NATIONAL 6 -(Spotlight Weekly)]

Governance And Poverty Reduction

Nepal Human Development Report 2001 stresses the need to improve governance to reduce poverty

By A CORRESSPONDENT

Samuel P. Huntington argues that both democracies and dictatorships become unstable when a country undergoes modernization, which occurs at some intermediate level of development. If the report of NHDR 2001 is any indication, it shows how instability is making the level of governance unpredictable.

As Nepalese society finds itself at the crossroads of modernization, democracy, too, suffers from growing expectations of the people and lack of capable people to run state institutions. At a time when traditional values are fading and modern values are yet to be established, there is a vacuum in every level of governance. This has affected implementation of poverty alleviation programs.

"Immature democratic institutions and shortage of capacities in government bodies have led to disappointing outcomes in the implementation of human development policies," says the report. Most of the country's growth over the last 15 years, says the report, took place outside the agricultural sector ó the main source of livelihood for 80 percent of Nepalese.

Studies have shown that democracies can survive even in the poorest nations if they manage to generate development, if they reduce inequality, and if they have parliamentary institutions. Commissioned by United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the "Nepal Human Development Report 2001: Poverty Reduction and Governance" (NHDR-2001) argues that poverty perpetuates itself because of inequity and inequality in the distribution of resources and opportunities.

The report says Nepal has made significant gains in some areas but they have been too little and too slow. Despite significant nation-wide gains in life expectancy, education and per capita income over the last decade, approximately 40 percent of Nepalese continue to live in abject poverty.

Nepal has been facing the challenge of changing its own culture to make it more friendly to a democratic set-up. Unless the country achieves economic development, it is difficult to alter country's culture and make it more supportive of democracy.

The UNDP published the NHDR 2001, prepared by group of Nepalese experts, measuring achievements in basic human capabilities and failure just a week before the country hosted a meeting of the Nepal Development Forum.

This is not the first such report, though. Nepal South Asia Center published one in 1998, which is still regarded as one of the best-studied and factual reports prepared by a team of Nepalese experts.

Rugged terrain and the vagaries of the monsoon obstruct both the expansion of growth into the rural hinterland and the delivery of basic social services to these parts. The report provides no simple solutions or sweeping prescriptions for the country's problems. However, it analyzes contradictions in current politics and examines governance in four dimensions: ownership, equality, accountability and efficiency.

"Our system of governance has failed to deliver results because it is ineffective and incapable of doing so," said Dr. Mohammed Mohasin, chairman of the National Assembly.

"The report shows that one way to enhance empowerment is through social mobilization, in particular with focused support for women. In fact, a whole chapter has been devoted to social mobilization and its importance in improving both governance and human development," said Dr. Henning Karcher, UNDP Resident Representative.

Others argue that there is need to consolidate the achievements made. "We have achieved some remarkable changes, but what is required is the introduction of time-bound actions to eliminate poverty," said Dr. Shankar Sharma, member of the National Planning Commission.

In any case, the time has come to bring more programs to reduce the number of people living below the poverty line, making the governance system pro-poor. If it happens, democracy can consolidate itself in society. The NHDR 2001 comes in the form of the writing on the wall.