Lamjung is one of the nine districts classified by the National Adaptation Program of Action
(NAPA) as highly vulnerable to climate change (GoN 2010). A forestry project named 'Hariyo
Ban' has been implemented in Lamjung since 2011 with a strong claimed focus on climate
change. The USAID (United States Agency for International Development) funded project has
been contracted to a consortium led by World Wide Fund for Nature ( WWF) Nepal (with
backing from WWF headquarters in Washington DC) along with CARE (Cooperative for
Assistance and Relief Everywhere) Nepal, the National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC)
and the Federation of Community Forest Users, Nepal (FECOFUN).
A conservation agenda of the project is visible in the project aim (stated in the request for
proposal (RfP) by USAID) is 'to reduce threats to biodiversity and vulnerabilities of climate
change in Nepal' (USAID 2010: 1). The project was primarily designed by the donor and
outsourced for implementation within given design framework and specified geographical area.
In contrast to the Multi-stakeholder Forestry Program (MSFP 2011) which has been government
led and designed with wider stakeholder consultation, the Hariyo Ban is more donor-driven.
There seems to have been limited engagement by government and other agencies at national and
local levels in the project design. Furthermore, the project has been funded off-budget and
implemented through implementing agencies in parallel to the government budgetary
mechanisms.
The USAID RfP and the project document (a technical document prepared by the implementing
agencies - referred as technical document hereafter) have been reviewed in relation to a number
of questions regarding design and implementation of the project with specific focus on how it
engages and interacts with the local context and organisations. These questions are:
a) to what extent and how does the project engage with government organizations (both at
centre and organizations levels) in the design and implementation of the project?;
b) to what extent is the conservation orientation of the project shaped by the agenda of the
donor or implementing agencies and in what ways? and
c) how does the project address climate change related problems faced by local people in
the project sites?