Country: Nepal
Organization: AFORD-NEPAL
3) Strategy Summary:
As a matter of fact, income generation through micro
finance or other financial programs alone are not enough
nor they have been so far completely successful in
achieving self-reliance and sustainable livelihood.
Sustainability inevitably requires true interest and
efficiency for a hundred percent self participation in any
program towards achieving self-reliance through
sustainable livelihood.
We all know very well that it is true interest and
efficiency that make a program effective, successful and
sustainable and it comes only through deep awareness and
information and skills on related programs. Hence,
awareness and skills as they are the key elements, should
be applied as a vital tool in any programs meant to
achieving self-reliance through sustainable livelihood.
When awareness and skills are applied together, they work
miracle playing a vital role greatly corresponding to the
cause. Awareness and skills when put together accelerates
actions for development. While awareness accelerates
actions with deep inspiration, skills encreases the
productivity assuring better qualities, durability and
state of the art. Thus the program "Awareness and Skills
together" can play a vital role in contributing to
achieving self-reliance through sustainable livelihood.
4) How the Strategy Works:
Example 1
The program "Awareness & Skills together" for self-
reliance through sustainable development has 5 phases of
its development operation in close co-operation and
partnership with the grass roots in rural community level.
Phase 1
Baseline survey of the community
- Collection of date and information concerning
demographic, cultural religious, political and socio-
economic conditions of the target group.
Phase 2
- Indepth review and analysis of the data and
information collected by the Baseline survey of the target
community.
- Co-relating of study and the findings of the survey
and data and other related information with the expected
program.
- Presentation of the findings and available data and
information to the target group making them get to know
and realize the situations and conditions of their
community
- Collection of views and opinion from the target group
about what they really need, what their burning issues are.
- Asking them for their views and ideas as to how they
can best solve their problems, what they are planning to
do, and also what they expect from the program.
- Preparing a summary of their burning needs, potential
obstacles, their views and future plans, their willingness
and necessity for participatory approach.
- Formulation of program "Awareness & Skills together"
for self-reliance through sustainable development.
- Organising a big gathering of the people from the
target group ensuring that everyone is invited and
involved.
- Presentation of the blue print of the program
explaining its key functioning mechanism and related
technical know how.
Phase 3 Operation Level
Conducting Orientation workshop for the selected people
and stake holders from the target group.
- Making them know what the program "Awareness & skills
together" is, how it was formulated how it is going to
function, how the stake holders and the target group is
going to participate in the program, what roles,
responsibility and contributions they will be playing in
making it effective and successful, how, after all, all
this is going to bring positive changes in their life in
the community in increasing self-reliance through
sustainable livelihood.
- Specific roles and responsibility will be determined
for the people willing to involve themselves in this
program.
- Certain tasks and duties will be mutually discussed
and assigned
to them.
- The framework of organization will be made with all
the detailed informations and specific guidelines and
regulations program's complete from of structure
Phase 4
Main functioning of the program
- Launching the program in the grass roots level in
support and co-operation with stake holders and target
group voluntarily involved in this program.
- The Program "Awareness & Skills together" for self-
reliance through sustainable livelihood will be formally
launced in the community co-operation with several other
partner organizations.
- Required trainings on building skills & efficiency
will be provided to the stakeholders, members and the
entire target group along with awareness.
- Trainings on capacity building will be provided from
time to time.
- The trained and skilled human resources from the
target group will be provided full guidance and
counselling on how to set up their own enterprise and
start working building their own jobs earning livelihood
increasing their self-reliance through sustainable
livelihood.
- The program will, in the initial stage, provide
financial support and will keep assisting them with
required technical know how and need based trainings
building skills in them and its proper development.
- Every activity to be carried out by the people and
personnels involved, will be regularly monitored,
supervised and followed up and will be provided deep
awareness and counselling to help them making the program
effective and successful ensuring long lasting and
sustainability.
- Regular monitoring and evaluation will be carried out
to ensure effectiveness and success of the program
Phase 5
Regular follow up will be provided with deep awareness to
ensuring smooth operation and of the program enhancing
self-reliance and sustainable livelihood.
5) Key Strategy Elements:
i. Mobilizing Citizen Support:
Citizen support will be greatly mobilized through this
program. As this program is a need-based participatory
approach program, it consists of all the key elements of
the program ei. members, stakeholders and other involved
and required in its process to run smoothly and
effectively.
The involvement of the members, public events,
professionals and stake-holders with help make our
strategy innovative in the way and in the sense that in
this program with its unique blend of "Awareness & skills"
no body ins doing anything for others rather everyone is
doing the something their way sharing the same vision
inspired by the same spirit on the basis of mutual
understanding and co-operation for the mutual collective
goal of achieving self-reliance and sustainable livelihood.
When they have a deep awareness to realize that they are
doing their best together, inspired by the spirit of team
work will be highly inspired to greatly contribute to the
cause participating in the program for better mutual co-
operation and development. One of the most important
things is that they will try their best to keep their
enterprises going on ensuring sustainability even after
the program and outside funding is stopped.
v. Developing Information and Spreading the Message:
This program will best apply print, broadcast, and out
reach campaign to spreading the message amongst the target
group.
6) Increasing Self-sufficiency and Social Impact:
As a result of program, "Awareness & Skills together" for
self- reliance through sustainable livelihood people in
the target area in the rural community will have their
self-reliance increased building sustainable livelihood
and they will have a quality life. As awareness & skill
empowered program provides trainings on skill buildup and
development to the people involved in this community level
program, it will greatly increase their efficiency and
readiness towards greater productivity and quality and
sustainability. This way the people will have greater self
reliance building sustainable livelihood.
Once they are skilled, efficient and self-reliant in their
day to day life enjoying a quality life through
sustainable livelihood, they can, in turn, best
participate in our awareness based sustainable community
development process greatly contributing to the
cause "Awareness for Development."
Thus, when the people in the rural communities who we are
working with, are self-reliant building their own
sustainable livelihood, they can best co-operate us in our
endeavor to bring about equitable and sustainable
community development sharing the vision "Awareness for
Development." In this way, we can reach out to many other
disadvantaged, underprivileged and deprived people in
rural communites. More strong and self-reliant partner in
development means more successful and effective network
for equitable and sustainable development. This network
will certainly make our organization self-reliant and self-
sufficient.
8) Organization Mission and Vision:
Mission: Awakening people with Awareness & skills for
peace & development.
Helping establish and maintain an equitable, educated,
advanced, well informed, just and balanced society for a
quality life of the people who are downtrodden,
underprivileged and marginalized through awareness
empowered equitable and sustainable community development
programs in co-operation with partners in development.
Vision: Building a world where all children and women and
all those who are exploited, disadvantaged and deprived of
every access and opportunity to their balanced development
are better treated and cared for, have their own space to
enjoying equal access and opportunity sharing the best of
the world for peaceful quality living.
Looking Forward to the Next Three Years:
Our strategy "Awareness & Skills together" for self-
reliance through sustainable development will be evolving
over the next three years incorporating the members from
the target group, stakeholders volunteers and
professionals carrying out specific activities of the
program in co-operation with its partner organizations.
Deep awareness, skills and informations required, will be
provided to the target group through training and
workshops in order to enable them grow self-reliant
ensuring sustainability of their livelihood.
As Aford-Nepal has its own residential training centre
that provides essential development trainings to the
target groups on life skills and other required skills and
informations in co-operation with Unicef, German
Development service and several other partner
organizations, will be supporting and contribution to this
program effectively and successful for over the next three
years.
Contact Information:
Ram Achal Yadav
Executive Director
AFORD-NEPAL
Anandbag-2, Taulihawa, Kapilvastu Nepal
Nepal
Tel: 00977+76+560492
Fax: 00977+76+560251
Email: afordnepal_btw@wlink.com.np