The geographical, ethnic and social heterogeneity of Nepal as well as the low performance of the economy and the state make it difficult for its poorer citizens to access basic services and income opportunities. Support is being provided for the enhancement of government, civil society, democratic self-administration and the participation of local people in poverty reduction measures. As far as possible, the continued development and implementation of the national peace and reform agenda is also being promoted as a means of strengthening local self-governance. Special emphasis is placed on conflict reduction measures and on access to services at the local level for marginalised population groups.

GTZ promotes improvements to food security and the financial situation of the poor, the establishment of self-help groups and infrastructural improvements. In rural as well as urban areas assistance is given to create new forms of income generation and to strengthen local systems of service delivery. At the same time, local authorities are encouraged to cooperate with civil society organisations and residents groups. The aim is to achieve greater efficiency in the planning, financing and implementation of urban service provision alongside enhanced transparency. At the national level, GTZ contributes to the creation of guidelines on local self-governance. In cooperation with KfW Entwicklungsbank, assistance is also being provided for establishing an urban development fund to finance local infrastructure projects.

Programmes and projects in the priority area of local self-governance and civil society:

• Urban development
• Poverty reduction in selected rural areas
• Socially balanced economic development

The peace process calls for rapid responses to the needs of the target groups and the partners. At the same time, there is growing potential for institutional renewal to open the way for structural and sustainable development opportunities. In this transitional phase (and following the 2008 election), the socially-inclusive technical cooperation is aimed to be both conflict-sensitive and oriented toward enhanced stability.