The Program:

We all know that the economic disruptions brought about by COVID-19 are projected to continue for a prolonged period. After more than 10 months of pandemic-induced lockdown in 2020, and continued in 2021, these projections are alarming for the most vulnerable segments of the population in Nepal for whom the severity of the economic and health emergency continues to exacerbate daily. The Labor Force Survey data indicates that COVID-19 has cost the economy more than 2 million jobs across sectors, putting an additional 4.4 million jobs at risk based on their dependence on high-impacted sectors such as wholesale and retail, accommodation and food services, and manufacturing. This has adversely impacted livelihoods as 3 in 10 households have lost some income, 23% of households had inadequate food consumption 1, and 9.7 % have reduced the number of meals per day 2. 41% of working women lost their jobs vs. 28% of men, further exacerbating the gender pay gap and female labor force participation.

The crisis continues to choke the livelihoods of informal workers, particularly women and daily wage workers, internal migrants, and seasonal migrants to India, who are excluded from any social protection measures, exacerbating social and economic inequalities. While the current crisis has exacerbated pre-existing socio-economic challenges for the country at large- the pre-existing conditions of inequality, poverty, informality, and vulnerability are the most severe for women. Women, half of the country’s population, continue to struggle across all socio-economic groups. And recent statistics indicate that women across Nepal have been disproportionately and severely impacted by the crisis. The same situation we found when we discussed it on many informal/formal platforms.

Thus, ASK Nepal in partnership with UNDP Nepal considering this evolving and deepening crisis, the provision of temporary basic income (TBI) – Sambodhan in the form of emergency cash transfer to these women is being explored as an international best practice and successfully implemented in Putalibazaar municipality of Gandaki province. The effort of basic income is linked with livelihood skills enhancement and linking with the relevant stakeholders for the sustainability of the initiative.

PROGRAM BENEFITS

The Development Aid program has provided over 12 million Nepali rupees in grants to rural farming communities in the last 10 years. 9 million of the grants has been spent to provide thousands of individual micro-loans of between 5,000 and 25,000 NPR, each giving the opportunity for a rural household to purchase livestock, farming equipment, or other income generating tools. The remaining grants have been used for building construction, student scholarships, skill training, irrigation and road repair, and a large variety of other projects. For a full description of the Development Aid program and the specific projects established through it, please visit the Trianglen program site.