Press Release

Press Release

Project launch for DGM Nepal - Rural Reconstruction Nepal RRN

Press Release

World Bank, RRN Launch $4.5 Million Project to Strengthen Role of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities in Nepal’s Forest Sector

KATHMANDU, December 22, 2022 – The World Bank and Rural Reconstruction Nepal (RRN) launched the ‘Dedicated Grant Mechanism for Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities in Nepal (DGM Nepal)’ project today to strengthen the capacity of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) in Nepal’s forest sector.

DGM Nepal is a five-year project under a grant of $4.5 million which will operate in 50 municipalities of Madhesh and Lumbini Provinces. It focuses on improving the capacity of Nepal’s IPLCs to participate in national, regional, and global initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) and promote sustainable forest management and forest carbon stocks. It will also help to create livelihood opportunities and increase the income of forest-dependent communities in Madhesh and Lumbini provinces.

“Indigenous peoples and local communities play important roles in the protection, management, and restoration of forests,” said Faris Hadad-Zervos, World Bank Country Director for Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. “This will be a landmark project in putting IPLCs at the heart of climate action to facilitate both mitigation of and adaptation to climate change.”

The DGM Nepal project will be implemented by RRN as the National Executing Agency selected through a competitive process in 2020 in accordance with the DGM Framework Operational Guidelines. A National Steering Committee comprising of 14 civil society organizations has been set up to provide strategic and leadership guidance to RRN. Indigenous peoples and local communities have been equally represented in the National Steering Committee team as it was organized through a self-selection process.

“The National Steering Committee established under the project is a huge opportunity for Nepal’s IPLCs to enhance their capacities in livelihoods creation as well as in the policy making process. The NSC is committed to ensuring a successful implementation of this important project”, said Jagat Baram, National Steering Committee Co-Chair.

“This is indeed a very remarkable achievement for both IPs and LCs. Besides being beneficiaries of the project, they are also its main architects and advocates who will oversee how the grant funds are used in Nepal during implementation,” said Bharati Pathak, National Steering Committee Co-Chair.

The DGM Nepal project is funded by the Climate Investment Funds (CIF) Forest Investment Program (FIP) implemented by the World Bank to enhance the role of IPLCs in protecting the forests they depend on. It complements the work under the $24 million Forest for Prosperity Project financed by the World Bank and being implemented by the Government of Nepal.

“We are confident that this project will amplify the potential of the indigenous peoples and local communities and their unique knowledge, practices and understanding of sustainable forest management which will help them respond to the challenges of a changing climate,” said Dr. Arjun Karki, President of RRN.

The World Bank and RRN signed the project agreement for the DGM Nepal project on November 16, 2022.

Notes:

The National Steering Committee includes members from the Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NEFIN), National Indigenous Women’s Federation (NIWF), Federation of Nepalese Indigenous Journalists (FONIJ), Nepal Indigenous Disabled Association (NIDA), Youth Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (YFIN), Centre for Indigenous Peoples Research and Development (CIPRED), Federation of Indigenous Nationalities Film (FINFI), Ashmita Nepal, Himawanti Nepal, Federation of Community Forestry Users Nepal (FECOFUN), Association of Family Forest Owner’s, Nepal (AFFON), Rastriya Dalit Network Nepal (RDN), Green Foundation Nepal, Association of Collaborative Forest Users Nepal (ACOFUN).

Contacts:

Kathmandu

Akash Shrestha, [email protected]

Washington, DC

Diana Chung, [email protected]