Water Supply
Challenges In Rural Areas

By Shiva Chandra Shrestha

THE Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Fund Development Board was created in March 1996 under the Development Board Act 1959. The Minister of Physical Planning and Works is the line ministry. The board of directors is of seven members. The board consists of fur Joint Secretaries from Ministry of Physical Planning, Ministry of Local Development, Ministry of Finance, and the National Planning Commission, and three Professionals from Private and NGO sectors nominated by the line ministry. The chairman is elected from amongst the seven members. So far, the representative from the line ministry is holding the chairmanship. The board of directors appoints the executive director who is also the board secretary to carry on the day-to-day functions.

Philosophy

The board is devoted to, basically, promote sustainable and cost-effective demand driven rural water supply and substainable schemes with the idea of community ownership. Briefly, the fundamental objective of the project is to raise the living standard of the people in the rural areas of Nepal by means of sustainable health and hygiene services through improvements in water supply and sanitation by improving their level of incomes through the use of time saved in carrying water.There are other associated programmes too, like community mobilisation nonformal educational, capacity building of support organisations, and the communities and so on. One of the remarkable aspects of the associated programmes is the Women Technical Support Services, which aims at promotion of saving habits among rural women through the provision of a technical support fund.

The project fund available so far is about Rs. 110 Crores and out of that, IDA credit is about 83 per cent and the community funding is about 12 per cent and the rest comes from the Government and the UNDP grant. The project expenditure up to the end of financial year 2058/59 (up to July 16, 2002) amounts to about Rs 141 Crores. Broadly speaking the expenditures are categorised in to six heads, such as Equipment and Materials (1 per cent) Development Phase (11 per cent), Implementation Phase (70 per cent). Consulting Services and Studies (4 per cent), Monitoring and Technical Assistance (7 per cent), and Operating Cost (6 per cent). The extent of appropriate matching of expenditures would provide better realities of expenditures. Hence, caution is necessary in the categorisation of expenditures under those headings.

The whole philosophy is based on the fact that the joint efforts of the communities support organisations and support agencies and the Fund Board are the critical factors for the success of the activities of the project. The key role of the Fund Board is to provide leadership for the success of the water supply schemes and other related programmes. As to the eligibility criteria for the schemes, the benefit-cost ratio and the internal rate of return are the major indicators besides other social realities to be considered in particular areas. As to the calculation of the cost part, there are no problems. But as to calculations of the benefits, certain assumptions are made and these vary from place to place. Some refinements are called for which should be based on both technical and economical factors. The normal internal rate of return (20-25per cent), would not be applicable to remote areas like the districts in the Karnali zone. So, specific allowances would have to be made for the schemes in such areas. The communities must be make quite familiar with these basic indicators before actually initiating their share of contribution in order to avoid any likely controversy after their investment.
Currently, the Fund Board is in the process of preparation of RWSSP-II with the assistance of IDA. Other donors are also willing to extend their cooperation. The project implementation plan (PIP) is to take into account a wide range of consulations with the different stakeholders such as communities, the Government, and others. The Fund Board should have a new legal entity as a permanent institution to carry on the functions in the most economical and sustained manner. This idea should be seriously brought into consideration by the line ministry at the earliest.

In order to enhance the degree of accountability of expenditures in terms of both the use and legality including compliance, the capital expenditures, the deferred expenditures, and the operating expenditures are to be streamlined under appropriate accounting principles and practices. The assessment of benefits derived from the studies should be made more objectively and there should be full transparancy of all costs-capital and operational. For this purpose, the capital budget formulation exercise will have to be more intensively conducted in view of the practical realities at the operational level. The true and fair view of the financial statement of the Fund Board should be brought to the notice of the people in general so that the information would be public.

An organisation becomes efficient only when its human assets are properly managed and that is possible basically through two types of incentives-regular pay packages and retirement benefits besides other facilities including training inside and outside the country. The performance evaluation should be scientific and transparent in a situation of our rapidly changing environment since it is in the interest of both the management and the staff for enhancing their quality of performance, which should be reflected in the quality of service to the needy. It should make some efforts to start at least some model schemes in any one district of the Karnali zone. The real service would be rendered to the needy and the donor agencies would also appreciate the efforts in terms of both cost and need.

In the 9th Five-year plan, the allocation of investments for water supply and sanitation was about one per cent and still in terms of the modality of the Fund Board, the investment is still quite nominal. For this purpose, the fund should be made locally and domestically available. Therefore, tax-free Development Bonds may be issued to make funds available at a reasonably attractive rate of interest (7-10 per cent) being repayable/refundable in a period of 5 yrs/10 yrs or so. Nepal must realise that it ranks 78th in water quality standards among 180 countries in the world according to United Nations study, which was released recently (in March 2003).

We must invest in the development of the facilities and schemes for the supply of the drinking water and sanitation services. The availability of water is the pre-condition of progress since it is a basic need of everyone. There is a lot of advocacy for corporate social responsibility. Under it, this sector must receive the top priority. On top of that, this demand driven modality is found quite suitable in the present realities of scarcity of resources and the depressing environment of overall governance due to external as well as internal factors.

Goal

One of our developmental goals is to foster investment in the capital formation for the management of water supply to all. It is all known that gross inequalities and pervasive poverty of today is related to non-availability of drinking water in the rural areas of Nepal. It is therefore essential that the planning agencies and the government agencies must focus their primary attention to this sector by all means. The role of the Fund Board should be suitably assessed for this noble cause by all who are committed to the upliftment of the suffering people in the remote areas of Nepal.

Respecting Consumers' Rights

By Kamalesh Adhikari

CONSUMER organisations worldwide celebrate World Consumer Rights Day on 15 March. First observed on 15 March 1983, the day is celebrated each year to commemorate a historic declaration of basic consumer rights made by former President of the United States John F. Kennedy on 15 March 1962. The declaration at that time outlined the basic consumer rights as: the right to safety; the right to be informed; the right to choose; and the right to be heard. Over the years, these rights expanded to a total of eight. Worldwide consumer movement led by Consumers International (CI), a global federation of over 250 consumer organisations, added four more rights: the right to satisfaction of basic needs; the right to redress; the right to education; and the right to a healthy environment.

Guidelines

The United Nations (UN) included these rights in its landmark guidelines for consumer protection of 1985. The guidelines also quoted that "all citizens, regardless of their incomes or social standing, have basic rights as consumers". These eight rights form the very basis of worldwide consumer movement now. Governments, whether developed or developing, started to follow the same guidelines. Consumer rights ultimately got full recognition and legitimacy at both levels - international and national. All countries built up the frameworks for strengthening national consumer protection policies under the same UN guidelines.

Talking of present, despite the global pledge for consumer protection, consumer rights are not being respected as there are enough evidences to indicate that consumer rights are continuing to be ignored or trivialised by producers, powerful interests and even by governments. World Consumer Rights Day has therefore been designed to draw the attention to such violations, so that consumer groups could get a platform to protest such defiance and ultimately get justice for consumers.

The day is important not only for celebration and solidarity within the international consumer movement but also because it suggests the consumers worldwide to demand that their rights are respected and protected, and not arrested by the market abuses and social and economic injustices. At this particular day, consumer organisations therefore plan and carry out different local initiatives on every continent such as special campaigns, press conferences, public exhibitions, workshops, street events or new publications etc.

While the theme for the year 2000 was "Our Food, Whose Choice?", the theme for 2001 was "Corporate Citizenship In the Global Market - Accountability and the Consumer Perspective." In 2002, the day was observed with the theme "Voices for Change". Coming to 2003, consumer organisations have chosen the theme "Corporate Control of the Food Chain - The GM Link".

On one hand, while unregulated production and trade of GM food crops have become worries for consumers, on the other, due to globalisation of production systems and of finance, and the liberalisation of economic activity and in recent years, the multilateral trading regime of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), corporate control of the food chain has come as a new threat. CI has realised that while key safety and environmental questions relating to genetically modified food remain unanswered, it is equally important to look beyond these to the ways that corporations are using GM technology to consolidate their control over global food production.

Studies have shown that six multinationals control around 70 per cent of the patents held on staple food crops. Similarly, another study has revealed that five major gene giants [Du Pont, Pharmacia (Monsanto), Syngenta, Aventis and Dow] account for 60 per cent of global pesticide market, 23 per cent of commercial seed market and virtually 100 per cent of the transgenic seed market.
CI has prepared a campaign kit with the latest information on how corporations are extending their control over the food chain through the development of GM crops and seeds. The kit contains campaign and lobby activities and tools, including several model letters for groups and individuals to send to strategic decision-makers.

It has become an imperative for the consumer organisations to unite and protest the growing corporate control on food market. The governments, especially of the developing and least developed countries, should also be wise enough to regulate such tactics.

It is encouraging to note that on the occasion of Consumer Rights Day 2003, consumer groups from Nigeria to Ecuador, Trinidad to Ukraine, have already decided to protest against GM foods and the methods used by agribusiness to control the food. In Jamaica, they have planned to launch a study into the prevalence of GM foods in the local markets and lobby for a regulatory framework to protect consumers. Similarly, consumer organisations in Vietnam will aim at raising awareness around the issue of GM foods, with events taking place in 18 different provinces.

The rights of member states to impose comprehensive mandatory labelling of GM foods have been upheld; due to consumer pressure in Europe, GM tomatoes and GM tobacco - the first GM crops to be commercialised - have failed to win market acceptance and have been abandoned. GM potatoes were withdrawn from the US market. Consumers in Japan have halted the development of a herbicide tolerant GM rice, promoted by Monsanto. Similarly, as a direct result of legal action by Brazilian consumers group, Instituto Brasileiro de Defesa do Consumidor (IDEC), Brazil became the first country in the world to prohibit the planting and commercialisation of GM foods.

Risk

It is of course a right of the consumers worldwide to ask why this technology should be used at all when it produces no benefits to society but has the potential for causing great damage. This is a question obviously not merely to the corporations that do not respect the lives and care only for money but also to the people at the helm of affairs who have a strategic power to arrest such practices.

Happy Holi

By Chandra Kumar Phuyal

AS we listen to the chirping of birds and see the blooming buds, we realise that spring has come. The wind is no longer chilly and the sunrays warm us up. Fruit trees are ready to flower, rivers are calm. The thunder of the clouds has hidden behind the full smile of the sun. In the meantime, we all Hindus are busy celebrating a great festival in different names: Holi, Fagu, festival of colour and Fagu Purne.
According to legend, a king named Hiranyakashyapu made everyone- from humans to gods tremble for he had attained immortality by the grace of providence. Hiranyakashyapu tolerated no god other than himself in his country. He had a son named Prahlad who was a devotee of Lord Vishnu and a rebel of the country.

Since his son was an icon of devotion in Vaishnavism tradition, Hiranyakashyapu decided to kill him. Despite his continuos efforts, Prahlad continued to survive in flesh and blood. At last he appealed to his sister Holika to assist him since she had the grace of remaining unscorched even when set on a fire and she could use the power to burn the child in a pyre. But, the grace given to her by Bramha was to use it only for good deeds. As she couldn't refuse her brother's request, she jumped into the pyre with the child Prahlad in her arms. Providence intervened and devotion of the child saved him while Holika was set ablaze in the fire.

Brahma graced the seedling of creativity, dissent, change, faith and devotion. Ever since, the celebration has taken place to mark the victory of good over evil.

According to another popular narrative- when Ram was on his way to Ayodhya after his much anticipated victory over Ravan, there was an excited crowd with Abir (vermillion powder) in their hands. When he arrived there, the people began to jump (vermillion powder) in joy throwing abir all over him, celebrating his victory with colour. It is said that the triumph is Abir Jatra (the fare of the red powder). Then, from that day on, we have been celebrating this festival as a remembrance of that day. This festival is celebrated throughout Nepal though the celebration is more intense in Terai. Everybody looks very busy in celebrating, for it is believed that those who live play with colour, those who die are remembered. During the day a group of people sing in praise of lord spontaneously with Pichkari (a pump to force the coloured liquid in and out) and Abir and begin singing songs like Holile Rangayo Mero Choli and Holilese Vege Chunarwali Ranga Barse. It is more important for lovers since Fagu is a day to add colour to their lives. Inhibitions are easily loosened on this day. Ordinary people, children, women, young girls, farmers, businessmen, workers, students, all feel free to play Holi as it is still part of our society. We must understand that Fagu is the day to celebrate for brotherhood regardless of rank, wealth and status. Moreover, there are some who spoil the fun of Holi. Badmash youths throw balloons filled with dirty water and colours on pedestrians. Is this how Holi should be enjoyed? The boys especially do not spare young innocent girls. Is that the real way of enjoying Holi? No, obviously not. When the essence of a festival is lost, it becomes a meaningless ritual. So the government should pay more heed in bringing the activities under control.This year the people seem to be freer as there is no fear of being shot dead!

Happy holi