Resources / Global Sanitation Fund moves ahead in Nepal

Although about 80 percent of the Nepali people have access to water supply facilities, only 43 percent have toilets. This is a major cause for the spread of water-borne diseases, which results in the death of about 10,500 children under the age of five each year in the country. The Government of Nepal has set a target of 100 percent water and sanitation coverage by 2017, and it is working with various other organizations to meet this target. One such initiative is the Global Sanitation Fund (GSF) programme in Nepal, which was launched in October 2010 and is now moving ahead in full swing. In April the GSF Executing Agency in the country, UN-Habitat, arranged a first orientation workshop for potential sub-grantees. 

The GSF programme in Nepal will reach five districts, one from each "development region" of Nepal, and will also cover the three ecological regions of "mountains", "hills" and Plains. The GSF has targeted 225 village development committees (VDCs) and four Municipalities from these five districts, including an additional municipality from Kailali District.

During a meeting of the National Coordinating Body (NCB) for the GSF in Nepal in early January, the five focus districts were selected based on set criteria. The districts selected are Bajura, Bardiya, Arghakhanchi, Sindhupalchock and Sunsari. Similarly the municipalities which the GSF will work in are Dharan, Gulariya, Inaruwa, Itahari and Tikapur.  In addition, the GSF also aims to support to the three sanitation model districts of Chitwan, Kaski and Tanahun that are driving to achieve total sanitation coverage.

The GSF Programme aims to stimulate community action for achieving open defecation free status through demand-driven approaches, develop capacity of stakeholders at all levels, strengthen national sanitation sector strategies and record and use lessons learned to support the scaling up in other districts focusing on strategies for accelerating progress towards the national and MDG sanitation targets.  

In order to achieve the objectives, the GSF programme is  working closely with local partners, including central and local government bodies, potential sub-grantees and sector stakeholders. Twenty-seven potential sub-grantees have been short-listed through a call for expression of interest. A request for proposals has been issued for 11 sub-grants under the different components for the Bajura and Bardiya Districts and Tikapur and Gulariya Municipalities for the first funding round.

A two-day orientation workshop took place 20-21 April 2011 was recently organized prior to proposal submission for the shortlisted sub-grantees in Kathmandu with an objective to provide basic understanding on GSF and sanitation sector activities and to clarify more on the pertinent issues. NCB members, the Country Programme Monitor (CPM) and other concerned stakeholders, including donors were also invited on the occasion in order to strengthen sector collaboration and coordination. The GSF programme plans to mobilize the sub-grantees in the programme areas under first funding round by June 2011.

For more information, contact Pawan Joshi at pawan.joshi@unhabitat.org.np.