Programme Focussed» |
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RRN focuses all its development programmes on
the four-fold approach of Rural Reconstruction as the foundation
upon which its projects and programme activities are based. The
approach consists of the following four key features:
Education
and Awareness [Top]
RRN implements educational programmes with
the credence that a human being could not be in the proper
sense till s/he is aware and/or educated. Awareness and education
is essential to human progress. The truth is that people have
a right to education, besides the vital necessities of life
like food, clothing and shelter. RRN’s education programme
targets mostly those who are in the state of chronic poverty
and constantly struggling to fulfill this basic need and who
are usually left out by the development programmes of other
agencies.
As in the previous years, in 2005, RRN undertook
a range of literacy and education programmes at the grassroots
level, focusing on both adult women and children education.
It has implemented non-formal education (NFE) programmes for
adults directed towards basic literacy, legal literacy, parenting
education, and other practical training activities. Under
children’s education RRN sought to bridge the divide
between formal and non-formal education through programmes
focused on: child literacy, early childhood development and
parenting education classes, out-of-school programmes (OSPs),
vocational training and counseling, provision of scholarships
and formal schooling support. Children at risk of child labour,
those affected by the ongoing conflict and female children
form the principal focus groups.
RRN has also produced a variety of information
and educational materials such as posters, manuals, booklets
and leaflets to facilitate implementation of education and
awareness raising activities at different levels.
Sustainable
Livelihoods [Top]
Sustainable livelihoods encompasses the
activities intended to help disadvantaged members of society
meet their daily subsistence needs in a manner that is dignified,
locally appropriate and environmentally sustainable. RRN acts
on the belief that the principal need of the rural poor is
not temporary relief from their suffering but the release
and development of their innate intellectual, productive,
physical, political and organising powers, to enable them
to undertake their own short and long term development initiatives.
RRN’s livelihood programmes include sustainable agriculture
and social forestry, kitchen gardening, livestock rearing,
rural micro finance and other income generating activities.
RRN also undertakes action and desk based
research into sustainable livelihood options, such as on non-
timber forest products (NTFPs), livestock rearing and community
forestry, the findings of which are then incorporated into
project and programme development.
Health
[Top]
Health can be defined as “the capacity
of people to adapt to, respond to, or control life’s
challenges and changes”. The philosophy of Rural Reconstruction
supports the transformation of “sick societies”
into “healthy societies” not only in the physical
sense but also in the social, psychological, political and
economic sense. Health and nutrition problems in Nepal are
varied, enormous and spiraling, particularly among the rural
poor, and greatly impede their self-development. RRN, therefore,
seeks to integrate a community health component into many
of its development projects. We give emphasis to preventive
measures rather than curative measures, including through
work on nutrition, sanitation, drinking water, training of
health care professionals, health education, outreach/mobile
heath clinics and immunisation programmes.
Self-Government
[Top]
Self-government is indispensable for sustainable
development and is understood in terms of inclusion into governance
by empowering the deprived and marginalised populations in
society. RRN follows the principle that, for development to
be pertinent and sustainable, it must be planned and undertaken
primarily by the “insiders” - the very people for
whom it is meant. Development workers - the “outsiders”
- can help by facilitating a participatory process, through
which the people organise themselves and collectively analyse
their situation, identify their problems, articulate their
demands, select and plan solutions, mobilise resources and
then implement, monitor and evaluate the actions taken.
The process of empowerment, self-reliance
and self-government includes awareness raising and active
participation through analysing problems, potentials, opportunities
and constraints, capacity building through management, leadership
and technical skills training and federating and networking
people’s organisations. As one of the vital components
of its programmes, RRN has therefore encouraged and facilitated
the beneficiaries to build their own organisations and institutions
for their own development. Such people’s groups form
the building blocks for bottom-up organisational development
and genuine participation in the development process.
RRN has been involved in conflict transformation by raising
awareness amongst the community members and also by addressing
the issues of economic, social and cultural marginalisation
of the vast majority of the rural massesbelonging to the poor
and excluded populace. It has been carrying on reconstruction
and rehabilitation activities for a long time and especially
at the present situation of conflict transition period RRN
hopes these activities will be vehicles for reconciliation
amongst different conflicting sides by bringing them together
and working together for their common benefit. RRN believes
and has been implementing activities towards fulfilling their
livelihood needs as these were the causal factors of the decade
long conflict in the country. The focus of RRN has been to
implement the activities and lobby and advocate at national,
regional and international levels for pro-poor and right based
development discourse.
RRN has been actively involved in human
rights issues also. It took leading role against the autocratic
regime this year by coordinating national and international
stakeholders raising awareness about the poor records of human
rights, and destruction of all the democratic institutions
in Nepal.
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