The Community Development Department (CDD), a pioneer department for implementing Community Development Programmes (CDPs) in Nepal Red Cross Society, aims to build resilient communities through diverse integrated community-based programmes and projects, which contribute to healthy, safer and resilient living.
The ‘central community development committee’ is the governance body that facilitates and guides the process of defining the Community Development strategies and policies. The work of CDD is guided by ‘Policy and Procedure of Community Development Programme’ (1996), which made way for the ‘Policy of Community Development and Resilience Programme’ (2017).
We are not just active during disasters; we are also present in communities before disaster strikes and work well beyond the initial crisis phase. We are well-placed to contribute effectively to long-term sustainable development. Major areas of intervention through the CDD programmes are:
- Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM)
- Sanitation and Hygiene (school, urban & rural)
- Emergency Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
- Public Health WASH
- Menstrual Health Management (MHM)
- Livelihood
- Protection Gender and Inclusion (PGI)
- Risk Management (disaster & development)
- Climate Change (CC)
- Institutional Capacity Building (ICB) / Organizational Development (OD)
- Human Trafficking
- Knowledge & Learning Management (KLM)
Divisions
The department comprises of two divisions viz. ‘Community Resilience (CR) Division’ and the ‘Water and Sanitation Hygiene (WASH) Division’.
Community Resilience (CR) Division
Since its establishment, the Community Resilience Division has been guided by a clear set of humanitarian principles and values that aim to contribute effectively to build community resilience. The Division puts communities and their individual needs at the centre of its work. It is supporting communities in building capacities to become self-reliant and independently cope with any future shocks or hazards, securing sustainable long-term development. The Division endeavors to meet people’s basic needs for health, shelter, education, food, water and security; makes every effort to ensure that the social costs and benefits are fairly shared by all and inequities are eliminated; respects human rights, human dignity and local values; and ensures that non-renewable resources, biodiversity and the environment are managed responsibly. Among the guiding principles of the division’s work are community-driven development, the establishment of strong networks across stakeholders (connectedness) and the strengthening of local capacities and ownership (localization).
The Community Resilience Division has been implementing Community Resilience Project since the 1980s in partnership with various national societies (Finnish, Norwegian, Danish, Belgian, Swedish, Austrian and Swiss Red Cross). It has been one of the core programs of Nepal Red Cross Society focusing on the issues of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), Water, Hygiene and Sanitation (WASH), Maternal and Child Health (MNCH), Non-formal Education, Gender Equity and Social Inclusion (GESI), Human Trafficking, Livelihood risks of the people and aiming to mitigate their adverse effects.
Water and Sanitation Hygiene (WASH) Division
The WASH Division deals with drinking water and sanitation programmes with objectives of providing safe drinking water in order to bring improvements in people’s health and sanitation as well as to ensure their good health and wellbeing. NRCS has been implementing various activities under the Drinking Water Project in a number of districts from 1982 onwards and has since been extending it. WASH-related interventions and initiatives are guided by the Drinking Water and Sanitation Policy (2003).
Emergency WASH and Development WASH are the major focus areas of the Division. Sanitation and Hygiene, Safe Water Supply, Organizational Development and Capacity Building, Environmental Improvement, Food Security and Emergency WatSan are forming the major scope of the WASH program. As far as the Emergency WASH is concerned, preparedness and response in the WASH sector are prominent. Trained human resource for emergency response in the WASH sector and technical support across the department and programme are major interventions thereof. As far as the development WASH programme is concerned, the inclusive WASH programmes are being implemented in various districts, which integrate and address social and environmental issues, for example; menstrual hygiene management (MHM), disaster risk reduction (DRR), climate change and gender equality and social inclusion (GESI).
Partners
- Austrian Red Cross
- British Red Cross
- Finnish Red Cross
- Hong Kong Red Cross
- International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)
- Irish Red Cross
- Qatar Red Crescent Society
- South Korean Red Cross
Projects
| SN | Project | Coverage | Partner | Target Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Integrated Community Resilience Development through Supporting Cash Crop and Livestock Farming (ICRDSCCLF) Project | Bharatpur Metropolitan city ward no. 16 and 23, Madi Municipality ward no. 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 9, Rapti Municipality ward no. 1 and 2 of Chitwan district | Qatar Red Crescent Society | 700 households |
| 2 | Disabled Friendly Class Room Construction (DFCLC) Project | Mahabir Janta Higher Secondary School, Haripur Municipality, Sarlahi | Qatar Red Crescent Society | 11 visually impaired persons |
| 3 | Community Resilience Programme (CRP) | Rauhat: Bodimai MC 7,8, and 9 Wards Sarlai: Haripur MC 2, 7 and 8 Wards Ilam: Deumai MC 7, 8, and 9 wards Sindhuli: Hariharpurgadi MC 6, 7 and 8 wards Taplegung: Aathrai Tribeni RM 3 no ward | Finnish Red Cross | 47,814 people in 8165 households |
| 4 | Enhancement Community Development Program (ECDP) | Lalitpur, Mahankal Rural Municipality, Ward No. 3, 4 and 5 | British Red Cross | 5,499 people |
| 5 | Community livelihood promotion project | Myagdi district, Raghuganga Rural Municipality ward number 1, 4 and 7 | Irish Red Cross | 4,000 people |
| 6 | Inclusive Sanitation Hygiene & Drinking Water Management Project | Naumule Rural municipality 3 Dawari, Dailekh District | South Korean Red Cross | 2,218 people in 435 households |
| 7 | Inclusive Sanitation Hygiene & Water management Project | Tinau Municipality 1 and 2 | Austrian Red Cross | 8,342 people |
| 8 | Recovery Development Programme-WASH | Sindhuli, 1-9 wards of Sitalpati VDC | International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescents / Hong Kong Red Cross | 5,219 people |
| 9 | Universally Accessible Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Promotion Project, Nepal | Morang (Dhanpalsthan Rural Municipality) and Parsa (Bahudarmai Municipality) | Qatar Red Crescent Society | 8,000 people |
Contact
Director: Buddhi Sagar Shrestha
E-mail: sagar.shrestha@nrcs.org