Summary:

Tedakatti VDC Office has allocated budget for the gravel road during fiscal year 2072/2073. The user’s groups need to be formed for gravelling road project. For that some people gathered in Kalaiya, Bara for user group formation without letting know to the community people. Mr. Jaharuudin Ansari (Coordinator of HRAA) got to know that user group was already formed without consultation with the community people. HRAA of Tedakatti VDC had conversation with VDC secretary about user group formation and protested that; user group should be formed informing community people. They gave pressure to the VDC secretary saying that they would go for demonstration demanding the reformation of users’ group in consultation with community people. After that, existing user group was reformed in community with participation of the community people. This was possible because HRAA were provided with budget advocacy and HRBA training on September, 2016. They got to know about VDC level planning process and could able to speak for their right against inconsistency in the community during VDC level planning process.

Challenges:

The community people have been deprived of participating in planning process and accessing public services in the community. Due to the power relationship among stakeholders in community, the people are unable to participate in their VDC’s development process where they should participate mandatorily. The VDC stakeholders used to form user group in closed room of Kalaiya which should be formed under participatory process in the community.

Initiative:

HRAA of Tedakatti VDC got to know about procedures during planning process, as they already got training regarding HRBA and Budget advocacy which was provided to impart them with knowledge of VDC level planning process, role/duties of stakeholders and community people in planning process. Hence, they realized seeing formation of user group without participation of community people which should be held in participation of the community people. So, they had meeting with VDC secretary for finding out exact situation. As they gave pressure to VDC secretary and demanded for the reformation of it withthe participation of community people. With continuous pressure, user group was reformed with participation of community people.

Results:

HRBA and budget advocacy training to HRAA members and activists was conducted for promoting participation of community people in planning process at local level. Initiation of HRAA members as they already knew process and procedures during planning process in VDC helped community people to speak for their right to participate in community forum for development.