Plan International Netherlands

Capacity strengthening: The programme strengthens CPS (at national and community levels) to deliver positive lasting change for children at risk or victims of SEC and their families, beyond the programme’s lifetime. Strengthening the agency of children, parents and community child protection committees will last beyond the programme as well. Policy and practice change: The programme works towards institutional monitoring, referral and coordination mechanisms across stakeholders, e.g. by developing National Action Plans to which partners commit. It further aims for policy change and implementation. Businesses adhering to The Code will do so beyond the duration of the programme.

SUMMARY Many young (ethnic) women in Nepal are vulnerable to abuse and exploitation due to poverty, cultural traditions and discrimination. The project trains 300 young vulnerable women (aged 18-24) from Pokhara region, Nepal, to obtain decent work in the tourism and hospitality sector. The project aims to socially and economically empower these young women by offering them an accredited market demanded vocational training, a life skills training and will conduct an internship. This 3 year project started in August 2018 by Plan International Nepal in partnership with various local public and private partners who have expertise in training and job placement. Due to Covid-19 the project was extended to March 2023.

Organizations supporting the national WASH sector include ADB-funded water supply and sewerage projects, Finnish bilateral funding to strengthen sub-national governance in WASH, JICA’s programme on urban water supply service strengthening , DFID funding for large rural water supply investments, World Bank funding to the semi-government rural water supply, Sanitation Fundboard, USAID support focusing on integrated projects (eg. nutrition, livelihood, and health sector), and UN agencies’ engagement in sector strengthening (UNICEF ,UN-HABITAT,and WHO). Thanks to this sector development, the programme can build on this experience. Stakeholders from government involved are the Water Supply and Sanitation Division Office of the Ministry of Water Supply and Department of Water Supply and Sewerage. The WASH coordination committee is responsible for overall coordination. NGO's involved are Relief Nepal and Community For Social Development Centre (CSDC). Further participants are local government, communities, water and sanitation user groups, children’s clubs, women’s groups, religious leaders etc. . The Federation of Water and Sanitation Users Nepal (FEDWASUN) ,a user-based umbrella organisation of drinking water and sanitation user groups.

Learning and reflection are important aspects of the programme. In 2016 a learning agenda will be worked out and this will focus on the continuous assessment of the assumptions underlying the programme’s design and Theories of Change. These will be reviewed critically every year at country, regional and alliance levels, resulting in strategic adjustments where necessary to ensure the maximum effectiveness of the interventions. Learning will also be an outcome of the programme’s evaluation agenda. A baseline will be conducted in the first half of 2016 and a mid-term review and final evaluation are scheduled for 2018 and 2020 respectively.

Although Plan has been working in Nepal for the past 38 years, this was not in these specific target areas. Therefore, prior to the earthquake, there were no Plan interventions on which to build.

A mapping in 2013 of the 219 SRGs formed under the FKLDP project showed that these were playing a key role in improving the livelihood of their members and raising their level of confidence but most of them were still not mature and strong enough. In the absence of a specific dynamic aimed at further building their financial and technical capacities there was a high risk they would collapse. The current project was designed in 2013/4 to build further on the FKLDP project and especially bring the SRGs towards a level of sustainability and facilitate further processes especially strengthen the community structures and relevant government services to enhance the livelihoods of vulnerable families towards more sustainability. The sustainability of the action will rest on the institutionalization of SRGs into 29 village Women Saving and Credit Cooperatives.