RCD Nepal
Overview - Resource Centre Programme in Nepal
Despite forty years of effort in the water supply and sanitation sector, Nepal is still identified as one of the countries where people have least access to water and sanitation facilities. There are many reasons for this, including the geographical situation and consistently high levels of poverty. But poor co-ordination and communication between the different groups involved in the sector makes things worse. This problem became clear through a mapping exercise that was carried out by Water Aid Nepal in 2001. It showed that a series of studies were carried out by various sector agencies around water and sanitation within a year of each other, and yet many of these agencies were unaware of what the others were doing. In addition, information and knowledge is poorly shared within the sector and is not very accessible either to the main players or to the communities who need and use the information. This results in a waste of financial and human resources, and hampers service delivery.
Planning Committee Nepal allocates money for Resource Centre Development
At a Resource Centre Network meeting in Nepal in early May 2004 the representative from the Department of Water Supply and Sewerage announced that the Planning Commission had reacted positively to a proposed budget allocation of some EURO 17,500 for Resource Centre Development in the country.
The Water and Sanitation Resource Centre Network in Nepal
Even though the process took time to be conceptually clear about the RCD concept, its functioning, and the individual roles, the concerted efforts of all members of the Water and Sanitation Resource Centre Network in Nepal have created a lot of enthusiasm in the sector. As a result of these efforts, the RC concept is shared and accepted by all members. Effective information and knowledge sharing are gradually getting priority within all organisations and in the sector in general.
