Nepal 2004
INTRODUCTION:
This Report is about the empowerment of Nepal's marginalised, alienated and excluded. The approach adopted here stresses enhancing peoples' abilities to realise their basic rights so as to make present power structures far more inclusive, to tackle poverty and to reduce the current risk of violent civil unrest.
Although the Nepalese post-1990 reform process opened up all sorts of opportunities for greater freedom and democratic forms of governance, the historically-based social cleavages and the Maoist insurgency continue to obstruct the welfare of great numbers of Nepalese people.
The publication is grounded on an impressive array of empirical and statistical data, specially collected for the Report, including the development of a new indicator - the Human Empowerment Index - and a survey on Socially Mobilised Communities.
This highly analytical, insightful and well-written NHDR attempts to accomplish three important aims: 1. The Human Empowerment Index hopes to provide policy makers with detailed and disaggregated data on economic, social and political exclusion. 2. An assessment of the accomplishments and shortcomings of a variety of social mobilisation practices hopes to identify steps that can heighten and enhance their empowerment potential. 3. An in-depth investigation into Nepal's current crisis takes the opportunity to re-examine the country's development plans and propose a reform agenda, recommending radical shifts in policies, priorities and institutions. It is hoped that this exercise will inspire and encourage leaders and planners from other strife-ridden countries to do likewise.
Corporate Principle 1: National Ownership
The NHDR is country based and country driven. 'Empowerment' is an extremely relevant and timely theme. Even though Nepal has made progress in raising living standards over the last 50 years, and adopted human development as its overarching goal since the promulgation of the Ninth Five-year Plan in 1997, the country's level of human development remains among the lowest in the world. Despite the restoration of a multiparty democracy in the 1990s and several economic reforms, people's needs have gone unfulfilled, institutions have weakened and policies have failed to reach the poor and marginalised.
Given the above assessment, this Report sets out to answer four critical questions: 1. Why do people still remain disempowered?; 2. Why have development efforts to date fallen short of tacking critical social and economic issues?; 3. How has this affected the process of deepening democracy?; and 4. Why have these factors led to an aggravation of the conflict led by the insurgents?
In order to answer these questions the Report preparation engaged country-based actors such as communities, and public and private stakeholders.
The publication is also nationally owned not only through a highly inclusive preparatory process, but also by drawing from knowledge produced by past NHDRs, by evaluating national development plans and policies, and by proposing a practical reform agenda.
Corporate Principle 2: Participatory and Inclusive Preparation According to the 'Foreword' by Matthew Kahane, the UNDP Resident Representative, the authors were drawn from a wide range of social sectors, including academia, civil society, independent researchers and those representing excluded groups.
Despite the fact that no specific information is provided about the author's disciplinary background and institutional affiliations, the NHDR's preparation process has been an example of 'best practice'. As stated in the 'Acknowledgements' section, the Report had a principal advisor, Yuba Raj Khatiwada and a lead author, Sriram Raj Pande. The former worked with two other writers, as the core writing team. There were also thirteen other consultants and an editor.
There was a National Advisory Group, which consisted of twenty-two members and the Project Steering Committee with fourteen members. Both these groups contributed to sharpening the main messages conveyed in the Report.
In addition, a series of consultative meetings, focus group discussions and workshops brought together seventeen "eminent" participants who contributed with advice, comments and insights through every stage of the preparatory process.
Ten staff members from UNDP in different countries have been named and thanked for their contributions as 'UNDP readers'. Some of those named also appear as members of a four-member external panel who peer-reviewed the final draft of the Report.
Corporate Principle 3: Independence of Analysis
There is a statement by authors assuming full responsibility for the opinions expressed in this Report (page viii). The UNDP Resident Representative also states that "like its predecessors, the Nepal Human Development Report 2004 was prepared by a team of diverse independent authors and reflects their views rather than those of the government or the UNDP" (p. vi). The Report's independence is further evidenced by its analytic rigour, the quality of its critical analyses and the extensively participatory process of its making. In short, the Report reads like an independent piece presenting a spectrum of viewpoints and perspectives.
Corporate Principle 4: Quality of Analysis
a. Purpose and Coherence
This 2004 NHDR is the third of an ongoing series that started in 1998. It builds on the analysis and recommendations of the previous 2001 NHDR which focused on the role of governance in fostering equity and tackling poverty.
A core message of this NHDR is that Nepal can only successfully fight poverty if the government brings the empowerment agenda to the centre of its poverty reduction strategy. It states that "given the strong association between sound and effective democratic governance and empowerment, this Report examines how the concerns of the poor can be addressed through empowerment that provides equal opportunities to all, regardless of sex, caste, creed or religion" (p. 12). This empowerment should lead to fair, impartial access to decision-making processes at different levels and equally important, equity in accessing and controlling resources.
From the above core themes, the Report follows a coherent and logical structure, opening with Chapter One with the human development empowerment framework. The next four chapters present different aspects of the empowerment discussion. A final 'Chapter 6' puts forward a set of policy recommendations under a comprehensive 'reform agenda'. The Report also contains a well-written Overview, Endnotes, a Bibliography, a Reference List and Four Annexes.
b. HD Analysis (theory and national context) by Chapter
Chapter One presents the 'empowerment' conceptual framework, within the human development paradigm. It starts by stating that the adoption of a liberal, market-oriented development strategy led by the private sector has helped to stimulate investment and growth, but development efforts have been largely unsuccessful in integrating the vulnerable and marginalised groups.
Nepal's Tenth Plan/Poverty Reduction Strategy (2002-2207) attempts to address the crisis now facing the country by placing peace-building and security centre-stage and by linking four approaches: sustained high and broad-based growth, particularly focusing on the rural economy; accelerated human development through the effective delivery of basic social services and economic infra-structure; social and economic inclusion of the poor, marginalised groups and backward regions; and good governance for development outcomes that foster social and economic justice.
The Chapter argues that the Tenth Plan offers a variety of strategies for drawing the excluded into the mainstream of Nepal's development, but it cannot reduce poverty significantly without systematic efforts to harmonise three key components of empowerment, namely economic, political, and socio-cultural. The remainder of the Chapter explains and defines these different dimensions of empowerment and the relationship between them.
It concludes by drawing on development experiences which show a two-way relationship between good governance and empowerment. Empowerment through inclusion, voice, and accountability also promotes social cohesion. Evidence also demonstrates that the breakdown of social cohesion and trust leads to war and civil conflict. Mainstreaming the empowerment agenda, therefore, lies at the heart of deepening democracy and addressing the ongoing social and political upheaval in Nepal.
Chapter Two presents Human Development Indexes and the Human Empowerment Index. The HDI score for Nepal is 0.504. Using the latest data available, however, it is estimated to be even lower, at 0.471. Except for Pakistan, this figure is the lowest among all other South Asian nations. The Chapter also reveals the striking disparities by urban/rural, zones, regions and district levels, based on disaggregated data. The HPI is estimated at 39.6 with considerable disparities between the urban (25.2) and rural (42.0), and across districts. The disaggregated GDI indicates a higher degree of gender inequalities in rural areas, while the GEM indicates that women are much less empowered than men in the political, economic and professional spheres.
The Human Empowerment Index (HEI) value for Nepal is estimated at 0.463, indicating a low level of empowerment, close to the HDI. When looking at its different components, the level of economic empowerment (0.337) is below that of social empowerment (0.406), while political empowerment stands at 0.646.
Disaggregated values of HEI at district levels show that most of the low scoring districts are located in the mid-western and far western development regions. It also reveals that among the low-scoring districts there is a considerable and consistent mismatch between political and socio-economic empowerment. Significantly, these are also the most isolated districts suffering from high levels of socio-economic deprivation and violent conflict.
It is argued that while the high level of political empowerment is a clear manifestation of democratic practices and the rising aspirations of people, low incomes, limited access to productive assets, and the absence of employment opportunities reflect the low level of economic empowerment.
The mismatch between the three dimensions of empowerment and considerable regional disparities evidenced by the above analysis provide the basis for two core arguments:
1. Sustainable poverty reduction strategies will not succeed while economic and social empowerment remains so low.
2. These imbalances provide fertile ground for civil strife and insurgence.
Chapter Three deconstructs the three dimensions of empowerment - socio-cultural, economic and political - by critically analysing government-led policy initiatives at the micro, meso and macro levels. A crucial argument made is as follows: "Policies and programmes alone cannot guarantee empowerment. Unless people's individual and social capabilities can enhance their position in competitive bargaining or to hold institutions accountable, they may not be able to take advantage of the opportunities created by reforms" (p. 31).
A striking challenge faced by the Nepalese is that the country has deeply hierarchical social structures with interlocking systems of caste and ethnicity. The country has 100 ethnicities, 92 languages and 9 religions, but they are generally subdivided in five cultural categories: caste origin Hindu groups, Newars, the ethnic tribal groups (nacionalities); Muslims; and others.
These different categories significantly impact on the process of empowerment. It is shown that Nepalese culture is rooted in discrimination based on religion, which perpetuates practices of 'untouchability' and the exploitation of women. These discriminatory practices also obstruct the development and preservation of the culture of indigenous peoples and other communities.
The Chapter then successfully mainstreams gender issues into the analysis by showing how women experience low status and discrimination. This is the result of systems of patri-lineal descent, patri-local residence and rules of inheritance which interact and isolate and subordinate women throughout the country. Gender issues are thus interwoven systematically into the basic social structure of society as are traditional cultural values. As a result, they obstruct the empowerment of a great number of poor and disadvantaged people throughout the country.
The Chapter concludes by showing that while the democratic changes of the 1990s increased political empowerment, subsequent political and administrative reforms of state and local institutions were either too slow or inadequate to ensure better service delivery and governance. At the same time, no concerted efforts were made to change rules, regulations and exclusionary practices to ensure equitable representation of the disadvantaged in political institutions.
Chapter Four looks in-depth at the historically excluded and marginalised groups and provides the basis for identifying the major paths empowerment should take throughout the country. It presents an excellent analysis on women, Dalits, indigenous people, people with disabilities, children and the elderly.
It concludes by stating that despite women's subordinate position and the inequality they suffer, they are slowly moving towards empowerment. Their gains in recent years, however, have not been matched by overcoming other sources of discrimination and cleavages such as caste, ethnicity, religion, age and disability.
Moreover, the Chapter evidences that some historically excluded regions, namely the mid-western and far western development regions, remain the home of most of Nepal's poorest and disadvantaged people. Given the geographic dimension of exclusion, it is argued that the path towards empowerment for these citizens lies in devolving authority to local governance bodies.
Chapter Five is about social mobilisation practices in Nepal. It begins by pointing out that the country has a history of community-based networks that date way back. This tradition was later used by different governmental initiatives such as the Small Farmers Development Programmes established in 1975, and programmes that followed it during the 1980s. Moreover, it is argued that one significant feature of the 1990s was the concerted attempt to organise vast sections of the population to secure socio-economic goals through a variety of models, and the Social Mobilisation Agencies (SMAs) played a critical role in this process. The SMAs can be classified in four categories, namely: 1. government-assisted, 2. donor-assisted, 3. NGO-assisted, and 4. those assisted by financial institutions.
The Chapter then presents the findings of a survey of the Socially Mobilised Communities (SMCs) especially designed for this Report. The study was carried out in ten districts with SMCs members who were asked to rate their organisation in terms of its level of participation; decision-making processes; transparency; accountability; trust and solidarity; leadership; partnership; and conflict management capacity. The study also looked at performance, efficacy, impact and the relationship between armed conflict and social mobilisation.
A wealth of significant findings is discussed, of which only a short summary is presented here. Key themes include: 1. the strategy of social mobilisation has helped the poor and the disadvantaged in forming self-help groups, working together towards common goals, psychological empowerment through these processes, and bringing subtle improvements in the livelihoods of those mobilised. Evidence also indicates, however, that these organisations have tended to have limited the inclusion of the ultra-poor, the Dalits, the landless, specific ethnic groups and recent migrants. 2. The UNDP supported Village Development Programme, the DFID supported Livelihood and Forestry Programme, and the 'Bisweshwor Among the Poor' (BAP), were highly rated by interviewees in terms of enhancing livelihood conditions. On the other hand, the models of women's empowerment such as Private Agency Collaborating Together (PACT) and those targeting NGOs rated poorly.
In sum, major problems faced by many SMCs include: insurgency, lack of enthusiasm among the poor and the excluded, poor co-ordination with partner agencies and with government, non-availability of training that suits the genuine needs of the communities, and lack of knowledge of the role of government.
Decision-making processes in SMCs scored the highest, followed by an emerging sense of trust and solidarity among group members. A majority of respondents recognise the increase in trust, self-confidence, and a sense of altruism after joining the SMCs. By contrast, accountability, followed by transparency and partnership, emerged as the weakest areas in most SMCs, with implications for the long-term sustainability of the programmes.
An important research finding is that those SMAs that limit their engagement to "awareness-building" of civil and political rights among marginalised communities risk significant failure rates. Although 'educating' such groups is a valuable task in itself, unless growing consciousness of rights is backed-up by adequate resources, this kind of effort can breed disenchantment. As stated by researchers "one reason the Maoists emerged strongly in the mid-west was their attraction of young people who were apparently aware and politically mobilised, but disenfranchised people, who had experiences of reality other than those of the daily life of the village" (p. 77). It concludes by noting that the spread of meagre resources across the length and breath of the country in the name of social mobilisation may actually be counter productive.
The knowledge produced by the findings from the survey allowed the authors to suggest ways in which SMCs can better serve to catalyse poverty reduction strategies and heighten social, economic and political empowerment. Many of the insights presented in this Chapter have been carried forward to Chapter 6.
c. Policy Analysis and Recommendations:
Chapter Six is called 'A Reform Agenda for Enhancing Empowerment'. It starts by summing-up the rationale for the empowerment agenda, stating that it has the revolutionary potential of deepening democracy for dynamic transformation through radical shifts in policies, priorities and institutions; it addresses anomalies and asymmetries in society; its implementation will help to create a level playing field and; it will therefore reinforce the process of grassroots level initiatives to enhance political, social and economic empowerment of the poor and the most disadvantaged.
The Chapter also states that the country's most urgent priority is the need to make its institutions work for all people and to ensure the democratisation of the three branches of government. This means, among other initiatives, putting in place mechanisms that will institutionalise transparency and accountability to check corruption, eliminate discrimination and to ensure that people's voices are heard at all levels. The core of Nepal's poverty reduction strategy must adopt a rights-based approach and address existing mismatches between social, economic and political empowerment. What follows is the Reform Agenda, which presents a series of detailed recommendations, identifying specific steps, institutions and actors required for their implementation. They have been organised within nine main headings:
- Deepening democracy;
- Removing discriminatory laws and practices;
- Making macro policy reforms pro poor;
- Transforming agriculture;
- Expanding equitable education and health facilities;
- Building infrastructure;
- Creating employment opportunities;
- Protecting and empowering disadvantaged groups by guaranteeing fair representation of women, Dalits and indigenous people at the parliament and local levels;
- Investing in the organisational capacity of the poor and utilising successful donor-supported social mobilisation programmes as 'motherboards' for current and future vertical programmes.
Given the comprehensive nature of the proposed reform agenda, it might have been useful to include additional recommendations on the timing and prioritization next steps, including the costs and possible sources of financing, and specific responsible institutions.
d. HD indicators and other data:
The Report presents the HDI, HPI, GDI and the GEM. Indexes have been disaggregated, and compared across time as well as with other countries in the region. Annexes 1.1 and 1.2 provide detailed technical notes on the calculation of these indexes.
The NHDR also developed a new index, the Human Empowerment Index. Annex 1.3 provides the reader with the rationale underpinning the new index, discussion about different definitions and dimensions of empowerment, and a detailed account about how this index was constructed by bringing together available social, economic and political indicators into a composite index of empowerment.
Fifteen indicators have been selected for capturing the three dimensions of empowerment, bringing them together into an index. There are eight indicators for measuring social empowerment, five indicators for measuring economic empowerment and two indicators for measuring political empowerment. In addition, true to its highly analytical rigour, the annex points out to gaps in the data and how these indicators can be further improved in the future.
Annex 5 describes how the survey of socially mobilised communities was designed, including the sample size, indicators and a five-point scale. The survey was carried out in 2003 in ten districts of five development regions. Data was collected using four different instruments: 20 SMA interviews, 40 interviews with stakeholders, 38 focus group discussions, and 599 individual member/household interviews.
In sum, the Report used an impressive variety of data and sources. In addition to those listed above, the publication supplemented new empirical data with literature from various secondary sources, classical development/academic outputs and reports by international agencies.
Impressively, every source is clearly and consistently referenced in the text, in the annexes, in the bibliography and in the 'references' section.
Corporate Principle 5: Flexibility and Creativity in Presentation
a. Flexibility and creativity
The Report is well-written. Arguments are sharp and to the point while substantiated by a variety of quantitative and qualitative sources. It has also made use of tables, graphs, text boxes, and case studies to evidence and illustrate the discussion.
The language is both analytical and user-friendly, clearly geared towards its identified primary and secondary target audience, even though the reviewer has read the Report in English (more on this issue under point 6).
The Report as a whole, including the chapters, annexes and cover have been professionally designed and styled. The latter clearly states title and theme, and is meaningful and attractive. The year on the cover reflects the year that the Report was launched.
Corporate Principle 6: Sustained Follow-Up
Research on the country office web-site revealed that a host of activities were organised during launch. Different advocacy products have also been designed. Although it was not possible to gather much information about post-launch activities, given that the preparatory process was so inclusive and mobilised so many different social actors, it can be hypothesised that dissemination and sustained follow-up continued after launch. One outstanding issue, however, refers to the dissemination of the main messages in other languages rather than English. Since this reviewer was not able to ascertain whether the Report has been written in Nepali or in any other of the country's 91 languages, it is not clear how follow-up activities might have been carried out with the secondary target audience.
Final Comments:
This is an excellent NHDR, extremely relevant and timely. As stated by the UNDP country Resident Representative during the launch in 2004, "this radical Report packs a punch in the word 'empowerment'. It calls for dramatic reforms in a difficult time for the country. At the heart of the report is the idea that all citizens, including the poorest and most vulnerable, must be part of the country's development agenda".
In addition, it has shed light into understanding the country's current political crises, by demonstrating how significant mismatches between the three dimensions of empowerment, creates frustration and disillusion, which have been effectively exploited by the Maoist insurgency. Finally, it has also successfully mainstreamed gender issues throughout, as suggested by the UNDP Gender Thematic Guidance Note (July 2003).
As argued throughout this review, this NHDR meets five corporate principles to a very high standard. It has been nationally owned (1); its preparation was extensively inclusive and participatory (2); it is independent and has been reviewed at various stages of preparation (3); both the quality of analysis and of the background empirical work are of outstanding quality (4); and has been highly creative and professional in its presentation (5). Although there is evidence of pre-launch and dissemination activities during the launch, therefore meeting to some extent corporate principle number six, this reviewer could not assess whether a dissemination strategy has been drawn up and how the issue of different national languages has been tackled.
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