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OUEST
Asia & Indian Sub-Continent
OUEST
Project Coordinator:
Leah Schulte
Project Overview:
OUEST (Kathmandu, NEPAL) supports several community based organizations in Nepal, focusing on issues of education, agro-forestry, health care, women’s empowerment, and the environment. OUEST’s strategy is to support community organizations through the sharing of resources, in order to ensure an equal partnership. Since 2002, OUEST in partnership with the Social Work Institute has run the Empowerment Calendar Program with distributes calendars with various personal, family, and community empowerment topics to community organizations. Despite the challenges of country wide power outages and gas shorages, the staff and volunteers of OUEST are providing excellent support to the communities of Nepal.
Recent Accomplishments:
Local partners showing more ownership of the Calendar Project.
24% of the members formed personal action plans, such as “to improve household finances”.
95% of members attended group meetings.
33% of groups implemented initiatives in their community, such as building a well in their village.
Number of People Directly Served by Project:
2,116 members (89% female)
Number of People Indirectly Served by Project:
11,000
Goals for 2010:
• For 75% of participants to demonstrate positive behavior change in themselves or within their household such as giving their sons and daughters the same opportunity to go to school.
• For 75% of participating groups to demonstrate improved group capacity such as convincing a member to repay outstanding loan (>1 year old)
• For 75% of participating groups to demonstrate social action within their village, district or nation such as implementing an infrastructure project (construction of well, latrine, electricity, etc.)
IPM Funding Goal for 2010:
$7,000
Community Impact:
Jamuna lives in Samaji Tol of Danghadi Municipality, Ward 6, Kalaili District. She is 35 and literate at a basic level through non-formal education classes for women. She is the president of the Samaiji Mahila Krisak Samuha (Society’s Women Farmers Savings Group) in her village. After participating in the calendar project, Jamuna was inspired to become more socially active beyond the scope of her local group. She is now the Vice-President of the District Land Rights Forum which is active in land rights advocacy. She is working to help the low caste Halia in western Nepal to register their land, free bonded villagers from landlords who have taken their lands and pressuring the National Land Rights Committee to provide land to the landless. Thus while Jamuna is a direct beneficiary from the calendar project, all her clients are indirect beneficiaries as well as her villagers and fellow saving group members who now see Jamuna as a role model.
Lalita (Class 7 student) is the daughter of Khagisara Thapa Magar, a member of Chetana (Awareness) Women’s Saving Group in Chhotipur village, Sai Gau VCS, Ward No 2, Banke District. As a result of working with the Calendar Project this year, the Chetana Group made an action plan to help their village and built a new wooden bridge over a small creek. The bridge is wide and sturdy enough for foot traffic and bicycles (but not vehicles) and has side rails for safety. Lalita can now easily ride her bike to school. Carrying fodder from the jungle is also easier. Monsoon season for her and all the villagers will be easier to bear with this new bridge.
How your donation may be put to use:
$155 allows one community group to continue holding monthly discussion groups, workshops, rallies and other programs