locations next to the beneficiary VDCs, and their acceptance among local authorities helped to bridge linkages and understand the local operating context. Strategic partnerships were formed with the Federation of Community Forest Users (FECOFUN) and with the Community Self-Reliance Centre (CSRC) hosting the National Land Rights Movement. These partnerships were added later (CSRC in 2009) to complement other on-going activities with the PECs. Strategic partners had the advantage of operating both at local and national levels, with the ability to lift some of the issues affecting communities at local level to the national debate. The CSRC partnership channelled funding into a joint funding with other donors. The partnership provided useful advocacy links with a large scope for sustainability after the end of the programme. (iv) Working in a fragile political & governance context It was beyond the scope of the Evaluation to thoroughly investigate initiatives from a do-no-harm perspective and conflict transformation. Even so, evidence suggests that the programme has taken a context-drive approach by giving space to constructive engagement and dialogue with local authorities by key stakeholders. Results also indicate that by working with localized structures in a transparent process, it has been possible to create and reinforce a level of accountability and community resilience even in the absence of local elected bodies and in a fragile political context. Applying approaches to build consensus among key stakeholders have also helped defuse a potential rise in local conflicts.


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1. Introduction This report has been prepared in response to the Terms of Reference (TOR)1 issued by CARE Denmark (see Annex I).The two key evaluation questions for this end-term evaluation were:

(i) To what extent has the project strategies and approaches supported the objectives of the CHULI programme?, and

(ii) What are the key lessons learnt which should inform the work of CARE and others? The emphasis on strategic relevance of strategies and approaches and overall lessons makes it complementary to other concurrent studies2 which were undertaken to more rigorously quantify scope, reach and specific outputs. Such end-line surveys and evaluations have been quoted and referred to in this report. To answer the two overall evaluation questions, the OECD/DAC criteria, i.e. relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability and (emerging) impacts was being used, with a focus on the first four criteria, and with emphasis on programmatic choices in relation to strategy and approaches against set objectives.3 This final evaluation was undertaken at the same time as a new CARE DK sub-programme in Nepal in the area of food security and natural resource governance was being designed to replace CHULI as of July. In other words, it was clear from the outset that there will be no second phase of the programme and that on-going activities were in the phase-out stage – something which partners and informal groups were also aware of at the time of the evaluation. This did not seem to discourage them from actively participating in the evaluation. However, in it may have led to a positive bias in responses since many of the community beneficiaries still tried to ‘save’ CHULI by making the case to the evaluation team for continued support, and they had difficulties identifying things that could have been done better (since there would be no ‘next phase’ for improvements). The report gives a brief background and context against which the CHULI programme was set, with a focus on the political fragile context in which it operated as of 2007 onwards. This is important as it affected the way in which the programme was implemented against its original design and provided for some important lessons for operating in a fragile governance context. The report then gives an overview of the rather complex programme, focusing on the many approaches and strategies used against objectives with an overall assessment of its relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability and emerging impact. This section also looks at the hierarchy of objectives and relevance of some of the indicators used to assess results and impacts in other end-line surveys and assessments. This was seen as relevant to include, given that this evaluation looks largely at existing secondary information for quantitative analysis, with field work following a more flexible format, using semi-structured questionnaires and focus group discussions to assess relevance of strategies and approaches with a focus on lessons for future programmes (given CHULI’s phase out in 2013). Overall lessons are then broken down by clusters of main programmatic and policy areas in a more detailed description and assessment of main approaches applied.

1For full TOR, see Annex I. 2E.g. the obligatory evaluation undertaken by the Social Welfare Council in Nepal. 3To assess impacts would require a larger study and more time. Also, since some of the work in the programme 2E.g. the obligatory evaluation undertaken by the Social Welfare Council in Nepal. 3To assess impacts would require a larger study and more time. Also, since some of the work in the programme started only in 2009-10 impact may not yet have been noticeable.


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2. Background & context Pol i t i ca l and Securi ty Si tuat ion CHULI was designed in early 2007 right after the formal end of the decade long armed conflict following the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (November 22, 2006) between the Government of Nepal and Maoists. However, it only became operational in late 2009-10. The delay was mainly caused by the political turmoil in Nepal particularly in the Terai4 region where the three project districts are located.

In early 2007, a people's movement broke out in the Terai demanding an end to the discrimination against the Madheshi people,5 greater autonomy within Nepalese State, and greater representation in the national parliament. The movement gained in strength and an indefinite Madheshi movement was announced on February13, 2008 by the United Democratic Madheshi Front (UDMF), a joint front of three Madheshi political parties. Besides, the greater autonomy cause of the Terai was also taken up by various regional armed groups which used violent measures including kidnapping, torture and killings to put forth their agenda.

This situation led to growing tension in the Terai which posed new political challenges. Though a political agreement between the Government of Nepal and the UDMF on February 28, 2008 helped subside the political movement, underground armed outfits continued to operate and terrorize people with threats, extortions and kidnappings. As a consequence of the identity-based autonomy agenda put forth by Madhesh-based regional political parties and arbitrary actions of some criminal elements in the armed outfits, the distrust between hill origin people living in the Terai and Madhesis widened and communal harmony remained disturbed.

The environment of insecurity and impunity also adversely impacted the start-up of the CHULI program which took off on a cautious note in 2009 with subsequent scale ups in 2010 and beyond when the security situation improved with armed outfits opting for dialogue and agreement with the Government and for peaceful means to carry forward their agenda.

Local Governance The political turmoil and security situation also had an adverse impact on the governance situation at the local level. As a result, the Government of Nepal (GoN) has not been able to hold local elections even after a decade of the expiry of the term of elected local governments in July 2002. Since then, local bodies6 continue to be operational through the deployment of civil servants nominated by the central government. The absence of elected representatives at the local bodies for a long time has created a leadership vacuum and severely affected the functioning of the local government system. This has greatly constrained the scope for interaction between the local bodies and communities. Due to the security situation, most of the Village Development Committee (VDC) secretaries, until recently, were based at the district headquarters rather than in their VDCs. Local people had to go to the district headquarters to get services from their secretaries. Thus, the overall situation severely limited people's participation in the local planning and decision making processes, reduced downward accountability and transparency, encouraged corruption and significantly slowed down service delivery and development works.

4Terai region in Nepal is the low-lying land (plains) in the southern belt adjacent to the border with India. 5Madheshi are the people of Nepal who reside in the southern plains usually referred to as the Terai region. 6In 1999, the Nepali government promulgated the Local Self-Governance Act (LSGA) which introduced a two-tier system of local government, with village development committees (VDCs) and equivalent municipal bodies as the lower tier, and district development committees (DDCs) as the upper tier. Today, Nepal has 75 DDCs, 3915 VDCs and 58 municipalities.


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The Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development (MFALD), through its Local Governance and Community Development Programme (LGCDP), has recently reactivated the participatory planning process at the community level where grassroots people participate to formulate settlement plans. The plans are facilitated by members of the Ward Citizen Forum (WCF)7 which have been formed through a consensus of ward level gathering. The WCF identify the needs and priorities of disadvantaged groups, plan and prioritize projects and make budget recommendations to the Integrated Planning Committees (IPCs) where each WCF have one representative. The IPC prioritizes projects received from the WCFs and forwards the list to the VDC council which makes the final decision.

Natural resources Nepal has been facing huge challenges to effectively manage its abundant forest (40 per cent of its land resource) and water resources to fulfill its development aspirations particularly in terms of adapting to and managing climate change vagaries and controlling deforestation of forests. In view of its grave importance, management and equitable sharing of natural resources has been a key issue critically debated in the policy, political and civil spheres. The highly sensitive nature of this issue (in view of the upcoming federal structure of governance in Nepal will adopt) was also acknowledged by the Constituent Assembly (now dissolved following its four year term) which had formed a separate thematic committee to provide a report with suggestions for incorporation in the new Constitution.

As Nepal still remains largely agrarian, the conservation and management of natural resources gains prime significance for its overall economic development.At the time of the project formulation, degradation of Churia Hills resources and inadequate capacity of key stakeholders (local government, officials of Community Forest User Groups, relevant government agencies, political leaders and civil society leaders) posed grave risks to the survival of the people living in the project districts including degradation and loss of their valuable fertile agricultural lands. As the overall conservation strategy with long-term programs linking upstream-downstream problems and solutions was largely missing, there existed an urgent need for initiatives that supported better management of risks posed by the fragile environmental situation in the programme areas.

Forests (community, government and collaborative forests) and agricultural land are the main resources in the project districts. The CHULI programme has supported Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) initiatives at the district level and policy advocacy of the Federation of Community Forestry Users, Nepal (FECOFUN) at the national level. According to the Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation, the government has handed over 1,652,654 hectares of national forest to Community Forest User Groups (CFUGs) for management and utilization of forest resources and overall about 1.45 million households or 35 percent of the population of Nepal are involved in the community forestry management programme.

Economic condi t ion Nepal, a landlocked country located between China and India, is among the poorest and least developed countries in the world, with about one-quarter (25.2% in 2011) of its population living below the poverty line.8 The third Nepal Living Standards Survey released by World Bank (WB) and Central Bureau of Statistics (2010/11) indicated that poverty has progressively decreased from 41.2 percent in 1995-96 to 30.9 percent in 2003-04 and 25.2 percent in 2010-11.

7 WCF are ward level forums that are inclusive of all citizens, especially poor and excluded groups, and can voice local level priorities to the VDC-level IPC and to the VDC council. 8 Source: http://devdata.worldbank.org/AAG/npl_aag.pdf


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Agriculture, the main occupation of the people, has not been able meet the growing demand of the population due to lack of improved agriculture technology and insufficient irrigation facility. The three CHULI programme districts, which lie in the agricultural heartland of the country, rank from the mid- to the lower side in terms of overall development (based on selected socio-economic indicators). Dhanusa stands at 37 while Sarlahi and Mahottari are ranked at 57 and 62 respectively among the 75 districts of the country.9 With agricultural produce not able to cope with the growing demand, the interest of the youth in agriculture has declined. Most of rural youths have migrated to cities or abroad for employment. Remittance inflow from the youth working in foreign countries has now become the major source of the nation’s income including in the three project districts which have high ratio of labour migration.

Status o f women The status of Nepalese women in terms of their access to knowledge, economic resources, and political power, as well as their personal autonomy in the process of decision making is generally bleak. Patriarchal traditional social structure is the key barrier that hinders women's access to public services, (such as services provided by the health sector, education sectors and local bodies), employment opportunities, and household assets and income in the Terai, including in the three project districts. Women face multiple discrimination such as rampant gender based violence, early child marriage, dowry, accusation of practicing witchcraft, restriction to their mobility and long household working hours. The situation of Terai Dalit women is even worse. They have to suffer triple discrimination due to their caste, language and gender while competing with others in the society. These discriminatory practices have obstructed their development and also the overall development of the society. As a result of entrenched discriminatory practices, women's participation in social dialogue and community development is nominal.

3. Approach & methodology The evaluation was conducted between mid-March and mid-April 2013, with field work conducted in the three target districts (Sarlahi, Mahottari and Dhanusha) during seven days in mid-March. Interviews were also conducted with partners based in Kathmandu.

The methods included a literature review, key informant interviews, debriefing sessions with partners and programme staff, as well as and site visits in selected intervention areas. During site visits in the field, meetings were held with project implementing CSOs, strategic partners and local Village Development Committee (VDC) officials as well as district officials and beneficiary groups. Field observations and interviews with beneficiaries were also undertaken, as well as focus group discussions. Extensive consultations were also held with programme staff, and in particular with the staff at the CARE Janakpur area office in charge of coordination and day-to-day implementation of CHULI. In terms of documenting results, the evaluation focused mainly on outcome level effects of project interventions to complement a results oriented evaluation conducted by the Social Welfare Council evaluation team in March 2013, the end line survey conducted by the CHULI team in January 2013, and the mid-term evaluation of CHULI in December 2010. The TORs specifically underlined that the evaluation should not repeat data collection and analysis but

9Source: District Level Indicators of Nepal for Monitoring Overall Development (Based on Selected Socio-Economic Indicators) Government of Nepal, National Planning Commission Secretariat, Central Bureau of Statistics (2003)


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identify information gaps at the outset and analyze and reflect on results documented and strategies applied with a focus on lessons and discussion points for future programming.

The evaluation has taken a flexible and learning-oriented approach, focusing on both observed results and broader lessons. When possible, it has noted examples of results from specific programme activities, but also pointed out broader risks or question marks for learning and discussion. A limitation was that some activities were still quite new at the time of the evaluation (such as some newly formed cooperatives and the Women’s Rights Forum), and had therefore not had a chance to be ‘tested over time’ within the timeframe of the programme.

4. Overall programme design& approach 4.1 Description of overall approach The CHULI programme was designed as a holistic livelihoods programme in 2007,targeting a specific and pre-defined beneficiary target group of an estimate of 120,625 poor, vulnerable and socially excluded (PVSE) women, men, girls and boys living in 50 Village Development Committees (VDCs) located in the Sarlahi, Mahottari and Dhanusa district. In effect, however, PVSE women organised into Public Education Centres (women’s groups) were the main entry-points for interventions, with expected spill-over effects to other household members with more marginal or indirect involvement. Secondary target groups were local civil society organisations including implementing CSOs, district line agencies and local elected bodies10.

The overall objective was defined as:

“The CHULI programme shall contribute to improving the l ive l ihood secur i ty of the poor, vulnerable and socially excluded women, men, girls and boys in Sarlahi, Mahottari and Dhansua districts at household, group, community and district levels.”

The programme period was for six years (July 2007-June 2103), yet the start-up phase was characterised by numerous delays due to the political turmoil in the country, and particularly in the Terai region (see section 2 above). The partner selection process was also pro-longed as partners had to be carefully selected through a transparent process, and approved by local political powers for the programme to be allowed to operate under the prevailing fragile governance conditions.

The programme used numerous tools and approaches across a variety of themes, broadly covering the areas of identifying the underlying causes of poverty and injustice, providing support for economic activities and livelihoods diversification, land rights, natural resources management and disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. After the mid-term review, immediate objectives were also updated to shift from a focus primarily on livelihoods to a more rights-based approach. Over time, more strategic advocacy was introduced through strategic partners such as the Federation of Community Forest Users (FECOFUN) in the area of natural resource and forest management and CSRC/ the Land Rights Forum in the area of policy development in the area of land rights reform.

The programme design as well as a large share of human and financial resources focused on identifying target beneficiaries and supporting them to be represented and participate in the decision-making in various local structures, increasing their say in decisions that most immediately affect their rights fulfilment and livelihood options. 10 See CHULI Programme Document June 2007- June 2013.


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These local structures were then in parallel also supported for increased inclusion and improved governance. PECs being the main programmatic entry-points for engagement and social mobilisation, other local structures where PEC members could increasingly participate or influence local decision-making were also targeted by the programme. This included the Community Forest User Groups (CFUGs) under FECOFUN, Collaborative Forest Management Groups, the establishment of Disaster Reduction Management Committees (DMRCs) and village-level Land Rights Forums via the centralised core support to CSRC and the National Land Rights movement.Land is an important issue for the target group of CHULI project as most of them are landless and about 40 percent of the PEC members were also LRF members.

The programme also worked in close collaboration with local authorities in each VDC and facilitated linkages between PEC groups and local planners and political parties. PEC members were also encouraged to enrol their children in school, with a smaller incentive support from the programme in terms of provision of school uniforms for girl children. This way, PEC members could increasingly access School Management Committees (SMCs) even if the programme was less directly involved in this policy area.

To enable PEC members themselves to increasingly exercise their rights and claim their entitlements, a number of tools and direct support mechanisms were also used. The fact that women were encouraged to form groups as PECs was seen by the programme as a first essential step, followed by detailed mapping and classification exercises for them to increasingly understand their poverty situation. In the area of ‘economic coping’/ economic empowerment, Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs) were started. Combined with a sense of solidarity from being grouped together with others in the same situation’, meeting regularly through the VSLA seems to have been a unifying factor for some PEC women as it gave a structure to their regular meetings. Some group members could also participate in small entrepreneurship development schemes through Livelihoods Investment Plans (LIPs) with loans topped up with grants from the programme. Occasional meetings with all PEC groups in the VDC were organised by the programme. Quarterly meeting between all the PEC groups in each VDC was organised by the programme. In each VDC women groups selected representatives to participate in an annual national level retreat for PECs, funded by the programme, where they could share their experiences and meet with other organisations supporting REFLECT methodologies similar to what was used in the Underlying Causes of Poverty Analysis (UCPA) undertaken by CARE. Initial efforts were also made to start district level networks of PEC groups in a Women’s Rights Forum.

An overview of strategies and approaches, as well as some key tools developed and used at local level in the different broad areas are outlined in the table below:

Table1. Overview of approaches and strategies applied at local level Approach / Strategy Abb-

reviation Main purpose and use in programme

Loca l a c countab i l i t y through pro-poor p lanning and ac c e s s to s e rv i c e s

Underlying Causes of Poverty Analysis

UCPA Based on REFLECT methodology, the process started with a VDC level inclusive session to map out power relations and resources in the community in order to identify pockets of poverty. Within these poverty pockets, the poorest of the poor were then identified through even more detailed mapping and self-assessments. Careful classification is done to understand social structures, local power relations and limiting factors for their livelihoods or rights fulfilment.


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Popular Education Centres

PEC Groups of the ‘poorest of the poor’ women in the 50 targeted VDCs, identified and selected by the programme with VDC-level participation, with around 25-30 members per group with around 5 groups per VDC (i.e. 125-130 women/households per VDC and around 7500 PEC members across all targeted 50 VDCs across the three districts) .

Pro-poor planning -- The process of introducing the UCPA method for poverty targeting as well as actively linking the VDC with PEC groups in the local budgeting process while informing PECs what they are entitled to claim in the local budgeting process, and facilitating all PECs in one Village to come together and prioritise claims.

Women’s Rights Forum

WRF PEC groups brought together at district level to identify campaigns and issues related to their rights fulfilment. Cases of domestic violence have been successfully brought to this level in order to find solutions or bring cases to the attention of district authorities. The creation of the WRF was facilitated by the programme.

Economic empowerment o f and l i v e l ihoods ( fo r members o f Popular Educat ion Centr e s )

Livelihood Improvement Plan

LIP Loans topped up by project seed money for PEC members involved in micro-enterprises or other economic activity (such as typically husbandry, vegetable farming).

Village Savings & Loans Association

VSLA Using the locked ‘box’ method for informal savings and loans scheme with weekly or monthly savings and lending capacity for small amounts. Some kept as ‘emergency fund’ for members.

Women cooperatives -- Training and facilitation was provided for established VSLA groups who wanted to form a cooperative.

Direc t s e rv i c e de l i v e ry

Scholarship programme

-- Provision of school uniforms to a selection of PEC group members as an incentive to register their children and enrol them in school. The support was provided primarily for girl children.

Resi l i en ce to d i sas t e r r i sk and c l imate change

Disaster Risk Management Committee

DRMC Facilitation of the establishment and operationalization of DRMCs at VDC level according to government guidelines. Facilitation of the process of coming up with local adaptation plan of action (see below).

Community-based Adaptation Plans of Action / Local Adaptation Plans of Action

CAPAs/ LAPAs

Community-based adaptation plans were initially created as part of the VDC-level PEC activities to come up with a local risk resilience and adaptation plan through a participatory process. As new government directives related to Local Adaptation Plans of Action were issued, the programme sought to align CAPAs with the official requirement of having a VDC-level LAPA, as well as a functioning mechanism for its implementation through the DRMC which the VDC Secretary chairs.

ECO-Child Club -- Outreach in schools to engage students on issues related to the environment, climate change and disaster risk reduction. This was not a major activity of the programme, but an add-on to work related


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to the establishment of a DMRC.

Community -based natura l r e sourc e management (CBNRM)

Community Forest Users Groups

CFUG Independent groups of registered users of a particular area of community forest, supported in the programme through the Federation of Community Forest Users Nepal (FECOFUN). CFUGs also run community micro-credit schemes.

Collaborative Forest Management Groups

CFMG Groups comprising local government, the District Forest Office and users (from around 20 VDCs) organised under the Association of Collaborative Forest Users Nepal (ACOFUN)

Participatory watershed management

-- Follow-up to the previous CARE programme in the area, linkages between communities up-stream and down-stream were created for participation in watershed management.

National Land Rights Forum (NLRF) and Village Land Rights Forums

LRFs National Land Rights Forum (NLRF), a registered organisation representing landless farmers and tenants, leads the land rights movement. This is a peaceful social movement with democratic leadership and consensus decision making that aims to catalyze pro-poor land reform. The campaign of land and agrarian rights has reached 53 districts. There are permanent committees of District Land Rights Forum (DLRF) in 39 districts and ad hoc committees in 9 districts along with 2541 village land rights forums at the VDC level.The programme contributed to the multi-donor basket funding for the NLRF through the national NGO Community Self-Reliance Centre (CSRC).

4.2 Assessment of overall programme structure The below graph depicts visually the different clusters of activities, approaches and key tools used or supported by the programme and how they interlink towards the overall development objective of “contributing to improving the l ive l ihood securi ty of the poor, vulnerable and socially excluded women, men, girls and boys in Sarlahi, Mahottari and Dhansua districts at household, group, community and district levels.”


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Figure 1: Overview of Strategies & Approaches

In the above graph, the dark red centre indicates the PECs as the main entry-points, with the Women’s Rights Forum, CFUGs, CFMGs, Land Rights Forum in lighter red as secondary entry-points for ‘linking structures’ – i.e. local structures where PVSEs could increasingly have a say – of pertinence to PEC members, and the targeted VDCs at large. The green cluster of strategic partners, approaches and tools relate to land, land use, natural resource governance and climate change/disaster risk resilience and adaptation. Approaches coloured in blue and purple relate to efforts to capacitate PECs whereas links to the VDC and DDC (in grey) relate to the claiming of rights with more active links into local planning. Where linkages are less direct, lines between different approaches are dotted.

Strateg i c se t -up and l inkages The above graph also illustrates that CHULI is a fairly complex programme, involved in a number of processes and areas for both individual, social change pertaining to the core target group, yet with particular focus on use and access to natural resources – a key issue for the poorest of the poor. This is also the area (indicated on the right side in ‘green’ in Figure 1) where CHULI has worked most actively in partnership with ‘linking’ organisations and strategic partners like FECOFUN for forest use, and district chapters of line ministries, like the District Forest Officer and District Soil Conservation Officer in the area of climate change adaptation. There were also good synergies in the follow-up from the programme proceeding CHULI in the area (the ‘JIWAN’ project), and replicating the models for watershed management developed under the previous project in other CHULI districts. The national NGO Community Self Reliance Centre (CSRC) which hosts the National Land Rights Movement is also a strong linking partner in the area of Land Rights issues, and on issues related to use of fallow land.

In relation to other social and policy change processes linked to accessing local services (the left side of the graph above, in blue/purple and grey), there is generally a lack of good linking partners and strategic intermediaries. Instead, local implementing CSOs have been in charge of


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day-to-day facilitation and implementation, but it’s unsure that their role will extend beyond the scope of this programme (see Section on Working in Partnerships).

Strong linking organisations in the area of gender, women’s rights, civic and political human rights (more broadly) and linkages to line ministries and NGOs involved in education sector reform were not part of the original design of CHULI and are not formalised. Instead the programme has sought to establish a Women’s Rights Forum at district levels (with links to a National Women’s Rights Forum), gathering all PEC groups together at district level. But as a construct of the programme, and with different INGO having established its own groups and structures, it is more doubtful if these structures will be sustained and ‘take root’ in a broader movement over time.

There is however evidence of such structures being able to represent the voice of women through effective campaigns, like in a successfully conducted wage campaign. The program is therefore taking action to ensure its longer term sustainability as part of the programme’s exit strategy. As part of the exit strategy and the planned post-project support, CARE will work closely with Action Aid which is also supporting the women’s rights forum to help foster an alliance between the different forums. It should also be noted that the district networks are led by some very vocal and strong local women leaders who are committed to continuing the fight for justice in the years to come regardless of the external support. Whether such commitment were broadly shared among PEC members was not possible for the Evaluation to verify.

Local planners at VDC and partially at DDC level have been the in counterparts as immediate duty-bearers and service providers in this area of work. A large majority (75%) of the VDCs involved in the programme reported that they had made pro-poor plans and that the UCPA report had been useful in that process. This indicator in this area is not very clear, however,11 and from the VDC officials interviewed it was not possible to conclude that planning priorities had altered dramatically because of the UCPA. In this area, the programme has also suffered from the continued absence of local elected bodies at VDC and DDC levels, and the frequent turn-over of VDC/DDC staff.

Nevertheless, monitoring data shows that there was an increase in budget allocations for priorities submitted by PEC members, and officials stated that interactions around the UCPA had helped to ‘speed up’ certain pro-poor initiatives, such as electrification in pockets of poverty

Sub-dis tr i c t sys tems for r ights c la ims Considerable results were achieved in relation to women PEC members gaining new knowledge, solidarity and strength, which in combination led them to take action on claiming a number of rights entitlements (see section 5.2).

The final project evaluation by the Social Welfare Council (February, 2013) also notes as significant that people from the lowest casts and most marginalized groups who participated in PECs now understand the importance of citizenship cards. It is in line with the Evaluation finding that the civic education angle, addressing rights from a unifying citizenship perspective was highly relevant and could have been even further emphasized in the approach of involving the poorest of the poor in analysing their own situation. Instead the emphasis in the UCPA is largely on structural and power dimensions of poverty that may be less immediately actionable by the poor themselves. Yet, the importance of registration and attaining citizenship cards were emphasized initially in the weekly reflections in every PECs resulting in an increase in PEC

11 The indicator talks about number of VDCs who had ‘adopted’ the UCPA process as a basis for planning. But the concept would have needed to be unpacked more to fully understand the responses.


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members obtaining citizenship certificates. PEC facilitators played an important role in getting valid documents together and in facilitating linkages with authorities.

The targeting seems to have been successful in relation to creating space for the most marginalised groups to claim their entitlements and gradually also press for their rights (like fair wages), as it grouped together women in the same situation of extreme poverty with a shared sense of unity and solidarity. It also helped to create local level consensus around controversial issues in relation to pro-poor budget allocations. The programme strategy was to train PEC women and local facilitators in the VDC planning process so that they can continue to present their suggestions and priorities in the planning meetings also after the end of the project.

The fact that local facilitators were recruited from the same VDCs as PEC members may encourage them to continue to play this role also after the end of the project. Their incentives and motivation may be lower without project support, however, and without institutionalised mechanisms in place on the planning side to involve PECs as an ‘additional’ structure to local political parties, the ward citizen forum etc. During the field work for the Evaluation, focus group dynamics indicated a large degree of dependency on the facilitator as a better educated and literate representative of the PEC group. It makes it uncertain as to what extent women themselves will bring up issues without this continuous facilitation and support from local implementing CSOs and local facilitators.

It was also observed, and confirmed by group facilitators, that it was often the more vocal PEC members that benefitted the first from getting entitlements, obtaining loans or starting small businesses, whereas it took longer for the less vocal members who were often the most socially marginalized. It would have been interesting to better monitor the extent to which spill-over benefits also reached the less vocal in the PEC groups, with a clearer distinction between group and individual gains and rights fulfilment.

Evidence of good knowledge about local processes was quoted by officials at district level where PEC members had shown up to complain about not being heard by their local officials. DDC level officials cited examples of dealing with such complaints and instructing the VDC secretaries to respond and follow up. It says something about women’s sense of empowerment, but not anything of creating more sustainable and inclusive planning systems where not only the most vocal (who go all the way to the DDC) are heard.

A gradual shift towards ‘use of space’ (i.e. women’s own ability to access information, articulate and gather relevant evidence for bottom-up policy influence) beyond ‘creating space’ for the poorest in local decision-making processes would have been a relevant strategy to monitor more consistently.

A hol is t i c (but labour- intens ive) approach A clear strength of the programme design was however that it sought to apply a holistic approach to a multitude of interlinked structural and personal capacity issues that prevented the poorest of the poor, and in particular women, from meaningful participation in local decision-making. The approach as such can be seen as highly relevant to the target group.

At the same time, it was noted that for CARE, the PEC approach generally seems to have been time and labour-intensive since targeting, identification of local implementers, training on application of participatory tools etc. would have to been entirely built in relation to PEC formation and on-


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going facilitation.12 It also required regional presence of in the Terai with a CHULI implementing office in Janakpur which suffered from high staff turn-over due to the fragile situation and threats to staff and the office.

Given the lengthy process and nature of issues taken up and documented in the UCPA process, which touched on some very long-term, ingrained socio-economic and cultural patterns of behaviour (linked to issues such as discrimination, local power relations, equity and accountability in relation to fair division of assets from common natural resources etc.), the actual support period to PECs seemed short.

Although the programme officially started in 2007, actual roll out in a first 10 pilot VDCs took place in2009, with additional PECs added in 2010 and 2011. By the programme end in June 2013, each PEC will have received a total of two years of operational coaching and facilitation support. This may be sufficient to continue some new practices and skills (like running local VSLAs and putting increased pressure on the VDC planners for entitlements PEC members already are aware about), but hardly to expand and build sustainable local systems for more inclusive local planning, or to address socio-cultural barriers for equitable social inclusion.

It is therefore the view of the Evaluation that the way the programme was designed, with a focus on in-depth UCPA processes and newly established PECs as the key entry points, was a labour intensive and long-term approach in order to set up sustainable local structures. Although it has generated some good results in terms of women accessing benefits in the shorter term, it is unclear how these results will be maintained or how the empowered women from PECs will sustain momentum and structures to address the wide range of structural and power issues discussed in the participatory poverty analysis undertaken by the programme. In areas where PEC members are connected to continuous support and information, like in the area of land rights through village LRFs, momentum for continuous policy engagement may be stronger, but the complementary between PECs as a formalised local group structure and LRFs is still unclear.

Given the long start-up time of investing in getting structures up and running with PEC members identified, local facilitators recruited, local implementing CSOs contracted and trained, UCPA processes fully rolled out through training and conducting a number of participatory sessions with PECs unearthing a multitude of deeply embedded poverty issues and raising people’s expectations, it seems too early to completely withdraw the programme after only two years of support to the local PEC groups (in a six year programme). Positive results have been recorded, but the evidence of them being sustained, up-scaled and replicated is weak. Monitoring around conflict management, risk mitigation and ‘do no harm’ principles was also found to be limited.

In retrospect, given the late start of the roll-out of the programme across PECs (in 2009), a less ambitious roll-out plan or a longer time-frame for implementation would have allowed the programme to go more in-depth in building more sustainable systems around some of the initiated processes locally.

To really upscale the potential impact of PECs, links to more long-term adult literacy programmes were also recommended by the MTR. This was acted on by programme implementers through follow up with district education officials who agreed to extend their adult education initiatives to include PEC members. However, this never materialised. A possible reason could be that they were not part of the original programme design, with no support or

12Programme preparations were undertaken between 2007-09. In 2009, the project covered 10 VDCs; in 2010 by the time of the MTR, the project had rolled out in 30 VDCs; in 2011, the project rolled out in all 50 VDCs.


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funding mechanism set aside for this to happen. It is the view of the Evaluation that this was a design flaw since PEC groups are then very dependent on local facilitators with some literacy skills. It was observed by local implementers that there were examples of facilitators moving on to work for other government programmes especially towards the end of the programme, leaving the PEC group with limited ability to document, write and get access to information. Implementers also noted that facilitators usually were the ones to benefit the most from the programme locally since it gave some basic training, income and recognition of their skills among local authorities and other implementing NGOs in the area, but that this also made them more likely to be recruited by someone else or move to a different project with better incentives.

In comparison to the PEC approach, the parallel strategy of supporting already existing Land Rights Forums locally (who already had the structures and general operating mechanisms in place at a grassroots level) seemed more cost effective. A partner like CSRC managed to use its existing grassroots structures to expand on the geographical scope and reach of village level Land Rights Forums (LFRs), and also widened the scope of livelihood training for its members to go beyond land access, to increasingly include land use – an area it will develop further in the future. On the other hand the local Land Rights Forums do not have the same homogenous targeting as PECs which in itself may have been a motivating factor among PEC participants13.

The ‘extra investment’ to ensure that even the poorest of the poor (organized in PECs) would benefit from existing structures and entitlements could arguably be good value for money. However, the proportion of time spent on inception and preparations (until 2009) versus the length of time for active support before the exit phase was in initiated was found to be out of proportion. The phase out strategy started in 2011 after the MTR. Following the recommendations from MTR, the project gradually shifted to intensify support to new groups and establish linkages (cooperatives, WRF, etc.). Additionally, direct livelihood support was phased out.

4.3 Coherence in levels of objectives and indicators The programme has stayed true to its original design, even though the scope and focus on advocacy and local-national linkages have expanded over time.

A rigorous M&E framework was put in place within the programme, relying on measurable indicators against a baseline. Regular reflection and learning sessions were also conducted with CARE staff and implementing partners and with representatives from the PECs. Overall, it was noted that M&E and learning was very ‘programme centric’ or inward-looking, i.e. used mostly for internal use, and less linked to actors’ different needs for data and evidence in their own role as change agents (see also section 4 on use of UCPA). Results from advocacy were expanded over time and reported on in the annual reports. However consistent monitoring is lacking as it does not appear at outcome level in the M&E framework.

The original design and even the revised logical framework do not capture the work undertaken at policy level together with strategic partners. Given that even the overall development objective focuses at district level (covering household, group, community and district levels), the important national policy efforts and results achieved do not seem to have been regularly captured as part of the programme-wide monitoring in conjunction with district-level activities.

13This refers to the fact that PECs included only women (despite the broader targeting initially foreseen) and that it separated out the poorest of the poor household. The empowerment of such groups was clears in statements like: “Now we know that we should benefit the first, even before the others in the village.” This was stated by one of the focus group respondents in this evaluation.


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The programme logical framework was updated to match recommendations and programme shifts after the MTR in 2010. A rights-based approach was introduced with stronger policy and local advocacy linkages and a scaling back of the more ‘traditional’ livelihoods support and direct service delivery. The immediate objectives (IOs) were expanded on accordingly. However, this seems to have made the IOs somewhat incoherent – often mixing different target groups’ roles and outcomes into the same objective without necessarily having matching indicators to track progress.14It is also unclear how “empowered PVSE men and women in project areas” (output one under immediate objective one) translates into practical action with indicators at output level focusing mainly on training input, with no or little clear links to indicators at outcome (IO) level (the gap between attending a training and being ‘empowered’ can be quite large and/or mean many things).

This evaluation also found that indicators such as “% of VDCs adopted UCPA for pro-poor local development planning and have allocated budget accordingly” was difficult to interpret in practice. Adoption was assumed or noted as long as training had been conducted, the UCPA process outcomes published and a pro-poor budget had been allocated. However, the concept of ‘adopting’ the process as an institutionalised part of iterative planning cycles were not there in the cases observed as part of the evaluation. On the other hand the UCPA process had contributed to important mind shifts among local planners, and effectively contributed to create consensus around targeting among political elites, even if they do not have the capacities to use UCPA on their own, without external facilitation. Such more nuanced results and gradual evolution of a change process (also acknowledging the limits of the tool) is not visible if compounded indicators are not broken down at output level (as was not the case).However, output indicators for several of the IOs, and in particular IO1 focused on number of people trained and types of training conducted. A gradual tracking in changed attitudes, patterns of usage or level of usefulness of the UCPA for local planning – seeing an evolution over time, would have been more meaningful for programmatic learning.

There are some overlaps in the Immediate Objectives (IO) 1 and 3. IO1 relates to better representation leading to reduced inequalities, discriminatory practices and promoting pro-poor local planning. It focuses mostly on the formation and running of PECs, the extensive training of local elected bodies and services providers (e.g. 3000 trained on UCPA by end 2012), and extensive training of partner staff on rights-based approach, advocacy, gender based violence, social inclusion etc. It is unclear how different groups are meant to translate this training into practical action. Immediate Objective 3 also focuses on training on UCPA of 1200 local elected bodies, with extensive support to VDCs over three years in its application, so is overlapping with IO1.

In the programme structure and logical framework, an increase in attendance of formal education for PVSE children was one of the outputs under the livelihoods component (Immediate Objective 2).It was delivered through awareness on entitlements and through direct programme support to 5,200 students of primary school level as grants for costs related to schooling and school uniforms. In addition, secondary level students received sessions on climate change and the environment. These two items are not very strategically incorporated in IO1 (for rights claiming) or any other climate change initiatives undertaken as part of establishing Disaster Reduction Management Committees under IO2 on livelihoods. A positive outcome was nevertheless that by enrolling their children in primary school and getting citizenship cards, PEC

14 A point in case is immediate objective one, which is very broadly focusing on inequalities and discriminatory practices, but with unclear focus and links to indicators related to e.g. a reduction of dowry and early marriages.


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members increasingly accessed School Management Committees (SMCs), providing another platform for local influence.

5. Assessment of strategies and approaches applied 5.1Targeting the poor using UCPA Considerable amounts of time and resources (human and financial) were spent in CHULI on developing, conducting training on and rolling out the use of the Underlying Causes of Poverty Analysis (UCPA) tool, based on REFLECT methodology. It was also used to identify pockets of extreme poverty for targeting and establishing PECs, and was to be implemented and used as a tool for empowerment of targeted PVSEs.

The underlying rationale of the tool seems highly relevant for the programme’s efforts of going beyond a livelihoods approach that just treats the symptoms of poverty, to uncovering and understanding the underlying causes, social dynamics and power structures that maintain the poverty holding patterns of in the areas of intervention.

The Evaluation found clear evidence of increased situational awareness among PEC group members. Although their own poverty situation was not new to them15, programme implementers said it was the first time they articulated and visualized causes related to caste, power dynamics and resource access together with others in the same situation. The drawing of maps of the village also seems to have been a meaningful exercise to connect spatial awareness with patterns of discrimination.

According to implementers and programme staff, an increased awareness by PEC members why they were poor, linked to a practical understanding of power and poverty patterns in their immediate vicinity empowered PEC members to voice concerns and claim entitlements. There is also clear evidence to support this. When asked directly by the evaluation team, responses were more mixed as to how and in what way the UCPA process had been useful to them. However, everyone was clear about the fact that they now understood that they were the ‘poorest of the poor’ and that this was why they should help each other to benefit more from public resources. A sense of unity and solidarity was also demonstrated in relation to women experiencing abuse and violence.

The Evaluation found weak grounds for the detailed recording of individual households’ caste and social categorization in an already divided and hierarchical society, especially since this information was published as part of the VDC level power mapping, and available to decision makers and political parties. Given the fragile governance situation in the country with ethnic tension on the rise, there is a risk of such data being misused. Although this does not seem to have been the case so far, it is recommended that CARE develops a clearer strategy for risk mitigation, and also reconsiders to what extent data recorded and used could be misused if too closely connected with caste and ethnicity, focusing on ‘pockets’ of poverty rather on broader-based and inclusive development.

It was also noted that information gathered as part of the process was largely extractive and focused on many historical/structural issues that were not actually being addressed by the programme and/or that were impossible for the women themselves to act upon. UCPA also uses 15 When asked whether they were aware of their poverty status beforehand or if this was something new to them, many indicated that this was not anything new. A respondent added: “You know who is rich and who is poor, but now we know that there are differences even between the poor”.


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more detailed categorization of three levels of poverty than other local processes (such as the ‘wellbeing ranking’ used in CFUGs). For instance, UCPA uses of the middle category of ‘medium poor’ which is not being used in other poverty rankings. Since poverty ranking of individual households is linked to the level of support they will receive from both the programme and the local authorities, it is a sensitive issue. It was unclear to the Evaluation why detailed categorization of individual households’ poverty status was undertaken and closely monitored, and how this was a motivating factor for the poorest of the poor to move into a status of ‘medium poor’ or ‘just poor’ (with few apparent incentive structures in place to get to a ‘non-poor’ status). When asked about PEC members prospects and plans to eventually move from the three categories of poverty used to a status of ‘non-poor’, this was perceived by interviewed PEC members as impossible.

While the UCPA process was noted to have many merits as a participatory tool and process, aspects of sustained resilience with clearer links to local value chains and skills building like adult literacy was found to be weak in its implementation. Instead, empowerment of PEC members seems to have led to numerous spontaneous ad hoc campaings and collective claims for entitlements by PEC members.

In terms of local pro-poor planning, it was noted that the UCPA process could be more streamlined with other government-adopted well-being and poverty rankings in order to make data obtained through UCPA analysis more compatible with other VDC and district level poverty statistics. The UCPA process should also seek to enrich existing VDC profiles in order to be increasingly useful and referred to in the mainstream local planning processes. In its current format, local officials noted that it only provided “detailed information on a ‘sub-set of a sub-group’ of the population of the entire VDC” and that it therefore had limited use for feeding information into district level planning. VDC planners further noted that the process of going through the UCPA had not altered the content of local plans so much, but had in some cases ‘speeded up the process’ of e.g. electrification in the pockets of poverty, and had been very useful for building consensus with political parties on how to prioritize limited resources.

5.2 Local accountability through pro-poor planning & services Approaches in this area focused on improvements in the public sphere of the impact group, i.e. how PVSEs interacted with local public decision-makers and systems to benefit from services and entitlements, and how consequently inequalities and discriminatory practices were reduced. This is largely captured in immediate objective (IO) 1.

The causal link between forming PEC groups16of the poorest of the poor women and a reduction in culturally embedded inequalities and institutionalized discriminatory practices is more difficult to establish in reality as also discussed at overall programme level above. Nevertheless, there are several good examples of results at outputs level of asserting rights and claiming benefits.

Access of PEC women in local structures have increased according to the figures from the end-line survey. The Evaluation team was also told about PEC members for the first time attending the Integrated Planning Committee at VDC level, which is significant. In the community forest user groups (CFUGs), disaster risk management groups and school management committees, representation of women has increased. Meaningful use of space on various local decision-making structures was not monitored clearly, however.

On the positive side, the group unity and dynamics in the PECs, in combination with increased access to information through the locally based facilitators and implementing CSOs seems to 16By December 2012, 5863 women were organized in 250 PECs across the three districts.


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have been a triggering factor for claiming entitlements and getting increased access to public services that they had previously not used. This includes increased access to health services, senior citizens allowances, widow’s allowances, and enrolment of their children in primary school (where the programme direct support in terms of scholarships and giving out school uniforms also served as incentives). As referred to above, the cases of gender-based violence was reported to be reduced as women PEC members intervened in local mediation, or took it to the district-level Women’s Rights Forum who intervened or reported the cases.

Through PECs and the local Land Rights Forums (where many PECs are members) the programme also noted an increased access of PVSEs to public land. A number of locally initiated advocacy events also seem to have influenced the local planning processes, leading to benefits beyond just PEC members – such as the speeding up of electrification in pockets of poverty, a district level campaign around fair wages, and a cross-district campaign organized by the Women’s Rights Forum (with PEC members from across the three target districts) on violence against women together with other organisations.

There are also signs of increased accountability at VDC level planning through more open processes (including public hearings) and with limited resources increasingly focused on priorities of pockets of extreme poverty. Around 17 out of 50 VDCs are reported to have in some way used17 the UCPA to inform their planning process which is slightly above the target set by the programme. This seems quite low, however. Looking at other available information it is nevertheless possible to conclude that around 75% of targeted VDCs allocated budget for activities suggested by PEC members. One of the key purposes of using the UCPA tools was to make decision-makers aware about the unfair distribution within the VDC and get their support for increasing services and attention to neglected community members. Combined with information on and involvement in the local planning process this has led to the achievement that 75% of VDCs have allocated some budget as per the demands

In the sampled VDCs for the evaluation, one of two VDC secretaries mentioned increased direct interaction with PEC members. In the other VDC, established planning mechanisms were followed where PEC members and other community members first channeled their priorities through Ward Citizen Forum which in turn prioritized and channeled their needs to the VDC Integrated Planning Committee. Even in areas where the Ward Citizen Forum is functional and properly used, PECs and other local NGOs and CBOs are invited to the annual planning process and public hearing. One of the VDC Secretaries interviewed underlined the need to use proper mechanisms for channeling demands instead of using undemocratic measures, blockages and demonstrations. This will be even more important as (hopefully) more VDC Secretaries return to their offices, and local elections take place for increased direct accountability of local officials.

The MTR also noted that the programme should focus on activities in relation to local planning that encourage and promote democracy and democratic decision-making so that a culture of democracy takes root in the power vacuum after the conflict. Following the recommendation of the MTR, the programme has been focusing on the six (6) steps in the local development planning process as follows: (1) Discussion on need of poverty pocket in PEC meeting and making a list of demand (2) Inter-PECs discussions and putting together a list of priorities (3) Submission of the list to the VDC either directly or through respective ward level citizen forum (4) Interaction workshop with all stakeholders in the VDC on their commitments to fulfillment of demands ( 5) Creating pressure during VDC council and approval of plan (6) Preparation and delivery campaign (whenever needed) to fulfill the demand.

17The term ‘adopted’ in the monitoring framework is unclear in terms of actual meaning.


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Programme implementers noted that it had helped to start a culture of interaction between duty bearers and rights holders, and that PVSEs (notably PEC members) now have increased influence on the local budget planning.

The MTR had noted that the local level facilitators were the ‘real change agents’ in the programme since they played the role of bridging information gaps between the PVSEs in pockets of poverty and local officials. Without ‘up-scaling’ any of the other PEC members’ literacy skills as part of overall capacity building support, it is unclear how this bridging function of information will be maintained at the end of the programme, and with several of the facilitators ‘moving on’ to work for other programmes18. The lack of continuous information can contribute to a sense of marginalization even in areas where there are positive policy provisions in place. Yet, some local structures and ‘group dynamics’ will likely remain as longer-term effects, possibly leading to increased interaction between PEC members and local planners also in the future.

There is also the possibility that other structures can take on this role in information provision, such as the Women’s Rights Forum or the Land Rights Forum. However, these fora are more issue-based, and work best when they stay focused to mobilise and campaign around a specific issue, such as land titles, use of fallow land, land access and e.g. women’s violence and gender-based discrimination for WRF.

Some follow-up facilitation to nurture local leadership and basic literacy skills in PECs and among PVSEs targeted more broadly by the programme should be a priority for the last three months of operations until the end of the programme in end June 2013.

In terms of using other mechanisms for rights claims 285 new land rights groups formed in the three target districts under the National Land Rights Movement. Some 22 PEC households in Mahottari district obtained an initial land certificate from the VDC. Although the individual turn-out is low, it should be acknowledged that land claims usually are very long-term processes. CFUGs whose operational plans had been revised also increased their allocation of land to PVSE members19 (see also section 4.5).

4.3Economic empowerment and livelihoods This intervention area targeted primarily individual PEC members (all women) in their personal operating sphere, and through them, other household members. Women participated in VSLAs, and some participated in Livelihood Investment Plans and received business training. Some women also formed women’s cooperatives (see Table 1 for details).

The added value of VSLAs were clear as it helped PECs to organize and come together on a weekly basis to make donations to a common savings pool. Minimum deposit amounts were kept small with the option for saving more (buying shares) for those with the means to do so. Generally an emergency or ‘social’ fund was also kept aside of the savings for the group to use to help each other out, or in case of personal need. A sense of security, empowerment and increased awareness about ‘economic coping’ were observed benefits from this activity, with a variety of examples stated by women about how they could benefit from the group’s savings and the small loans they could access. Examples of when the group’s common ‘social’ fund had been used

18Even through facilitators were recruited locally, several had reportedly left the programme or moved on to work for other government or INGO programmes towards the end of the implementation. 19Exact figures from the end line survey are unclear as to exact how much or how big proportion of CFUGs increased their allocations for PVSEs.


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included getting one of the group members to hospital for a safe delivery after experiencing complications in her pregnancy.

Several livelihood improvements were also stated as examples of women’s participation in VSLAs, such as buying cattle, starting vegetable farming (mostly for household consumption), or getting involved in petty trading. Similar examples were stated as outcomes of livelihood improvement plans (LIPs), and the end-line survey noted that around 63 per cent of LIP holders’ households experienced an increase in income from new income sources. This is somewhat above target of 60 per cent. However, it is still quite a large share (around 37 per cent) who did not get the intended income effects. This could be due to the fact that many businesses are too new to generate significant income (such as cattle raising). Several respondents in focus groups also mentioned that actual income increase could not yet be noticed since inputs (feeding for cattle, input costs in relation to seeds or rented land for vegetable producers) as well as lack of demand and options for selling any surplus were influencing factors.

Others participated in the LIP scheme, and took the investment loans, but failed to translate skills into a viable micro-enterprise. Some focus group participants noted that entrepreneurship training was mostly theoretical and general in nature (using the example of making paper hats and pretending to find a market to sell them), and that it was difficult to translate this into real business options.

Improved ‘economic coping’ and improved livelihood security, from VSLAs or LIPs seems to have had a positive effect on participating women. This, in turn, may have contributed to their sense of empowerment, independence, and spurred them to act on rights and entitlements in collaboration with other group members in the same socio-economic situation. While such positive effects should not be under-estimated, the programme seems to have been less successful in more permanently up-scaling women’s economic status or livelihood options for the longer term. Amounts saved, invested and/or re-invested in growing their economic activities were generally small, and any set-back could easily bring them back to square one.

It should also be noted that CHULI was not the only programme running income generating schemes or VSLAs in some of the target areas. Women in one focus group reported being part of at least two local level informal savings and loans schemes for women only (the other run by a different INGO). This seems to fracture the savings somewhat as they contributed funds in both places to gain access to programme benefits.

LIPs were not connected to local market analysis or networks of social entrepreneurs. Neither were market analysis conducted that could guide LIP holders on where there may be local business opportunities so that skills could be better tailored. Granted that risk aversion is high among this group of PVSEs for whom stakes are very high in terms of making any productive investment, a programme mechanism to minimize risk and more pro-actively connect LIP holders to local value chains would have been preferable. The programme could also more proactively have gotten involved in policy work or link to other associations or institutions who could ensure and that the situation and conditions for small-scale agricultural producers was addressed, prioritized and that they were included in the agricultural value chains for the region.

At the time of the evaluation, and towards the end of the CHULI programme, a total of 23 cooperatives had been registered, linked with the divisional cooperative office for continuous support.

The one cooperative visited had successfully established its operating systems and was well managed by a group of active and dedicated women. It was planning to undertake some joint group activities and had asked for VDC level support to get access to community land. Yet, so


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far this had not been granted, and women were therefore all undertaking their own economic activities with fewer benefits for purchasing inputs at scale and for collective bargaining and finding a market for their products/ connecting to the local value chain.

4.4 Resilience to disaster risk and climate change The programme has over time adapted its approaches to align work in the field of disaster risk resilience and climate change closely with government processes and guidelines. It has also tried to influence policy at national, district and local levels for coherent approaches that are anchored in participatory processes.

Initially, Community Adaptation Plans of Action (CAPAs) were developed through a community-based ‘Climate Smart Disaster Risk Management’ committees, trying to integrate concepts of climate change with disaster risk reduction and resilience. This was in itself innovative since previous focus in this field among other actors had been on disaster risk management alone without the more long-term perspective of climate change and preventive measures. The process of facilitating the establishment of such community-level committees and plans was part of the PEC process with the involvement of the VDC and local officials. A clear weakness at that point was however the lack of a policy framework in which such a process could be anchored, and it had unclear links to district level disaster risk management committees (DRMCs) supported and facilitated in many districts by other INGOs, like Oxfam.

There is still a somewhat unclear policy framework with two different ministries leading on climate change (Ministry of the Environment) and disaster risk management (Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development). Yet CARE along with programme partners have managed to bring the need for a clear policy framework to the attention of policy makers through national level lobbying and a national level conference. When new government guidelines were issued that institutionalized the need of having local disaster risk reduction and adaptation plans in place, a process of facilitation helped to transform community-based committees into formalized VDC-level DRMCs, Chaired by the VDC Secretary as per the guidelines. The CHULI programme also initiated a process of adapting community-based plans (CAPAs) into recognized Local Adaptation Plans (LAPAs) in line with government requirements.

This process of establishing official, VDC-owned LAPAs is a quite in-depth participatory process in a two-day workshop facilitated by a CHULI programme implementation team. It involves officials both from district level20 and VDC level21 and community representatives from PECs, CFUGs, local NGOs, cooperatives, the school and the local health post that make up the DRMC. The two-day workshop contain a series of steps and tools developed by CARE, including hazard mapping, seasonal calendar, historical timeline, stakeholder/resource analysis (the role and resources of different stakeholders to implement the map), a hazard and livelihoods impact assessment and a budget and implementation plan with role division/source of funding for in-kind contributions.

A total of 35 CAPAs were developed under CHULI. Of these 10 will have been transformed into the required LAPAs before the end of the CHULI programme. This is a good beginning, but stands in stark contrast to the total of 277 VDCs across the three districts. It should be noted that it was never the intention of the programme to develop LAPA’s for all VDCs in the three districts, and not even in the 50 VDCs where the programme is present. The purpose of the pilot in 10 VDCs was to showcase a model for integrated planning, owned and supported by the 20Such as: the District Soil Conservation officer, the District Development Committee representative, the District Agricultural Development Office, the District Livestock Officer. 21VDC Secretary, political parties.


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VDC. It also had positive effects, since stakeholders, including district officials, showed an increased understanding for the process and how it should be done. Given the quite labour intensive and costly process applied, however, it is unclear at this point, how authorities can adopt the approach and where money will come from to complete the process in the remaining 267 VDCs in the district. Leadership for driving the process is still split between two Ministries – something that was pointed out by CARE in higher level advocacy to address policy gaps.

The VDC level DRMCs reviewed by the Evaluation seemed representative in the composition, and in one case out of two, had active participation of the VDC Secretary with the VDC officially approving of the second. This is a good sign for local ownership, and to avoid the risk of having programme facilitated committees run in parallel with the VDC’s ‘own’ official structure. Women were also made up at least 30%, even though key office bearers were held by men in both cases (and none held by PEC members; PEC members being overall less vocal in these settings).

Overall there seems to be good buy-in and understanding of the many tools at village level, even though only the hazard and resource maps include images and spatial thinking. Other tools include more classical formats of listing items in tables and ascribing a numerical ranking to each item. It is unclear how well understood such charts are to e.g. PEC members with very low literacy skills. Yet in the sampled DMRCs all participants, including women from the PECs, attended both of the full two days against a small financial compensation.22 Without such compensation for loss of productive time, it would not be possible to motivate participants to set off two whole days for this process, which is a considerable amount of time for those dependent on day laboring wages. There seems to be a relatively high motivation also from officials to attend since this is a high priority area for the government.

While the involvement of district officials in local participatory processes of LAPA formulation is absolutely necessary and could add value in terms of technical inputs and guidance, there is also a risk of them skewing the process towards what is most easily implemented or where there they may have a personal financial incentive in the provision of inputs towards local LAPA implementation. The technical skill may not be sufficient for other community participants to steer around such misuse of funds, unless there is a documented track record in place on outcomes from actions with community members directly involved in monitoring previous implementation efforts. A route for recourse for community members should also be put in place in case of suspected misuse of funds or authorities in local implementation of LAPAs.

The Evaluation found that capacity building of DMRCs in monitoring and keeping a common track record on implementation efforts was missing, with capacity building and use of participatory tools stopping largely at the planning stage, and then revisiting initial hazard and resource maps only after some time, without involving community members in keeping record of what happened e.g. to planted saplings or number of trees surviving along with an analysis of reasons.23

The box below is an illustrative example.

‘Climate smart’ – but smart implementation? In one village, 300 trees had initially been planted as an implementation step under the community adaptation plan of action (CAPA) which was formulated at village level. These all died. Reasons were largely unknown, but probably because “children played football on the newly planted field”. In the new LAPA, climate change efforts had been up-scaled with a larger budget allocation for 20,000 saplings to be purchased by district officials for plantation in the

22Compensation levels were minimal at 125 NPR (USD 1.5) and free meals. 23 The project is following up on this by making M&E plans for the 10 LAPAs. This was not yet done in the sites visited by the Evaluation so there was no reference to this or possibility to review M&E plans.


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community. The supply and plantation had begun, but it was unclear that the plants provided (mango trees) would survive in the sandy and dry soil where they were planted, instead of plants that were more directly suitable for the conditions. The above example raised the concern about who makes the decisions locally, whether there is enough technical guidance available for local implementation, and the lack of accountability mechanisms in place at the district level, given the fact that LAPAs are located at VDC level and chaired by the VDC Secretary. When asked, district officials said they follow and ‘try to attend’ local level climate change and disaster risk reduction planning sessions (workshops), but that – with over 100 VDCs in the District – they do not have the capacity to get involved in daily implementation or monitoring. The Evaluation concluded that the lack of checks and balances in terms of quality of inputs and technical advice at local levels is a potential risk depending on how well local DMRCs function. CHULI or similar CARE programmes could seek to build capacities and develop tools for local accountability and monitoring as part of their ongoing implementation, and to work with its partners in preparing proposal for institutionalized mechanism to ensure local accountability. Another point for future lobbying could be to institutionalize measures to try to – first and foremost – use local suppliers and production points for inputs to implementing longer-term and recurrent components of LAPAs, such as yearly planting of a number of trees through the start-up of village level plant nurseries. That way, money flowing into this sector could also spur the local economy and provide an impetus for local entrepreneurship, rather than if all saplings and other forms of inputs are exclusively centrally purchased and provided to communities for free. A component that seeks to link implementation of LAPAs to local agricultural value chains or the employment of local masons (for sanitation or other local infrastructure works), could be interesting to further explore in future programmes. This could also be a way to help curb potential corruption as people locally would be more familiar with the suppliers of the services or plants being purchased, with the possibility to hold local suppliers to account for quality of inputs. Implementation of community-based plans (CAPAs) in the sampled communities had to date mostly focused on raising awareness. In practice, this meant outreach and discussions around environmental issues in the PECs and in schools. Sanitation was also an issue that was discussed in PECs. While these efforts in general seem well received, it fails to reach men with messages on environmental health and sanitation, reinforcing the traditional image of women (and to a certain extent children) being in charge of matters related to family hygiene without necessarily having access to family income to address village level sanitation matters (like the building of household latrines). It is also noteworthy that while women and children are targeted with awareness messages, a majority of DMRC members are generally men. The consistent application of outreach on climate change and environmental awareness in secondary schools is unclear from programme documentation and monitoring. The initiation of a school child/youth club (Eco-Child Club) around environmental issues for the community in VDCs where the programme facilitated the establishment of a DMRC seems like a good way to anchor environmental awareness among the younger generation. For the Eco-Child Club visited by the evaluation team, there was also a good link between one of the school teachers involved in the initiative also being a member of the DMRC. According to teachers and students involved, it is easier to keep the club going with some external support.


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4.5 Natural resource governance The CHULI programme has contributed to the enhanced accountability of FECOFUN towards CFUGs and CFUGs to its constituency. This was evident in the district chapter of the FECOFUN in Dhanusa district which is now open for seven hours each day from Sunday to Friday and two hours on Saturday, a public holiday. Previously, office hours were limited to three hours a day for four days a week. Public hearings and general assembly are now regular features of all the CFUGs in the district. There is also evidence of improved governance in CFUGs. CHULI End Line Survey Report has recorded that of 25 CFUGs surveyed, 80% of the CFUGs had practiced good governance in the period 2009 to 2012. This is much higher (80%) compared to target value (50%). Out of these 25CFUGs, 25% have reassessed their governance in 2012.

At the policy level, FECOFUN has good gender and poverty provisions such as 50 percent representation of women in the executive committees including key positions at all structural levels (central, district and CFUG) and 35 percent allocation of resource to excluded and marginalized groups. This policy has been largely institutionalized. However, in general women are still far behind men in terms meaningful participation in the executive committees. This is mainly due to inadequate capacity development inputs for which there is shortage of in-house technical and financial resources. It is therefore unclear how FECOFUN will implement these gender provisions and whether they have the capacity to monitor gender outcome indicators (beyond input targets) to monitor women’s meaningful participation in CFUGs.

FECOFUN has rolled out a uniform modality for measuring the wellbeing ranking of CFUG members. This follows a similar process applied in the UCPA tool of CHULI programme for ranking the wellbeing of PEC members. However, a different result was observed in a CFUG visited by the evaluation team in Sarlahi district where two PECs were also located within the community forestry users area. Though majority of the members of these two PECs were ‘ultra poor’24 only 12 PEC members' households (6 from each PEC) them were identified as very poor households by the CFUG.

Thus, there is a need to align wellbeing ranking across partners (to avoid different criteria and categories being used).

As community forests resources are generally enjoyed by the CFUGs with little being shared with non-CFUG members, the risk of CFUG’s ”ring-fencing” access to natural resources with potential conflict with those not benefitting from forest access in the same VDC is likely to increase in the days to come. Some CFUGs also have more financial resources than the VDCs in their areas. This makes it somewhat problematic that resources from common community forests are not at all contributing to the VDC-level budget for the improvement of services that also non-forest users can access. CARE could contribute in facilitating and providing technical inputs into future policy processes around the issue of sharing income from community forests between Central/Federal/Local Government and between user-groups and non-users.

The first draft of Nepal specific REDD+ SES indicators was developed during the three day workshop of Technical Working Group on national interpretation of REDD+SES in Nepal organized in Kathmandu on 12-14 Sept. 2012. The Nepali and English version of the draft of Nepal specific REDD+ SES indicators was in posted in the website of REDD Cell. Comments and feedbacks from key stakeholders and experts and the public are being received and recorded in the REDD Cell for incorporation in the second draft of national indicator of REDD+SES after the Second Meeting of Technical Working Group. 24A term used in the UCPA definitions between the very poorest of the poor, (or ’ultra poor’) the medium poor, and the poor. I.e. it’s the poorest of three categories of poor.


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In addition, steps for the combination between REDD+SES and FCPF SESA-ESMF have been identified but this poses challenges in terms of coordination and can slow down the overall process. Garnering significant financial resources and technical support for the implementation of REDD+ SES indicators and managing high expectations of stakeholders are other challenges.

The organizational strength of NLRF has been instrumental for warding off the eviction (by the officials of forest department and district administration as well as the traditional land elites) of landless farm laborers and daily wage earners from the public land they have settled in. All party dialogue (VDC, DAO, political parties & DFO) prior to settlement and subsequent consensus has contributed to legitimize their provisional settlement.

Tenancy right of unregistered tillers in many places has been legitimized. Land title deeds (settlement certificate) have been issued to many people (village block).

Important policy announcements on women’s access to land have been made: i) both the husband and wife will have joint ownership of land provided by the state; and ii) only hundred rupees will be levied as tax for wives affecting transfer of land ownership from her husband. In addition a 40 percent rebate in the land registration fee will be granted to village women living in remote areas. The registration of land in women appears to be slowly picking up. This was validated by the CHULI End Line Survey Report which found that 11.5% of the women of study households have registered land in the name of women against the baseline value of 5.5%.

The NLRF (district and VDC chapters) was active in assisting the High-Level Landless/Squatters Problem Resolution Commission formed by the government in November 2011 (local committees in 25 districts) to collect information on squatters/landless people. Many have been issued identity cards or have been formally listed as landless people. In some places land title deeds have been distributed.

The publication of the High Level Land Reform Commission (HLLRC) report, the recent formulation of action plan by the government for the implementation of scientific land reform, and the finalization of the National Land Use Policy 2012 by the Ministry of Land Reforms and Management with the aim to manage, classify and put land to proper long term use are the consequences of incessant evidence based land rights movement/campaign.

5. Working in partnerships 5.1 Implementing partner CSOs at district level As initially foreseen, a number of district-level implementing CSOs were selected at district level to implement and roll out the PECs across the 50 selected VDCs. The selection of these implementing CSOs was highly sensitive at the time of political instability when the programme started. The fact that they were located close to the implementing area was a pre-condition for them being approved by local authorities. Although this led to more implementers than expected (five in total, rather than one per district), this also seems to have been a strength in the implementation as they knew the operating context well and were well accepted by the communities.

At the same time, these implementing CSOs had to be thoroughly trained in methodologies and the UCPA method, and did not have the same linking structures in place to influence policy processes at different levels (like e.g. CSRC and the National Land Rights Movement operating from national to grassroots levels). Many of the implementing CSOs operated with low levels of


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funding and capacity, and staff would have to be specifically recruited and trained for the task of CHULI implementation.

All implementing CSOs seem to have been implementing activities well, with few variations between the five selected partners across the three districts. Some seemed more likely to continue operations in the same VDCs after the end of the CHULI programme if funding was available from other donors, whereas others seemed more interested in fundraising for new activities using the increased organisational capacities and skills learned (like the UCPA processes) to expand their operations. Across all of the implementing partners met, capacities built seemed to go beyond just implementation to also include improved organisational structures and governance, with some mentioning improved human resources policies and gender training for staff as added value of the CHULI programme.

Limits to this ‘implementation model’ was among other things that roll-out and implementation was a relatively slow process since capacity had to be built at all levels and that new PEC structures were created and facilitated through the implementers, rather than tapping into partners’’ own established grassroots groups and networks. On the other hand, it meant that implementers were more flexible to follow centrally designed implementation models as they did not come with their own issues or agendas as long as the CHULI programme was within their broadly formulated mandates for local/district-level development. They could therefore play a connecting role to other networks and local structures such as the local LRFs, CFUGs, DMRCs etc. with fewer limitations in relation to taking on a wide range of local development issues. Advocacy efforts were however limited to the VDC or in some cases district levels with less clear links to longer-term national policy processes.

5.2 Strategic partnerships Strategic partnerships were formed with the Federation of Community Forest Users (FECOFUN) and with the Community Self-Reliance Centre (CSRC) through which funding was channeled to the National Land Rights Movement. Their roles were as linking partners both at local levels and in the areas of lobbying and national level advocacy (see section 4.5). Monitoring data of outcomes from these initiatives are not well captured in the revised logical framework which focuses mostly on local level capacity building efforts for advocacy at VDC and district levels.

The partnership with CSRC was initiated in January 2009, when CARE Nepal along with Danida Human Rights and Good Governance Advisory Unit (DanidaHUGOU), ActionAid Nepal (AAN), Canadian Cooperation Office (CCO)/Local Development Facility (LDF), MS Nepal and Oxfam GB agreed through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support the Strategic and Operational Plan (StOP), 2009-2013 of Community Self-Reliance Centre (CSRC) in a framework of “strategic partnership". The support modality, which is a new and innovative way of supporting civil society organizations (CSO) in Nepal, seeks to improve aid effectiveness and efficiency through better donor harmonization and reduce transaction costs through donor alignment with CSOs systems and procedures.

The strategic partnership framework involves a multi-donor partnership to jointly fund CSRC through a common co-ordination and management mechanism, which includes: one common bank account, one common annual review and reflection, and one common annual progress report and financial statement. Based on the Strategic Operational Plan, CSRC develops and annual work plan and budget for different activities to be implemented, addressing both programme-specific priorities and organisational development needs, as well as annual targets to be achieved. Overall the core basket funding support allows more comprehensive plan and focus on strategic results and quality. As capacity-building support and institutional development is


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strongly emphasized in the strategic partnership, the CHULI programme has the benefit of working with a partner that has gone through a robust organisational development process, including improved internal control systems and reporting. Strategic partnership has also facilitated increased interaction and mutual learning among the strategic partners (donors and CSRC).

With a contribution of 8.13 percent (i.e. NPR 11,400,500 out of 140,184,528) of the total fund received by CSRC from the strategic partners in the period 2009 - 2012, CARE has been able to engage in CSRC programmes at the national level and in 53 districts of the country, working both from ‘from below’ and from the top-down on various policy issues related to land reform. The strategic partnership has provided good entry-points to government/policy processes particularly in terms of evidence-based advocacy linking advocacy to ground level information gathered through networks of NLRF.

The institutional system of generating learning from the ground level actions and practices and disseminating the knowledge at all levels has been instrumental in lending strength to the land rights movement/campaign. Learning centers identified local issues for advocacy through extensive discussions and devising the strategies for resolving them through constructive engagements with stakeholders including the land elites and their supporters. Institutional culture of maintaining micro-macro linkage by CSRC and good working relationship of CSRC with the government (evidence-based advocacy and capacity building of NLRF and frontline activists) has proven to be effective in policy advocacy.

Nevertheless, results in terms of allocation of land to the landless and transfer of land deeds to unregistered tenants is very small in comparison to the large population. The land rights movement has been a long drawn struggle for over two decades without yielding tangible results that has had significant impact on enhancing the food security situation and livelihood status of its constituency. Thus a time has come when the strategic direction of the land rights need to be carefully evaluated to provide adequate emphasis towards livelihood issues and the productive use of land.

Similarly, in the area of community forest use and management, FECOF UN has been a strategic partner of CHULI intervening both at policy level and in ensuring the at local chapters at district levels as well as CFUGs update their operational guidelines and strategies to remain more accountable to its constituents and more pro-poor in its operations.

6. Working in fragile political & governance context It was beyond the scope of the Evaluation to thoroughly investigate the programme initiatives in detail from a do-no-harm perspective and conflict transformation. Nevertheless, the evidence available suggests that there is a consciousness of transforming the conflict and adapting to the fragile political and governance context in targeted communities. The programme has been context sensitive, and local implementers have recognized and given space to constructive and proactive engagement with local authorities and key stakeholders. By working with very local structures and transparent processes, it has been possible to create and reinforce a level of accountability and community resilience even in the absence of local elected bodies and in a fragile political context.

For example: CSRC and the land rights forum have deftly handled the highly contentious issue of land by striving to resolve land issues through constructive engagement with key stakeholders including the political leadership, the policy makers and the bureaucracy and also the land elites and their supporters.


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PECs were actively involved in community mediation on violence against women cases in consultation with community leaders. The support of local political leaders and the VDC secretary have also been solicited. The UCPA tool has been successful in building consensus in identifying poverty pockets with subsequent progamme activities to some extent in addressing their needs.

CHULI facilitated local structure have good representation of key stakeholders (such as community leaders, political leaders, representatives from excluded and marginalized groups and local bodies) and are founded good sense of local ownership. This has brought consensus among diverse groups and minimized conflict. Consensus-building among all stakeholders proved to be effective and should be systematically applied in working in fragile contexts.


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Annex I: Terms of Reference (TOR) Draft TOR for the final external evaluation of the

Churia Livelihood Improvement (CHULI) Programme

Background

1.1. The CHULI programme

In short, the CHULI Programme (2007-2013) aims at improving the livelihood security of poor vulnerable and socially excluded (PVSE) women, men, girls and boys in Sarlahi, Mahottari and Dhanusha districts at household, group, community, and district levels. As per the programme document, the primary target group of the programme are the poor and socially excluded women, men, and girls and boys living in 50Village Development Committees (VDC) located in both Churia and down-stream Terai of Sarlahi, Mahottari and Dhanusa districts at household, group, community and district levels, with a population of 120,625. Secondary target groups are : a. Civil society organizations (programme partners, women’s organizations, land rights forums, Dalit and Janajati organizations, other community-based organizations, media networks, NGOs, networks and federations) and b. District line agencies (women development, forestry, soil conservation, agriculture, livestock, cottage industry, health and education) and Local Elected Bodies (District Development Committees and Village Development Committees) and major political parties.

The overall CHULI programme concept is to contribute to poverty alleviation in the Terai by supporting the poorest of the poor (especially women) to become part of the development process. Taking a participatory, multi-issue based approach and working closely with National and Local NGO partners, the programme aims at supporting PVSE women and men to access support and services related to improved livelihood, natural resources, land rights, education etc. The programme provides capacity building at various levels and supports the formation of groups and networks, development of local disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation plans, preparation of livelihood improvement plans, advocacy for land rights, revision of CFUG operational plans, pro-poor VDC planning, formal education support, etc.

1.2. The programmatic context - including program approach, civil society strengthening and climate change adaptation

The CHULI programme followed the Churia watershed management project (also supported by Danida through CARE Denmark) and was designed in 2006. The design of the CHULI program reflects pre-2006 criticism, that CARE was not fully reaching the most poor and marginalized people (in particular women) through its existing project approaches. The CHULI program was thus designed to directly target the most poor and marginalized women in the three Terai districts.

The CHULI program was designed before the CARE Nepal country office introduced the program approach and designed its overall country programs, and before the 2008 version of the Danida civil society strategy became the foundation for the work of Danish NGOs including CARE Denmark in Nepal. When the CARE Nepal program on Natural Resources Environment and Livelihoods was designed in 2009, the CHULI program was identified as one of the initiatives (projects) contributing to the overall objectives of this program.

The CHULI project was not redesigned to fit the revised Danida Civil Society Strategy, however, the project contributes to civil society strengthening in various ways: at the grassroots level through the formation of Popular Education Centers, to the improved governance of community


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forest user groups, to empowering poor and vulnerable women to claim their rights and access to resources and services (including influencing the village and district development council budget planning), and finally to the capacity strengthening of the implementing and strategic civil society partners of the project.

The issue of climate change adaptation was integrated in the CHULI program from 2010 onwards, as CARE Denmark started mainstreaming climate change adaptation into all its programs. Climate change vulnerability analysis clearly showed that the target groups of the CHULI projects are highly vulnerable to climate variability and change and that it is necessary to address the issue, if livelihood interventions are to have a sustainable impact.

2. Main purpose of the evaluation The main purpose of the evaluation is to assess the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability and impact of the CHULI project and to generate lessons learnt and forward-looking recommendations for a new generation sub-program.

This will inform CARE Nepal, partners, CARE Denmark, Danida, collaborators and stakeholders in Nepal about what has worked and what has not worked in terms of approaches and strategies. Lessons will be incorporated in the design of future programs.

3. Key evaluation questions The evaluation will answer the following questions:

1. To what extent has the project strategies and approaches supported the objectives of the CHULI programme?

2. What are the key lessons learnt which should inform the work of CARE and others? The evaluation will apply OECD/DAC’s five criteria: relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, (emerging) impacts, and sustainability to answer the overall evaluation questions through a number of detailed questions, some of which are listed according to these criteria below.

The main focus will be on relevance, efficiency and effectiveness as issues of sustainability and impact may be more difficult to trace and document.

DAC Criteria Evaluation issues/questions Effectiveness “The extent to which the development intervention’s objectives were achieved, or are expected to be achieved, taking into account their relative importance”.

What intended and unintended results have been achieved at the micro (beneficiary and community), meso (district) (and macro - policy, national) levels through the CHULI project (based on the results oriented evaluation conducted by the Social Welfare Council and supplementary field work in relation to the log-frame and original project document). How and why have project strategies and tools (e.g. UCPA, PEC, CVCA, VSLA, LIP, public auditing, etc.) influenced the achievement of results? What has been the role of and interplay with contextual and external factors? (incl. the political situation and instability) How effective has the capacity development of partners been?

Relevance The extent to which the objectives of a development intervention are consistent with beneficiaries’ requirement, country needs, global priorities and

What is the relevance and value added of the different project strategies and methodologies? What is the


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partners’ and donors’ policies”.

relevance of the partnership modality? What is the relevance of the approaches to building the capacity of partners? How strategic and appropriate were the choices made by CARE DK, CARE Nepal and partners in operationalizing the project?

Efficiency “A measure of how economically resources/inputs (funds, expertise, time, etc.) are converted to results”.

What are the results (outputs, outcomes) achieved relative to the investment? What is the efficiency of the current organizational set-up of CARE and partners?

Sustainability “The continuation of benefits from a development intervention after major development assistance has been completed. Probability of long-term benefits. The resilience to risk of the net benefit flows over time”.

What are the positive and negative factors determining sustainability of supported initiatives and groups (e.g. PECs, CFUGs, VSLAs, DRMC, land rights forum) To what extent have these factors been addressed; and with what effect? What is the likelihood of continuation and long-term benefits of the project initiatives?

Impact “The positive and negative changes produced by a development intervention, directly or indirectly, intended or unintended. This involves the main impacts and effects resulting from the activity on the local social, economic, environmental and other development indicators. The examination should be concerned with both intended and unintended results and must also include the positive and negative impact of external factors, such as changes in terms of trade and financial conditions”.

What are the emerging impacts and trends which can be attributed to CHULI, or where a significant contribution by CARE and partners can be verified?

4. Outputs An evaluation report (drafts and one final version) with consistency between findings, conclusions, lessons and recommendations (max. 30 pages).

An evaluation debriefing (to be presented in Janakpur and Kathmandu after completed fieldwork)

NB: Responsibility for the content and presentation of the findings and recommendations of the evaluation rests with the evaluation consultant. Findings and recommendations expressed in the evaluation report will not necessarily correspond to the views of CARE (or other stakeholders). It is the responsibility of the evaluation team to ensure that there is a clear link between findings, conclusions, lessons learned and recommendations and in general to ensure that the evaluation is based on solid evidence (and/or indicate solidity of evidence for the various judgments made).

5. Scope of work The focus of the evaluation will be on the results and strategies of the CHULI project including strategies taken up after 2007 (and thus not reflected in the original design and project document).

In terms of documenting results, the evaluation will mainly focus on outcome level. The evaluation will be informed by a results oriented evaluation conducted by the Social Welfare


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Council evaluation team in February 2013, the end line survey conducted by the CHULI team in January 2013, and the mid-term evaluation of CHULI. The evaluation will not repeat data collection and analysis but identify information gaps at the outset and analyze and reflect on results documented and strategies applied.

The evaluation will reflect on strategic choices made in operationalizing the project at the community level as well as at the organizational level (partners and CARE).

Recommendations for the future should relate to the wider Nepalese development context, the Danida civil society strategy, the overall CARE Nepal country program, and the CARE Denmark program policy.

The field work should cover the key activities and interventions under CHULI to adequately inform findings on the strategies and approaches followed by the project. A final field visit schedule will be put together after the initial literature review and identification of knowledge gaps in the project monitoring reports, end-line and SWC evaluation.

The field visit could cover interaction with representatives of PECs, Community Forestry User Groups, Climate Change Adaptation/DRR Committees, District as well as VDC level Land Rights Forum, partner organizations, Government line agencies and Local governments.

6. Approach and methodology The evaluator will refine the approach and methodology based on a review of the end-line survey and the SWC evaluation. Any gaps in information should be addressed in the evaluation.

The evaluation methodology will be presented to the evaluation managers before commencing the fieldwork, and the approach will be described briefly in the initial sections of the evaluation report.

The evaluator should conduct the evaluation with careful consideration of the utility of the evaluation and bearing in mind the following principles:

ü Judgments should be made relative to context (the evaluation will draw conclusions and identify trends taking consideration the role of and interplay with context);

ü Strong utility focus (user engagement) in planning and implementation of evaluation (respecting time constraints);

ü Using/building on previous studies and evaluation; ü Attention to equality and rights in all aspects of the evaluation

7. Evaluation management and implementation The evaluation will be supervised by the CARE Denmark program coordinator for Nepal, Morten Fauerby Thomsen (based in Copenhagen) with co-supervision from program advisor Maria Ploug Petersen and NREL coordinator Chiranjibi Adhikari based in Nepal. For logistics and support during the field work, the evaluator will be in direct contact with the CHULI team led by Chhote Lal Chowdhary and Ganesh Yadav.

8. Qualifications of the Evaluator The evaluator can be Nepali national or international professional with relevant education and working experience including:

ü Proven capacity and extensive experience in management and conduct of evaluations, including strong analytical skills and experience from evaluating rights-based and civil society support type programs


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ü Strong understanding of program approaches as well as the relationships between NGOs, CSOs and donors

ü Experience in analysing partnerships and capacity development (preferred) ü Experience with participatory natural resource management methodologies (preferred)

9. Timing and reporting The evaluation work is expected to commence early March 2013 and the Final Evaluation Report shall be submitted by 5th April 2013.

It is expected that the consultancy will amount to 14 working days for the International Consultant and 14 working days for the National Consultant, 28 consultancy days in total. The final number of working days per consultant will be finalized during contract negotiations.

Time Contents Remarks

Early January Finalise consultant contracts and update TOR if nessesary based on discussion with consultants

To be prepared by CARE Denmark

Early March The consultants review key documents and refine the approach and methodology of the evaluation based on a review of the end-line survey and the SWC evaluation

Methodology to be presented to CARE’s evaluation managers before commencing the field work

11th March Commence evaluation in Nepal including:

-‐ Meeting with program team; -‐ Conduct field trip (5 days); -‐ Brief or workshop of key findings

with the program staff/senior management and key partners.

Detailed itinerary to be prepared by CARE Nepal and agreed with consultant prior to evaluation start

8hApril Evaluator submits a 1st draft report

12th April Review and comment on the draft reports By CARE DK, CARE Nepal and partners

17th April Finalize report and submission To CARE DK and CARE Nepal

10. Key documents Key documents include:

ü CHULI programme documents 2007 ü CHULI log-frame ü CHULI progress reports (all years) ü CHULI mid-term evaluation and follow-up plan ü UCPA report (2010-2012?) ü Danida Civil Society Strategy ü CARE Denmark programme policy ü NREL framework document


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ü Study on wage increment: from 2009 ü Internship report on climate change integration (Mette Marie) ü Baseline survey Report (2010) ü Endline survey Report (2012) ü Study on Vulnerability assessment and formulation of climate change adaptation

strategies in Churia Region (2011) ü Study on Churia Environment Conservation: A review on policy (2010) ü Other reports produced through CHULI (Pick up from bibliography as per need)

These will be made available to the evaluator by CARE in due time before the evaluation work is to commence.

Documents

FINAL!REPORT!–!May!2013 Nepal:Final!EvaluationReport! … · 2017-12-11 · CARE DK Final Evaluation of the CHULI Programme in Nepal, April 2013 6 The emphasis on land use and natural