Environmental policy and administrative management

As describes in the COMEDEKS baseline assessment, the major threats in the proposed VDCs (Kalikatar and Dandakharka) are: lack of technical capacity with regards to the ecosystem protection and the restoration of the ecology, overexploitation of natural resources, natural disasters, low level of literacy, low access to social services, recurrent natural disasters ( e.g landslide, floods) low level of awareness on the climate change and the importance of the protection of the environmental and bio-diversity conservation. Furthermore, unsustainable use of natural resources and low level of protection adopted at the community level are also somewhat responsible for food insecurity in the targeted regions. In the targeted VDCs women, dalit and ethnic minorities follow agriculture as their main occupation. However, they don t own sufficient land to earn their livelihoods or to produce the food required for them. Most of them are unskilled agricultural laborers and owned very small piece of land. Hence, their problems are multifaceted and working only for agricultural promotion or employment/income raising related activities will not assure for their food security. Increase in agricultural production and increased incomes are the major pre-condition for the household food security of the project beneficiaries. The possible and immediate resources for the targeted population are land and employment as well as other livelihood opportunities e.g (small non-farm activities). Depending in subsistence agricultural activities is not sufficient for those people to increase their income. Therefore, increased in incomes and agricultural production (changing in farming practices) and application of improved farm techniques and enhance the bio- diversity are expected outcomes and pre-condition for the household food security of the project beneficiaries in these VDCs. Thus the project aims to enhance local capacity to enhance their livelihood with sound land use management and document and disseminate local practices.

Nepal