|
>View discussions about this entry Country: Nepal
Organization: Nepal International Consumers Union and JC International English School (Charitable school for the poor)
Field of Work - Water
Year the initative began (yyyy) - 2008
Positioning in the Mosaic of solutions
What is your signature innovation, your new idea, in one sentence? - Community Water and Sanitation project with education
through seminars/orientation,/interaction/ discussion,meetings with attending regular health class at our school Describe your innovation. What makes your idea unique and different than others doing work in the field? - This project is unique in the sense that it is designed to assist the entire village. It is developed in a region where water is most scarce and sanitation is hopeless due to a lack of education and awareness. This idea came to us during our meetings and interaction programs with local community. The community is very hopeful that this project will be implemented at this village and their drinking water problems they face will be solved. This project also seeks to improve the villager’s agriculture production to grow more to earn more income. Their economic condition will thus improve and health from clean drinking water and proper sanitation with awareness programs can make a big difference. The local people get sick from parasitic or from unclean water and sanitation and suffer from Typhoid, paratyphoid, amoebic, diarrhea, cholera, gastro-enteritis, infection, hepatitis A, jaundice, polimytelits, germs, skin disease, colds & flues.
This will be solved from this project. This idea is unique and different than others is in that it not only supplies pure drinking water & proper sanitation to the community but it simultaneously educates the community to protect itself from such water borne disease and safe sanitation. It is predicted that at least 60 % of water born illness can be prevented through this education project. Delivery Model: How do you implement your innovation and apply it to the challenge/problem you are addressing? - There is plenty of scope for developing solutions to the problems the people will face
Water will be supplied from boring or deep tube-deep- well system to continue supply of drinking water and for agriculture productions. Farmers will trap the groundwater or harvesting rain (once they are educated) to provide irrigation for their crops. As water from Government owned water supply is no guarantee and no water dry tap goes frequently. In summer there is no water for drinking. People have to wait a long time for a jar of water or they have to travel long for few buckets of water which is also not fit for drinking. So this will be best model for the supply of sufficient of drinking water & increased water use is the growing demand for corps and fruits and vegetables. Apart from this, education on Rain water drinking and harvesting will be added value. This challenge is acceptable to us as we are fully committed for solving these problems. Life itself is a challenge for one reason or another, and one can’t be free during life time but such improving standards of living through water and sanitation will provide happiness and joy in life. How do you plan to expand your innovation? - Primarily, this will be implemented at one village - Balkot Ward No 8- which has more than 1050 local people and children. If this water supply and sanitation goes well then we can plan further to apply the same system or with certain modification at other villages gradually. Our programs will also be focused at different schools at this village to educate the children. We educate them on health along with providing basic education to the children. Our plan depends on financing. If we have finance we can continue our program like this at other villages where water is in high demand. Without water one can’t survive so water is life. Even our food is also coming from water. No vegetation can survive without water. Water is our mother like air, sun, earth, fire and water. These are the five most important elements that have been struggling to maintain our life and our earth. In the absence of any one it is not possible to survive. Now we have started climate change biodiversity, the unusually hot climate has affected our life and we are predicting many difficulties in our life ahead. This is why we have to be together to solve for our future generation. This is from our generation which we have to handover to our new generation in sound and good condition. In the last among them are stress tolerant crop varieties, better practices for managing soil, water and natural resources, new approaches to agricultural diversification and innovative institutional arrangements and policies that foster positive change
Do you have any existing partnerships, and if so, how do you create them? - What type of partnerships to do need? Partnership is with the village persons and local schools at this village community only but their economic condition is so poor that they can‘t contribute financially. Despite financial constraints they would be ready to cooperate with us fully. And we can also mobilize school students when this is needed for supervision as volunteers and they need our support.
Partnership we mean to work with the community as a partner not any other partners or stakeholders or financer so far we have for this project. So this project aims to create more partners in term of finance. We can also take cooperation from local community schools students and local partners and looking forward for international partners and funding organizations through Ashoka's Changemakers for drinking water, ecosystems and biodiversity, water and climate change ,water resource management and sanitation and hygiene practices. Above all supply of drinking water and agriculture productions are two important sectors to focus part two other like sanitation health education and Environmental education to community and schools students. Human Health is so important that it should not be ignored by any one. So our new partners coming to rescue us from this existing problem of drinking water and sanitation is highly welcome and they are great. We wish to create partners them through Ashoka’s Changemakers through this competition. Provide one sentence describing your impact/intended impact. - The local community suffering from the shortage of water and sanitation will be free and their educational level will go up. It inspires communities.
How many people have you served or plan to serve? - This field has not been completed
Please list any other measures of the impact of your innovation? - We are doing regular interaction with local community since our school is at this village. However we are very well aware of their present needs and their demand . They are cooperative and helpful for our school. Hence we are committed very much to relief them from water shortage and sanitation, we also need their local cooperation for this program without their support it is also difficult to undertake such initiatives. The community will be happy getting enough drinking water for their green vegetation and improved sanitation problems will also be solved when there is enough water. Our regular health education will make them healthy and happy with their family And their income sources will go up and their standard also will be more/high. In total there will be happiness in family.
Exactly who are the beneficiaries of your innovation? - This field has not been completed
How is your initiative financed (or how do you expect your initiative will be financed)? - Finance is main factor for any type of initiative. So we have to request funding organizations to support such community based project to benefit as many persons as possible. In view of this nature of project it is highly hoped that funding organization where we are applying will approve or accept to award this money to undertake this initiative. We welcome any support that is offered to us for this important project.
Provide information on your finances and organization: - Current Annual budget (2007 fiscal year)?
Annual budget for the past 1-2 years (2006 and 2005)? Annual revenue generated? What are your current sources and/or streams of revenue? Do you currently have sources of earned income (examples?); If not, why? This field has not been completed What is the potential demand for your innovation? - How do you estimate this demand?
Number of staff (full-time, part-time, volunteers): As mentioned we are organizing our education programs at this village community so we are most familiar with potential demand on the discussion, time to time interaction programs, with them and interaction this project was decided. They need many more but this is of the most important innovation and our health workers 7 full time ,4 part time and local volunteers (numbers not confirmed) will be involved if needed more can hired during this undertaking. What are the main barriers to financial sustainability? - Financial stability is not guaranteed. The main barrier to financial sustainability is funding constraints from funding organizations. Once they support it is not likely to support again so financial sustainability is not guaranteed. In order to maintain this project, we have to prove ourselves before funding organizations as a competent partner for undertaking the project sincerely. As an agricultural country we have to largely depend on agriculture for which water is must. So we give more priority on water as main issue but our Government is helpless to support us only they have largely been dependent on the funding organizations for finance. We have to see partnership-building, capacity –building and follow up on process and programs progress and prospects on Water for a clean, healthy community as a whole.
What is the origin of this innovation? Tell us your story. - “They are Gokyo Lake near Mount Everest, Gosainkunda Lake, which has great religious significance, Phoksundo Lake the deepest lake in Nepal, and Rara Lake, Nepal's largest lake. These lakes are among the highest and the most beautiful wetlands in the world” We have many rivers but even the holy river in Kathmandu valley has turned to open sanitation/drainage there by causing a great environmental impact for the local people” Open river from the other part of valley could not have been diverted to Kathmandu to provide water for public. Every year there is politics in Water water politic is very dirty in Nepal . Politician claims that they provide water when they contest election but when they win they forget this and shy away from this words so this has very much has touched my heart to begin this project”
Drinking water, sanitation, environment (Climate Change) are three most important for all of us. Mostly villages are fully dependent on agriculture where water is the main source of income from cultivation. If they receive water they can cultivate nicely than they are doing at this difficult time. There is no canal nor is any river the village at the some height so water flow from river and canal not available. And people are poor and their economic condition is not good . They need support and cooperation to meet their needs to come true. So during interaction and discussion while working with them from time to time this project was planned and this was agreed. In short there is shortage of clean drinking water and post harvesting water shortage is there every time. to reserve water for harvesting is very important to upgrade their agricultural products for more income and livelihood with awareness on Water , rain water education and awareness , basic sanitation health and hygiene organic agricultural products for income generate, sustainable consumption patterns, climate change, tree planting for clean & green environment . with education programs for schools children and community on Water and Sanitation. To observe the World Water week and Day as local initiative with various programs like School sports, quiz contest among schools children banner pla-card, essay contest on Water and our life, interaction , seminars/workshops with Community to use water properly and save water. We are supposed to form a committee at this village with Ward members Schools teachers ,NICU members and JC school health teachers to leeo and supervise this project until it is completed so as to give full value of this project to the community. Since a along time we have received request from dalit family (about 14 houses with 200 familes to provide them water through separate tube –well because other local community generally did not allow them to touch their water tap or any water source in view of their cast and religion ,but legally it is not allowed but practically it is still there So first of all we have to provide them a separate water through deep boring or tube well for this family it is our first priority on this project. Then the other community and schools will be undertaken. Over all our mission is to provide regular water for all prupose with hygiene as hand hygiene and personal hygiene, Food hygiene (cooking,storing,preventing cross contamination, ensuring safe water at the point of use, safe disposal of faeces (both human and animal),general hygiene (laundry,surfaces,toilets baths,sinks) disposal of solid waste,control of waste water and rain water, situations where there is more risk, care of those who are infected Care of those who are more vulnerable to infection Please provide a personal bio. Note this may be used in Changemakers marketing material - Mr Gautam is the Founder and Board Member of NGO and school He did his post- graduation from RVB The Netherlands in the marketing management system. He founded this NGO in 1991 and school in 2005. He is looking day to day work of NGO and International Relations with fund raise/s are the main responsibility. There are other Board Members too but they just attend Board meetings and review time to time progress report. and annual report if any decision is to be taken they will do it and time to time advices are received from them. They are helpful.
NGO we have CONGO associate member-ship, USAID Registered Member of Social Welfare Council and Registered with Nepal Government in 1991 And the school is registered at Balkot village Development Committee as a charitable school for the poor . We are carrying out Human Rights programs, HIV health education for school children and community at different schools and villages, and once we had undertaken water and sanitation education for school children and community. Currently we have health education programs for community and school children. Somehow we are maintaining our organization, but we are facing much difficulty at the school because of funding constrants. Contact Information:
A.P. Gautam
Project Executive/International Relation Nepal International Consumers Union and JC International English School (Charitable school for the poor) (NGO/ Academic) Discussions about this entry |
Community based water and sanitation project
|
|
its great to have the following programme.......
Dear Gautam,
The idea looks good and I wish you all the best as you look for funding to implement your innovation. On the issue of skilled man power as a barrer, you could try to seek for people who are willing to share knowledge freely especially students. It could be their opportunity to gain some knowledge and skills. Thank you.
Pius Kahangirwe
Graduate Student
Makerere University Institute of Environment & Natural Resources
P.O.Box 7062
kampala.