LocationsWomen, Dalits, indigenous peoples, and marginalized groups benefit from the positive work done by local municipalities along with UNDP
Empowering Nepal’s targeted groups through local partnerships
July 24, 2026
Bharat Shrestha and Hira Shrestha, a farmer couple from Salle in Halesi Tuwachung Municipality, Khotang.
Photo: UNDP Nepal
When Hira Shrestha of Khotang received the ‘Outstanding Woman Farmer’ award along with Rs 25,000 in cash on International Women’s Day 2025, she was overjoyed. “I was so happy to learn that farming in a village could also bring recognition,” she shared. Halesi Tuwachung Municipality had honored Hira for her contribution to marketing by growing vegetables and fruits in drought-ravaged fields. She is also grateful to the municipality for equipping her with irrigational and agricultural skills that helped her become an award-worthy farmer. “Had they not brought irrigation and agricultural training, there would have been no way to do commercial farming in this dry place,” she says.
Hira Shrestha with the certificate of honor.
Photo - UNDP Nepal/ Robic Upadhyay
Despite having the Dudhkoshi and Sunkoshi rivers flowing next to the municipality, most of the land is drought-prone. In this municipality, the most drought-affected area in Khotang, there was a severe drinking water crisis until five years ago.
But when elected representatives came to Halesi Tuwachung Municipality through the 2017 local level elections, they took on the responsibility of solving the drinking water problem. “Water had to be carried from far away, women and girls suffered greatly, lack of irrigation meant crops wouldn’t grow, food wasn’t enough for the whole year, and seasonal vegetables weren’t available,” recalls Mayor Bimala Rai, “we had to provide water to the people no matter what.”
Bimala was the Deputy Mayor at that time. Local elected representatives had a comprehensive situation analysis of the municipality conducted in 2018. Through this, the reason for the water shortage in Halesi Tuwachung, situated at an elevation of up to 1,835 meters above sea level, was identified—due to low rainfall and steep rocky terrain, water ran off without underground recharge. This led to Halesi becoming the driest area in the entire district.”
After discovering the cause of the drought, Halesi’s elected representatives began running to provincial and federal ministries to resolve the drinking water problem. The federal government listened heard their voices in 2020. Following that, a ‘Watershed-Based Climate Resilient Livelihoods' project was launched in collaboration with the Ministry of Forests and Environment and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). The municipality and local residents became active in taking advantage of this project. Initially, water sources such as wells, stone spouts, and streams that were on the verge of disappearing in the area were revived through maintenance and repair. Locals got the opportunity to learn skills in rainwater harvesting for ponds, tunnels, and commercial farming along with fruit and vegetable seeds.
Dil Kumari Rai of Moli village in Okhaldhunga helps her neighbours cultivate crops inside a tunnel.
Photo - UNDP Nepal/ Robic Upadhyay
Now many homes i the municipality have ponds to collect rainwater. Local farmers use the water collected in these ponds for drip irrigation to grow off-season vegetables. Due to this, they have succeeded in earning an income without having to leave their homes.
Among them, 40-year-old Hira of Halesi Tuwachung Municipality-9 has established herself as a successful woman entrepreneur by engaging in commercial farming. Through this she also helped her husband avoid going abroad to support the family.
In 2025, the Hira and Bharat earned Rs 200,000 from vegetable farming and an additional Rs 45,000 from raising livestock. “There has been a change in life that I never imagined,” says Hira, “since the municipality head is a woman herself, it is easier for us to ask for programs and plans, and we have been able to earn income from home.”
Rice cultivation in the Majhi settlement of Halesi Tuwachung Municipality had not flourished due to a lack of sufficient water supply. However, the solar lifting irrigation introduced by UNDP's 'Developing Climate Resilient Livelihoods' has led to an increase in the production of rice. The municipality distributed corrugated iron sheets to 112 families whose roofs were unsuitable for building ponds and collecting water. This made rainwater harvesting easier.
Bimala Pariyar of Tinpiple in Okhaldhunga attending to her livestock.
Photo - UNDP Nepal/ Robic Upadhyay
After water became available, the municipality has also distributed hand tractors to women in households whose male members have gone abroad or moved to cities. Additionally, buffaloes have been provided as subsidies under shed improvement support to increase agricultural yield. The combination of farming and animal husbandry has brought visible change to farmers’ lives.
Halesi Tuwachung Municipalitys' Mayor Rai says "If the municipality had to do it alone, it would have been impossible to handle the technical aspects, commercial farming expansion, and community development all at once.” She says, “UNDP’s support has reduced that burden to zero.” Indeed, the project with a total cost of USD 7.9 million (more than Rs 1 billion) has benefited eight local units in Khotang and Okhaldhunga, including Halesi Tuwachung, which falls in the lower Dudhkoshi watershed area.
A municipal-level agricultural strategic plan has also been prepared to continue the efforts initiated through the project. An agriculture mart and a cold storage center have been established in the Halesi market. An agro-vet center is in operation to diagnose diseases affecting crops, livestock, fertilizers, and seeds. Mayor Rai says, “The municipality works to fulfill whatever need exists here.”
Good practices are being replicated
The work done by municipalities is not limited to just one place or area. Local governments have replicated the good practices in various parts of the country. Six years ago, a 380-kilowatt hydropower plant built under a renewable energy program for rural livelihoods on the Tara Khola in Baglung district with support from UNDP brought electricity access to more than 2,000 households in Tara Khola Rural Municipality. However, when consumers had to walk for hours to reach the office to pay electricity bills due to geographical difficulties, some found it burdensome.
For the convenience of the community members, smart electricity meters were been installed in coordination between the rural municipality and the electricity office. The electricity office installed meters in every consumer’s home and the rural municipality appointed sub-dealers in all wards for recharge card distribution. Due to this, for the first time in the district, Tara Khola hydropower consumers have received smart recharge meters at home. Om Gharti of Sip village, Tara Khola-5, says, “We no longer have to rush to pay 100/200 rupee bills. Our village has city-like facilities.”
Women in Tara Khola work on a potato chips factory powered by the 380-kilowatt Tara Khola hydropower plant.
Photo - UNDP Nepal/ Suraj Ratna Shakya
Many municipalities across the country have also made efforts in improving education and expanding citizens’ access to the health sector. Whether distributing midday snacks to children or distributing sanitary pads to adolescent girls, these efforts have increased student attendance rates in government schools in rural areas. Bal Bahadur Khatri, headmaster of Nepal National Basic School in Bheri Municipality-2, Jajarkot, says, “Children don’t miss school now because they get snacks to eat.”
Municipalities in Sudurpashchim and Karnali provinces have added convenience to patient treatment by running health camps in remote areas, while many have promoted local tourism destinations to increase domestic tourism. Homestays and goth-stays (farm-stay accommodations) built with local level subsidies have made things easier for tourists and trekkers. Pawihang Rai, president of the Yak Chauri Farmers’ Federation Nepal, says, “Local governments have done important work in commercial farming, animal husbandry, education, health, and infrastructure construction. That has made many things easier for ordinary citizens.”
Local residents of Halesi Tuwachung Municipality in Khotang have played an active role in community forest conservation and groundwater recharge.
Photo - UNDP Nepal/ Robic Upadhyay
Since elected representatives have come to municipalities from 2017 onwards, ordinary citizens have been able to connect with economic activities that improve their standard of living. For eight years, elected representatives have had the authority to make laws, formulate budgets, devise policies, make decisions, and implement them. As a result, many local governments have become doorstep guides listening to the citizens’ problems. “People are very happy about federalism now because local governments are doing commendable work in many places. Trust in local governments has increased because inclusive representation encompassing women, Dalits, indigenous peoples, and marginalized groups has addressed local needs,” says local governance expert Anita Guraganin.
In the Dalit settlement of Tinpiple in Okhaldhunga, water sources have been protected, ponds constructed, rainwater harvested, and pits have been dug to recharge groundwater.
Photo - UNDP Nepal/ Robic Upadhyay
After elected representatives were chosen at the local level, the difficulties citizens faced in accessing services have ended in many places. “We had to go to the district headquarters for projects worth Rs 10,000/15,000, and going there cost a lot,” says 61-year-old community leader Sitara Rai of Hatuwagadhi Rural Municipality-2, Bhojpur, “After local government came, budgets, programs, and plans have started arriving at our doorstep.”
The promptness shown by local elected representatives in resolving citizens’ problems has begun to yield positive results. According to a study on ‘Service Delivery Practices of Local Government in Federal Nepal’ published in the ‘Nepalese Journal of Development and Rural Studies’ in December 2019, local level service delivery has become more accessible for ordinary people than before. The conclusion of that study is that despite physical, financial, and human resource limitations, local elected representatives have shown higher accountability to citizens.
Alina Shrestha of Okhaldhunga cultivates tomatoes, bitter gourd and cucumbers in three tunnels.
Photo - UNDP Nepal/ Robic Upadhyay
Inclusive representation at the local level is the highest ever since the 2017 elections. After sustained struggle, women, Dalit women, indigenous peoples, minorities, Madhesis, Muslims, and persons with disabilities have been able to directly participate in local policy making, implementation, and monitoring. According to the Election Commission records, among 35,097 elected representatives in 753 local units across the country, 14,466 are women. Women hold the chief position in 25 local governments and the deputy chief position in 568. Among these, nine municipal chiefs and 16 deputy chiefs are Dalits and the number of Dalit women ward members is 6,620. Similarly, according to data from the National Federation of the Disabled, 40 people with disabilities have representation at the local level, including 6 women with disabilities. Federalism expert Somat Ghimire says, “Because there is inclusive representation at the local level, it has also become easier to make and implement inclusive budgets and programs.” He believes this has increased citizens’ sense of ownership toward local governments.
Associate Professor Janak Rai of the Central Department of Anthropology at Tribhuvan University considers the current representation at the local level a major achievement from an inclusivity standpoint. He says, “From the perspective of budget and use of authority, there is no reason for citizens to be dissatisfied with local governments. The participation and influence of women and Dalits in municipalities was never like this in the past. This is the greatest achievement so far. It has made things easier for targeted groups.”
Dipendra Rai of Khotang has raised 80 local-breed chickens for egg production.
Photo - UNDP Nepal/ Robic Upadhyay
In recent times, municipalities have been making efforts to address local concerns and make people’s lives easier. Senior advocate and Constituent Assembly member Khim Lal Devkota says, “Local governments themselves have confirmed that federalism is a system where you find the government when you open your door.”
Likewise, Lakshmi Devi Pande, president of the National Federation of Rural Municipalities says the presence of women elected representatives has helped bring gender and social inclusion issues into the mainstream. Pande, who is also the chairperson of Hupsekot Rural Municipality in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta East), says, “In most local units the deputy chief is a woman, and the judicial committee formed under their coordination has helped deliver justice to women affected by gender-based violence.”
Ultimately, the success stories emerging from municipalities like Halesi Tuwachung and Tara Khola are a testament to the transformative power of decentralized, inclusive governance. When local leaders are equipped with the right resources and bolstered by strategic development partnerships with organizations like UNDP, they can turn geographical vulnerabilities into engines of sustainable community growth. As grassroots governments continue to mature across Nepal, their steadfast commitment to climate resilience, economic empowerment, and social inclusion ensures that the true promise of federalism will keep reaching the doorsteps of those who need it most.
A version of this article was posted on Nepal News.
Photo - UNDP Nepal/ Robic Upadhyay
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