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| Vol 1, Issue 3 |
May – June 2007 |
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Welcome to the May/June
e-newsletter.
In this issue. |
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Suklaphanta Wildlife Reserve has the largest number of Swamp deer in the World. They are sociable animal and are often found as large herds grazing in the grasslands. |
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| Celebrating International Biodiversity Day |
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Mohana Kailali Conservation Coordination Committee, Kailali and WTLCP-Dhangadhi jointly celebrated the International Biodiversity Day enumerating floral species in Adarsha Community Forest on 22 May 2007. Field Manager Ek Raj Sigdel and Kailali District Plant Resource Officer Dr. Dinesh Sharma highlighted on the linkage of biodiversity conservation and climate change. WWF/TAL Project Manager Mr. Ram Prasad Lamsal shed light on the importance of biodiversity conservation. A total of 63 plant species were recorded in the Adarsha Community Forest. Some 60 people, including 40 women were involved in enumerating the floral species. |
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Enumerating Floral Species in Adarsha Community Forest, Kailali. |
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| World Environment Day Celebrated |
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To mark the World Environment Day, Nepal Dalit Upliftment Society, a local NGO, showcased a street drama at Baisebichuwa, Kanchanpur on 5 June 2007. The drama was effective in conveying conservation messages for more than 300 participants. Similarly, Eco-club of Chandrodaya higher secondary school, Phulbari, Kailali marked the day by undertaking cleanup campaign in the school premises. The Eco-club members then took out a rally with play cards, chanting slogans of the importance of the environment management. The rally then converted into a corner meeting, where local intellectuals, students and eco-club members shared their views on the importance of environment management. Similarly, Bardia National Park (BNP), Buffer Zone Management Councils of BNP, Suklaphanta Wildlife Reserve (SWR), Buffer Zone user committees of BNP and SWR celebrated the day by organising various programmes. |
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| General Assembly of Cooperative |
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Mohana Laljhadi Saving and Credit Cooperative of Baisebichuwa, established by WTLCP Dhangadhi, organised the first general assembly of the Cooperative at Kunda of Baisebichuwa VDC on 5 June 2007. A total of 270 people, with the majority of women, assembled at the ceremony. At the outset of the meeting, Chairperson of the Cooperative, Ms. Prem Lata Gautam informed that 238 shareholders including 135 women registered in the Cooperative within the two months period of its establishment. |
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| General Assembly Participants of Baisebichuwa Cooperative. |
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| Well Being Ranking |
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FECOFUN Kailali carried out well being exercises at Ghaibelani, Rani Ban, Rato Pani and Kalika Community Forests of Godawari VDC in June 2007. These exercises were found instrumental to segregate local Forest User Groups into various income categories. As more than 50% of 1056 families in the four Forest User Groups were found to fall under poor category, representatives from these groups were given training on entrepreneurship development. In addition, the trainees received some seed money from WTLCP through local forest coordination committee to undertake various income generation activities. |
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| Gothala Education |
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With the support of WTLCP-Dhangadhi, NEEDS, a local NGO, conducted conservation awareness trainings for livestock herders (Gothalas) in Kasuwa Naka, Jainaka Jaima, Parsia Naka, Nanda Gaun Naka of Baisebichuwa VDC of Kanchanpur in June 2007. The trainings reached to a total of 122 livestock herders of which 38% were female. |
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| Participates of Livestock Herders Training, Kanchanpur. |
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| Expanding Eco-clubs |
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As per the policy of forming one eco-club in each school of project sites, 15 additional eco-clubs were formed in Kanchanpur in June 2007. A total of 181 school children were included in the eco-clubs as executive members. Kanchanpur based NGO called Bal Jagaran Kendra facilitated the eco-club formation process. Similarly, WTLCP-Bardia supported Suklaphanta Environment Network, Kanchanpur and Eco club network Bardia in organising street drama in Kanchanpur and Gola and Pashupatinagar. |
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| School Students and Teachers in an Eco Club Meeting. |
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| Field Visit of High Level Officials |
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A team of high level officials including Deputy Director General of Department of Forests, Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, Nepal Agricultural Research Council, BISEP-ST, TAL, WTLCP visited Bardia National Park, Suklaphanta Wildlife Reserve, buffer zones and Dhangadhi area from 15-21 June. The aim of the visit was to observe the activities, interact with the communities and appraise the changes due to intervention. |
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| Field Visit of High Level Officials, Bardia National Park. |
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| Study Tour |
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A 14-member study team comprising government officials, local authority, civil society, political parties, professional associations and WTLCP staff members visited Haryana from June 14-23. The objective of the tour was to learn joint forest management practices and agricultural development activities in various sites of Haryana. The team had an opportunity of interacting with local communities, observing various forest management models and sharing experiences with Haryana Forest Officials in the tour, coordinated by Indian Forest Officials. |
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| Meeting with Indian Forest Officials, Pinjore, Haryana. |
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| A workshop on Forest Gene Bank Management |
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WTLCP organised a half-day workshop on “Forest Gene Bank Management” on 27 June 2007 at Central Management Unit, Babarmahal, Kathmandu. Dr K.N. Ganeshaiah, Scientist from the University of Bangalore, was the resource person for the workshop. A total of 30 participants from UNDP, NARC, LI-BIRD, MFSC and WTLCP were present in the workshop.
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| Workshop on Forest Gene Bank Management, Kathmandu. |
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| Entrepreneurship Development Training |
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Nine-day long entrepreneurship development trainings were held at Godawari and Dekhatbhuli VDCs in Kailali and Kanchanpur districts respectively during May and June 2007. Poorest of the poor forest dependent community people from Rato Pani, Raniban, Ghaia Belani, and Kalika Community Forest User Groups and Shovatal User Committee people of Dekhatbhuli participated the training. |
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Entrepreunerhip Development Training, Kailali. |
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| CFUG Institutional Strengthening Training |
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In order to enhance knowledge, strengthen capacity and bring Community Forest Users Group (CFUG) into mainstream of sustainable biodiversity conservation and use, WTLCP supported Regional Forest Training Centre, Kailali for organising 4 units of CFUG Institutional Strengthening Training for existing and proposed CFUGs in Manau, Gola, Pashupatinagar and Patavar in Bardia. A total of 80 CFUG members participated the training. |
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| Capacity Development Training |
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Trainings on Proposal Writing and Governance were held in Kanchanpur for 17 Buffer Zone User Committee (BZUC) members. Likewise, with the aim to motivate locals in biodiversity conservation and enhance their knowledge and awareness in personal hygiene, Geruwa User Committee of Bardia National Park organised a three days training programme on HIV AIDS and first aid use. In support of WTLCP, Dev Training Cenre also organised Training of Trainers (TOT) in June 2007, which was participated by forest rangers, representatives of community based organisations, local NGOs, and newly recruited staff of WTLCP - Dhangadhi.
FECOFUN Kailali carried out three trainings on Non-timber Forest Products Management for CFUGs of Gadaria, Godawari and Phulbari in June 2007. A total of 76 participants benefited from the training. Similarly, NTFP management trainings held for the poor and disadvantaged people of 9 BZUCs of SWR-Buffer Zone.
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Participants of TOT Training, Dhangadhi. |
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| New Cooperative Formed |
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A new cooperative was formed at Shankarpur VDC in Kanchanpur in June 2007. The cooperative of nine members would be a partner organisation of WTLCP for implementing income and employment generation activities in a long run. Before the formation of the cooperative, Nepal Environment and Education Development Society (NEEDS) trained 63 locals on the importance of cooperative for income and employment generation activities.
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| Training for New Cooperative Members, Shankarpur. |
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| Impact Assessment |
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A meeting of the key stakeholders was held at Phulbari of Kailali District on 3 May 2007 to evaluate the impact of training on sustainable Forest Management and planning workshop that was held four months back. The meeting revealed that the workshop was fruitful in encouraging local communities towards registering their forest as community forest as well as boosting their confidence in preparing similar kinds of development plans.
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| DFCC Meeting |
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District Forest Coordination Committee (DFCC) meeting of Kanchanpur was held at Kanchanpur District Development Committee on 29 June 2007. The meeting, chaired by Kanchanpur District Local Development Officer Mr. Ramesh Kumar Adhikari, was participated by representatives of political parties, civil society, local communities, and government line agencies. WTLCP Field Managers, Ashok Prasad Ojha and Ek Raj Sigdel presented the first half-year progress status and also briefed on the Haryana visit outcomes to the DFCC members.
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| DFCC Meeting, Kanchanpur. |
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| Micro Credit Services |
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In order to improve livelihood of poor, disadvantaged and dalit communities and increase their involvement in biodiversity conservation activities,
a total of 75 User Committee people of Bindra, Asaregaudi and Geruwa User Committes of Bardia and Kalikich, Bageshwori, Suklaphanta and Shovatal User Committees of Kanchanpur were provided soft loan for agro based and off farm income generation activities through the respective cooperatives.
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| Funds for Wildlife Damage |
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With an aim to minimise human-wildlife conflict and motivate local communities towards biodiversity conservation, Buffer Zone Management Committees (BZMCs) of SWR and BNP were supported to manage wildlife relief funds. The fund operation mechanism is based on the relief fund guidelines developed by SWR and BNP. Buffer Zone residents in BNP and SWR are the primary beneficiaries of this programme.
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| PCC Meeting Held |
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A Project Coordination Committee (PCC) meeting was held on 4 June 2007 with an aim to discuss on ongoing activities of WTLCP. WTLCP donors and partners from UNDP, SNV, WWF and NARC were present in the meeting.
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For your comments and suggestions, mail us at enewsletter@wtlcp.org.np
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Western Terai Landscape Complex Project
Foresty Complex, Babarmahal, Kathmandu, Nepal
Tel: +977-1-4262310, 4218458 Fax: +977-1-4225553 , P.O.Box: 24417
Web: www.wtlcp.org.np |
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